July 16, 2025 | DESIGN & INTERIORS
the ART of LIVING SOFTLY
words Elena Grabar
photos Mikhail Loskutov
architect + interior designer Ariana Ahmad
style Natalia Onufreichuk
In a quiet, historic corner of Moscow, a serene family home designed by architect Ariana Ahmad unfolds with grace and intention. Rooted in English-style architecture and surrounded by a private garden imagined by British landscape designer Chris Beardshaw, the apartment feels at once timeless and deeply personal.
A REINTERPRETED CLASSICISM
The owners—a couple with a young child—gave Ariana full creative freedom. From two separate apartments, she shaped a single, flowing layout that begins with a generous entrance hall. A mosaic by English artist James Hill, crafted in Paris, anchors the entry alongside a sculptural console table. The space opens into an elegant, open-plan living area where the fireplace, lounge, and dining zones coexist with ease.
“The building’s architecture suggested an understated kind of luxury,” Ariana says. “I wanted the interiors to reflect that spirit—classically structured, but with emotional depth and a sense of ease.”
Behind a ribbed wood partition, a concealed door leads to the private wing: a smaller hallway, a home office, and a children’s zone. The layout plays with openness and retreat—balancing communal moments with quiet ones, in tune with family life.
HARMONY OF MATERIALS AND LIGHT
The palette throughout is soft and earthy—natural woods, chalky tones, layered neutrals. Texture brings everything to life: velvet-upholstered chairs from Audo Copenhagen, crystal lighting by Christopher Boots, and the rich grain of French herringbone parquet.
Breccia di Sicilia marble wraps the kitchen backsplash and fireplace—its swirling pattern echoing the building’s original stonework and continuing the dialogue between exterior and interior.
Custom-designed pieces blend seamlessly with furniture by Christophe Delcourt and Collection Particulier. De Gournay wallpaper, traditional window shutters, and diffused daylight enhance what Ariana calls a “softly Parisian” atmosphere—elegant, grounded, and calm.
“Light and texture are inseparable in my work,” she adds. “I’m always looking for that quiet balance—where every surface holds the light in its own way.”
ART AS ATMOSPHERE
For Ariana, art is not an afterthought—it’s a quiet force that shapes the mood of a space. In the living room, monochrome vases by Véronique Ganne explore the limits of texture and glaze—matte, glossy, translucent. On the walls, diptychs by Paris-based Brazilian artist Daniela Busarello bring a poetic stillness, while a contemplative painting by Li Chevalier invites pause in the dining area. In the home office, a piece by Paul Bergigne reflects the subtle movement of nature.
“Art gives the home its voice,” she says. “It creates presence—subtle, lasting, and intimate.”
That feeling continues in the bathrooms, where black-and-white photographs by Masao Yamamoto offer visual haikus—delicate reflections on silence and transience.
A TERRACE ABOVE THE CITY
One of the home’s most treasured spaces is the open terrace overlooking the rooftops of old Moscow. Furnished with pieces by Minotti, it becomes a private summer haven for the family—just as thoughtful and balanced as the interiors. A space for breakfasts, reading, evening air.
Here too, Ahmad’s design invites stillness and presence—a quiet rhythm shaped by memory, light, and the beauty of restraint.
