Arched Windows And Vaulted Ceilings Help To Make This A Bright And Open Apartment Interior

Photography by Tony Soluri

dSPACE Studio has designed a modern penthouse apartment in Chicago, Illinois, that started out as a raw space atop a luxury high-rise building.

The French-inspired building has a mansard roof with arched windows and vaulted ceilings.

Photography by Tony Soluri

Influenced by these unalterable architectural elements, the interiors expresses the vault detail in ceilings and doorways throughout.

Photography by Tony Soluri

Arches offer dramatic space for the owner’s art collection and temper the impact of 14-foot ceilings. Dark elements, like a custom-designed steel shelving unit helps to conceal the television in plain sight.

Photography by Tony Soluri

The home owner wanted to have an open-plan contemporary residence that maximizes the expansive city and lake views.

Photography by Tony Soluri

The designers combined contemporary details with traditional materials. A minimalist reveal is used in place of baseboards, while oversized oak flooring provides a modern reinterpretation of herringbone and compliments the large scale space.

Photography by Tony Soluri

Throughout the penthouse, the veneer of the millwork was carefully sourced to match the flooring, and Ruth Johnson Interiors curated the artful furnishings.

Photography by Tony Soluri

Small alcoves, like this one below, has been designated as a music area with a piano and guitar stand.

Photography by Tony Soluri

In the guest bathroom, a floor-to-ceiling mirror reflects the hidden lighting in the ceiling, and draws attention to the height of the space.

Photography by Tony Soluri

Structural challenges influenced the design. The living spaces were located at the perimeter of the penthouse to maximize views, but the utility stacks did not align.

To overcome this challenge, we raised the master suite one step to increase design flexibility and provide clearance to connect the new bathroom to existing plumbing.

Photography by Tony Soluri

In the master suite, the wood flooring continues, while a television has been built into the wall opposite the bed.

Photography by Tony Soluri

In the master bathroom, a freestanding bathtub sits directly in front of a large arched window, while a large vanity and mirror line the wall.

Photography by Tony Soluri

In another bathroom, the shower is built into an alcove, allowing the shower door to line up with the wall.

Photography by Tony Soluri

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What Vaulted Ceilings Are, How to Use Them Properly Today & Inspiration

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Vaulted ceilings are relics of the old days with a grand allure to them that still manage to thrive in our relatively mundane modern spaces. In effect, they cause a great deal of disagreement amongst both professionals and amateurs, and homeowners themselves, some vouching their love for the grandiosity and airiness of the ceilings, while others deem it too wasteful an expense: of time, money, energy and space.

What are Vaulted Ceilings?

Vaulted ceilings are known by quite a few names, high ceilings and raised ceilings being a few. But, they are most commonly referred to as cathedral ceilings and for a good reason. Dating back to hundreds of years, the basilicas and the cathedrals of Medieval Europe were the first, and at that time, the only structures to feature the modern day vaulted ceilings.

By definition, vaulted ceilings are arched. But, it isn’t necessary for a vaulted ceiling to be so. Any raised ceiling with the height of no less than 8 feet is considered a vaulted ceiling.

This does not mean, of course, that vaulted ceilings have always been restricted to a particular design. In fact, throughout history the vault has evolved and taken many shapes and forms, both being influenced and influencing the style of its time and the future.

Types of Vaulted Ceilings?

Domed Vaults

Domed vaults precede the gothic era of cathedrals by several millennia, and the most dated example is found in Cyprus. The circular buildings of 6000 BCE Khirokitia, a neolithic village, used unfired mud bricks to shape domed vaults like a beehive. The beehive vault is also found in Northern Iraq and Crete.

Still, in its crude stage, the domed vault isn’t necessarily considered a proper vault as it revolves around a vertical axis of its own as opposed to a vault which is forced out into the third dimension.

Pitched Brick Vaults

Evolving from the domed and beehive vaults around 3000 BC in Mesopotamia, the pitched brick vault differed itself in the manner of installation of the bricks. Instead of being laid radially, they were placed vertically and lean at an angle that frees the vault from relying on centering for completion.

Barrel Vaults

Resembling a barrel cut in half in length, a barrel vault is simplistic in design yet imposing in its result when applied with a masterful knowledge of using space. First found in Babylon, built by Sumerian architects with clay mortar and fired bricks, the barrel vault has been featured from ancient Egypt and Assyria and throughout the ancient Roman Empire and Pre-Islamic Persia.

