Hidden in the streets of the French Concession is the chic apartment of architect and urban planner Eva Wang. Eva redesigned her 1930s apartment herself, creating one of the funkiest residences in town.

Situated on the top floor of an old, three storey villa off Fuxing Lu, Eva Wang’s home is hidden away behind an unassuming exterior. Inside, old Shanghai is given a sleek modern makeover, where fine art and folk furnishings meet. 

After studying and working in the architectural capital of Chicago, Harbin-born Eva bought her Shanghai apartment two years ago. She was initially anxious about the place being too small, but changed her mind when she found out it had previously housed a family of 12.

Eva loves living in the French Concession. “The first thing I liked about the place was the location,” she says. “Its really quiet outside and I love the culture and history of the neighbourhood.” Eva saw potential for the space immediately and made plans to knock through many of the walls which had separated the space into separate rooms. It was six months before the renovations were finished. They included removing the low ceiling, creating a loft and installing skylights.

“In the beginning I may have scared my neighbours,” Eva says. “I think they were worried about someone like me moving in and making a fuss out of the construction, as including the stairs, the courtyard and the lighting, so they accepted me and we get on really well.”

Eva says her Shanghai home reflects her impulsive personality and she enjoyed being able to play with designs without having to consider clients’ restrictions. “I decorate in a random fashion,” She says. “It’s not a project, it’s my life and for the first time I am my own client. At work I design everything through a process, here I like spontaneity and to just pick up things here and there.”

Although much of the apartment as it stands today has changed, there are still some remnants of yesteryear, which Eva says are very important to her. She kept the original ceiling beams and restored the old wooden floors. The house also has a single bare, grey brick interior wall, which she extended by matching new bricks to the ones already there. She even found a chimney buried inside a column of bricks, which she restored to working order.

In decorating her home, Eva used a palette of black and white, which people told her was “too cold for a woman.” It became the perfect backdrop, however, when she moved in her colourful artwork and furnishings.

Everything in Eva’s home has its own individual story and many items were recycled or found. The windows were taken from old houses and a chest in her living room was bargained for on the street, even though it ostensibly hadn’t been for sale. Her dining table was crafted by a contractor from walls she had removed. “Its very sturdy wood and I thought it seemed a shame to throw it away,” she said. “So I decided to make it into a table. My contractor had to make it right here as it was too big and heavy to put together somewhere else.”

Eva drew on influences from many other cultures when decorating her home. Having travelled a lot, she has picked up memorabilia from around the world. Some of her favourite items include masks and a drum from Africa, paintings from Brazil, small orange stools from Mongolia and a fur blanket from Berlin. Her bedroom draws on Chinese and African influences. The bed itself is covered with a red and orange Sri Lankan sari silk draped over a Ming Dynasty-inspired four poster bed which she designed herself. “I love the Art Deco patterns on the front door to the house,” she says, “so my contractor made the top of the bed to the same design.”

When asked what future plans Eva has for her home she simply replied, “It will come to me.” She admits, “I have always wanted a garden, so maybe I will be able do up the courtyard one day and plant some flowers.”

Web: www.evawangstudio.com