Apartment in a Single-family House in Wieliczka by One Desk
Apartment in a Single-family House in Wieliczka sits on a steep slope in Wieliczka, Poland, where One Desk rethinks an apartment carved into multiple levels. The studio reorganizes circulation and daily routines around a two-story living window with a view toward Kraków. The result is a compact home that gains clarity through a strategic stair turn, added storage, and a quiet palette that steadies the tall room.
Late western light pours through a two-story pane, washing the living room in an amber lane. From the slope above Kraków, the apartment steps down in tight half-levels that pull view, circulation, and daily tasks into one measured sequence.
This is an apartment in Wieliczka, Poland, designed by One Desk in 2022. Set within a single-family house on a steep site, the home turns a split-level constraint into a clear plan. The throughline is movement: reorienting the stair to win room, light, and legibility.
Turn the Stairs
The builder’s original reinforced-concrete stair was bulky and oddly shaped. By changing the stair’s direction between the entry and living room, the plan recovers enough area for a proper dining table without crowding the route. The concrete core stays, concealed within new construction, while the volume reads cleaner and the lower level breathes.
Lighten the Volume
A circular opening pierces the stair enclosure. Through it, wooden treads and a planted green wall come into view, and the once-dim corridor picks up borrowed light. It’s a small cut, yet it breaks the mass, lets sightlines thread across levels, and lends a hint of play to a compact path.
Define Daily Zones
The living room stands tall but stays human in scale. Kitchen cabinetry keeps to a low horizon, and a planter-lamp suspended over the island quietly marks where cooking ends and gathering begins. Western exposure feeds the plants overhead, so the green canopy grows fast and lush, adding a soft boundary without blocking the room’s long view.
Store Within the Rise
Under-stair pockets turn leftover wedges into useful storage. What had been dead corners now hold household goods, keeping circulation clear and the dining area open. The move trims visual noise and lets the tall glazing and art collection carry the eye.
Warm the Finish
Plywood and oak veneer run through the living areas and the upper bath in varied tones. Against a continuous gray microcement floor, the wood adds visual warmth and a gentle grain that grounds the vertical drama. Walls stay lightly organized, leaving room for the owners’ paintings, photographs, and even an old mining telephone—personal notes that anchor the tall room.
Evening pulls across Kraków and the glass turns into a quiet mirror. Inside, the stair’s round aperture glows, and the planter-lamp hums above the island. The home holds its levels—ordered, legible, and ready for the next climb.
Photography courtesy of One Desk
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