House tour | Living a colorful life up on the rooftop

House tour | Living a colorful life up on the rooftop

Zurich’s Wiedikon district was once a working-class residential area. Today it’s getting trendy. We head for this unimposing new building. Up under the roof is a little oasis. The elevator takes us directly into the apartment. Erika Bichsel and her partner have live din this 170 square meter condominium for five years now. The view over Zurich was what sold him on it.

The couple did the interior design of the loft apartment themselves. They wanted lots of colors. I lived in a house where practically everything was white for more than 20 years. The floor, ceiling, walls, everything was just white.And here from the start I said I want colorful walls. And people don’t really notice it when they are here. No one has ever said, ‘Oh there really is a lot of color here!’ or anything like that.

I think everything has turned out harmoniously. They changed the floor plan completely.Now the center of the apartment is the open kitchen with the dining and living area. A 65 square metre space. When the weather is good, it opens onto the terrace.

The greenery here was designed by the renowned Swiss architect Enzo Anaya. For this room it was important to be able to extend the living space in the summer. And we realized that when we opened the sliding window all the way,you are already basically outside, when you sit at this table.

The bedroom has lots of color accents too: a free-standing wall separates the sleeping area from the bath. The wash basin and the bathtub were designed by the Swiss industrial designer Hannes Wettstein. Putting a glass door on the bathroom was a daring decision. I’m alone when I’m in there, so why do I need another door.

I think the effect is nice with the mosaics, that you can see from the outside. Their furniture is a colorful mixture of old heirlooms, like the 200 year old kitchen cupboard, and modern designer pieces. Erica Bichsel knew how to spruce up these somewhat elderly chairs.

The chairs get new clothes, new slipcovers, every once in a while. These chairs will soon be 20 years old and I don’t know how many dresses they’ve already worn. I’d change them again and again. I have summer fabrics and winter fabrics.That was kind of my thing. It’s easy to change them.

Erika Bichsel wants her art colorful – she’s a big fan of the American pop artist Charles Ficino. This picture reminds her of her former job. I used to be a flight attendant, flying to New York and other places. Of course I saw alot of the world.

When I started spending more time at home to bring up the kids, I bought this painting by Ficino of New York as a souvenir. Because in some months I flew there four times. But now she’s back at home in Switzerland and what she cherishes most here, are her home’s comfy atmosphere and it’s view of Zurich.