A Bat Yam High-Rise Apartment Designed for Occasional Stays
About seven years ago, an Israeli who now lives in Amsterdam bought a highly elevated apartment on the 44th floor of a tower in Bat Yam, while the building was still under construction. The 130-square-meter unit was originally planned with five rooms, and the owner, who uses it only for visits to Israel, later asked interior designer Eldad Mitelman to adapt it for a single occupant and to give it a distinctly European feel.
Mitelman said the project was delayed for years after the purchase. “After the purchase of the apartment, which was meant for the client’s visits to Israel, we waited three or four years until we got the key,” he recalled. “Then there was another delay.” The team initially wanted to enlarge the living-room window to better capture the open sea view, but construction issues, a plumbing pipe, permit delays, and finally concern that changes could crack the rooftop pool above forced them to abandon the idea.
Once that was dropped, the renovation moved ahead. The apartment was reduced to three bedrooms instead of four, and the design leaned fully into a European style, with no local or Middle Eastern touches. The entrance opens to a central space with a curved dining-area wall, custom woodwork by Niv-Raz, and stone used consistently across the entry, living room and kitchen to create continuity. Avivi supplied the bright kitchen cabinets, while much of the furniture came from Yossi Barkovich’s store.
The living room is framed by three walls, two clad in wood, one with a faux fireplace niche, and one covered in a Fornasetti cloud-pattern wallpaper. Because the window to the sea was smaller than desired, Mitelman hung floor-to-ceiling mirrors to reflect the view as soon as someone enters. The mirrors were assembled in two parts because they would not fit in the elevator. A large artwork by Adva Kramer, bought at Toleman’s and referencing Gustav Klimt’s “The Kiss,” hangs between them. The private wing includes the owner’s bedroom, en-suite bathroom, guest toilet and office, with blue guest-bath tiles, teak shower flooring, and a main suite styled with landscape wallpaper and a glass-striped door to preserve privacy while letting light through.
