Transformation of classic Frogner apartment

Functionality reigns supreme in this classic Frogner apartment in central Oslo, but the decorative plasterwork, the original rosettes and the beautiful floors testify to the fact that the property was built 125 years ago.

The classic apartment block on Bygdøy Allé was designed by the Norwegian architect Christian Fürst and built in 1898. In 2016, Lene Bruvoll and Robert Arntsen acquired the 128-square-metre fourth-floor apartment. They loved the location of the property in the middle of the central and exclusive chestnut-lined avenue, and not least the potential it held. “It was a wonderful flat with high ceilings and classic details, but it had a poor floor plan,” recalls Robert.

In renovating the property, Lene and Robert have sought to strike the right balance between reestablishing the original details and at the same time creating a home which is suited for modern living: The kitchen has been moved into the original dining room, the old kitchen has become a bedroom, and part of the large old bathroom has become a children’s bedroom for the couple’s daughter Esther Andrea.

Many of the apartment’s original details had been lost during previous renovation work, so Lene and Robert spent a long time studying pictures of old Frogner apartments so they could recreate the original high panels in the hallway, which also houses a concealed wardrobe. Lene and Robert also reestablished the high panels in the kitchen based on an original panel in the next-door apartment. More than anything, however, the original floor emphasises the style. The couple has had the floors sanded and treated with white pigmented wax.

Lene and Robert first painted the apartment in classic shades of white and grey, but one day Robert read an article about an apartment across the street where the colour expert Dagny Thurmann-Moe from the paint shop Koi Fargestudio had created a completely different look with colours. This inspired the couple to use colour to a greater extent in their décor.

The colour expert was given free rein, so that on entering the apartment, you are greeted by a warm Kenyan Copper, Radiohus pendants from Louis Poulsen with a mix of vintage finds. From the kitchen, you look down through the aubergine-coloured living room to the green TV room, which is painted in the colour Bancha. Designer furniture from Finn Juhl is arranged around a vintage armchair that Robert’s aunt bought in the neighbouring district of Skøyen in 1972 – and on the walls hangs pictures by well-known artists juxtaposed with drawings by the couple’s daughter.

The couple has furnished the kitchen with a Classic uno form bespoke kitchen in smoked oak with a Corian worktop. The ceiling and walls are painted in the colour Setting Plaster from Farrow & Ball, while the plasterwork, rosette and mouldings are painted in the colour London Stone. The kitchen was designed by uno form Oslo.

For Robert and Lene, the aesthetics and quality of the kitchen have been particularly important. “The modern uno form kitchen with its precise lines contrasts elegantly with the architecture of the old apartment, and the floating look makes the kitchen feel more like an exquisite piece of furniture than a traditional kitchen installation. On top of which, the deep wooden drawers are not only beautiful, but also incredibly practical and almost indestructible. Our kitchen is seven years old now and still looks almost like new, even though we use it a lot every single day,” says Robert Arntsen.