Groin Vaults

The groin vault marked a distinct shift in vault design and signaled the evolution of architectural ingenuity. A groin vault is created when two semicircular barrel vaults, measuring the same diameter, intersect. Easier to conjure in the mind and tougher to implement in practice, the groin vault was nevertheless used with careful consideration in the construction of the Caracalla Baths in Rome. Evolving from the baths, the groin vault was later used with an enormous diameter of 142 feet in the Pantheon of Rome.

Rib Vaults

Rib vaults were revolutionary, in both the impressive visage of their design and the sheer complexity of constructing them. At first look, the make of the ribs combined with the dome seems impossible and contradicting to the requirements of each. But, this was achieved by first setting up the ribs diagonally, establishing them as centers. The vault was then carried on these ribs. The design was aided by using a semicircular arch instead of cylinders for the ribs, hence giving the look of a domed vault, but with ribs.

Fan Vaults

The fan vault uses a single curve centering for all the ribs, aided by the four-centered arch wherein the arch’s lower portion formed a part of the conoid while the upper one was expanded to a flexible radius across the vault. The result is an intricate set of ribs spreading like fans or the tail of a peacock.

Road to the Cathedral Vault

The Byzantine and Roman architecture saw a return of the domed vault but with greater complexity, with the domes establishing themselves between arches of great height, each complimenting the other while giving an illusion of a lack of co-dependence, as found most popularly in the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. Octagonal domed arches were also created to give the appearance of an umbrella while semicircular barrel vaults can be seen in the make of many romanesque churches.

When the Gothic vault took precedence in the Middle ages, the vaults evolved from being vulnerable or seen from both inside and outside to just inside. The architects protected these vaults with wooden roofs, and the traditional image of the vault changed, and the roof became more prominent.

Modern Vaults

Modern-day vaults are created using a hyperbolic paraboloid. It is a surface which has a double curve, with both convex and concave forms present on different axes, be it two axes or more. The magic of a hyperbolic paraboloid is quite simple: two straight lines form the basis of every point on the surface, with the hyperbolic format used for the horizontal sections while the parabolic one is used for the vertical sections. Used mostly in shell roofs, hyperbolic paraboloids are constructed using a set of straight members.

Vaulted Ceilings, Yes or No?

The right answer would be maybe.

Like everything else, vaulted ceilings come with their own set of pros and cons, with the cons depending on when, where and how you want your vaulted ceilings to be constructed.

Construction

The truth is vaulted ceilings are incredibly difficult and expensive to construct if you’re deciding to remodel your flat ceiling. Yes, it is possible to convert your drab and unneeded (and spooky material for horror films) attic into a vaulted ceiling, but any contractor will balk at the task and recommend you not to go ahead with it, or charge you an equally taxing sum for the remodeling. Hence, they are best made during the construction of your house.

Spatial Advantages and Disadvantages

It is true that vaulted ceilings add more space to your house, but only up top and nothing to the floor space. They provide a credible illusion of space when beholden, the immensity of height adding to the wow factor. They also make your house airier, with the addition of skylight to the vaulted ceiling or with the increased space creating taller windows to bring in more light.

Hot air finds an easy venting area due to the increased height of the vaulted ceiling. But they can also add to your heating expense in winter as you are essentially heating for the space of two rooms while only technically heating one room. The same goes for cooling down your space in summer. You can shave off some expense here by double glazing the glass around the windows and skylight.

If this one issue is a non-issue to you, or you feel it is a necessary expense for the sake of relaxing your mind with more non oppressive space in your house, then vaulted ceilings are for you.

Aesthetics

Aesthetically, modern-day vaulted ceilings serve many purposes. Ceiling beams are the in-thing today, adding character to your roof space and making you feel less claustrophobic. Ceiling beams also give a more skeleton like feel to your house, making it look less mechanical and more relatable. Add to this skeletal allure by covering the beams with wooden planks to give it a more rustic, cabin in the woods feel.

Most trusses these days, including the standard scissor trusses used for vaulted ceilings, are made separately and installed into a house during construction. There are different designs of trusses for you to choose from: Polynesian, clerestory, gambrel, bobtail, oxford, scissors etc.

Possibilities

Of course, with the right budget and the right architect you can experiment with vaulted ceilings, perhaps use old vault techniques and merge them with the new to have for yourself a vault worthy of flaunting.

But, if you’re running on a tight budget and already have a fully constructed house, vaults are not the best option for you. Tray ceilings and false ceilings are more feasible alternatives to add character and space to your house.

Contemporary Vaulted Ceilings Design Inspiration Follows

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What do you think ? How do you see vaulted ceilings ? We would love to hear from you in the comment section below !