A Paris apartment where Andréa de Busni turns colour into an architectural language

In an elegant 1930s building, just steps from the Eiffel Tower, this 140 m² apartment—once suspended in time—has been given new life. Today it speaks again through colour, through light, and through a sequence of architectural gestures that reveal the sensibility of Andréa de Busni, a young interior designer of great talent. The project tells the story of a profound transformation, and also of a human encounter, of a shared trust that ultimately infused every room of the home. 

Everything began in a park, the Champ de Mars, when a beagle and a yorkshire—Willy and Maurice—brought their owners together. From that chance moment grew a relationship shaped by conversations, walks and confidences. Meriem, the owner of the apartment, brought her intuitions and her still-undefined desires. Andréa, after visiting the spaces with their high ceilings, 1930s corners and a structure full of possibilities, brought a clear vision. Thus began a process that would completely renew the home, creating a new way of living for Meriem.

An entrance that sets the tone

From the entrance hall, Andréa establishes the rhythm of the project. A deep aubergine tone—La Bacchanale by Ressource—wraps the space as if announcing that, beyond that threshold, another atmosphere awaits. Custom archways, mirrored panels concealing secret doors, and a graphic granite floor bring movement and mystery; each gesture invites you to advance, following a silent and precise choreography.

The circulation, once fragmented, is entirely rethought. The designer restructures the kitchen, laundry, pantry and guest bathroom, unifying them with a continuous layer of béton ciré in the shade Ferdinand, which offers coherence without sacrificing the character of each room. The original spaces, carefully preserved, now open onto a contemporary breath that enhances the memory of the building.

A sculptural kitchen

In Meriem’s home, the kitchen is not merely functional: it is a place of gathering. Andréa conceives it as an emotional and domestic anchor point, an interior landscape that orders daily life. At its centre, an imposing island clad in Rombini ceramic tiles by the Bouroullec brothers (Mutina) commands the space like a true sculpture.

Taj Mahal quartzite countertops illuminate the room with warm nuances, inviting the pleasure of culinary art. Nearby, tall cabinets in Rubio-stained oak keep everything in order without compromising elegance, while the olive-green fronts—Nicobar bronze—converse with other chromatic accents throughout the apartment. A delicate Art Deco-inspired screen creates a natural transition between the kitchen and the dining room, completing a truly exquisite space.

In the dining area, surrounding the glossy Gabrielle Paris table, handcrafted chairs, subtle nods to the 1970s, and the luminous TRN installation—a design by Magda Jurek for Pani Jurek inspired by the graphic world of painter Jan Tarasin—add a playful and original note to the room.

Wood: the project’s underlying rhythm

Like a pulse repeating at different scales, stained wood runs through the entire apartment. It appears in the curves of the doors, in the archways, in the bespoke handles designed for the project, and in the fronts of the wardrobes. Its presence—always gentle—brings cohesion without rigidity, reinforces the rhythm and creates a warm continuity between spaces.

Colour as language

Clients call Andréa “Madame Couleur”, and in this project we understand why. For her, the colour palette is not a decorative resource but a parallel architecture that supports the home’s identity. Olive, khaki, aubergine and mustard tones appear at strategic points, engaging in dialogue. Each room offers its own state of mind. The Radiant Dune wallpaper by Inkiostro Bianco, displayed in the dining room, acts as an emotional mural—vibrant and graphic—that distils the project’s overarching sensitivity.

The making of an authentic home

Meriem wanted an authentic home, not a set designed for social media. Andréa responded with a sophisticated mix of vintage pieces—from the 1930s, 40s and 70s—contemporary design, and objects sourced from places such as House of Barcia, Willow and Grove, or Selency. The result is a domestic landscape where eras converse and life finds its own order.

The project—As Andréa herself points out—is above all the story of a beautiful encounter that has created a deep complicity between client and designer, between ideas that mature in step with long conversations on a Parisian terrace. “I don’t just want the client to be involved; I want them to feel involved,” the designer explains. This emotional companionship accounts for the serenity that permeates the apartment, the sense that each decision arises from a profound and shared understanding.

Meriem sums it up clearly: “This apartment is truly my home. Andréa has been much more than a professional: she has been a present and attentive companion. She managed to extract, from the chaos of my inspirations, the essence of my desires—even those I myself couldn’t yet articulate.”

A place that breathes again

This remarkable project is an example of how Andréa de Busni understands her craft: an interior architecture that listens and accompanies. Spaces that build memory rather than imitate trends, that awaken with the life of those who inhabit them. A triptych of colour and character where an unexpected friendship and the intuition of a highly sensitive designer have found a place to unfold.

Project: Laos.
Location: París.
Area: 140 m².
Completion: 2025.
Interior design: Andréa de Busni.
Photography: Oracle.
Source: Andréa de Busni.

Andréa de Busni

Andréa de Busni is part of a new generation of French interior architects who understand space as a living organism, capable of telling stories through light, material and objects. Her work is recognised for the delicacy with which she orchestrates these three dimensions, shaping interiors that seem to breathe from within, with an identity that always emerges from the essence of the place.

Graduated with distinction from École Camondo in 2017, she developed there a particular sensitivity to the relationship between body and space. Her final project—focused on movement, rhythm and language as drivers of interior architecture—already anticipated a deeply scenographic approach, which today has become the core of her practice.

After a formative period alongside Xavier De Saint-Jean at Studio Azimut, where she worked on residential projects, commercial scenographies and coworking spaces, Andrea began to define her own methodology. Since then, she has developed projects in Paris and other regions of France, spanning both private homes and spaces linked to the restaurant sector, with meticulous attention to material selection, colour palettes and design pieces.

Her studio, located in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, has grown into a laboratory of aesthetic exploration. There, each project is conceived as an identity in the making, a nascent DNA revealed through the combination of deep colours, tactile textures, refined lines and objects that converse across eras. Andrea nurtures a particular fascination for motifs and pieces “from yesterday, today and tomorrow”: elements capable of lending emotional depth to a space and giving it a singular character.

Andréa de Busni’s approach is profoundly human. Her design accompanies the client with precision and sensitivity, interpreting their wishes to transform them into habitable atmospheres that harmonise comfort, beauty and memory. Her work reflects a constant search for authenticity: interiors that illuminate the lives of those who inhabit them.

Project by Andréa de Busni