A double-height studio penthouse taken almost entirely to black, with four exploding-star pendants hung the full drop of the void.

The apartment's one real asset is its height, so everything else was darkened to let the volume read: charcoal walls, black joinery, a black steel stair and full-height curtains that absorb rather than reflect. Four sputnik pendants drop through the void at staggered heights and do most of the lighting, with a track overhead picking out the kitchen and the loft. The kitchen runs the length of one wall in matte black with an integrated oven and a floating shelf of the same material, so the appliances disappear into the elevation. Warmth comes from exactly two places: a wide-plank oak floor, and the loft above, where a mirrored wardrobe front bounces the window light back across the bed. A lit niche beside the stair holds glassware and a wine rack, built into the wall rather than standing against it.