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Manea Kella

Architecture and interiors that listen to their past, speak to the present and adapt for their future.

North London, since 2017

Daylight is drawn deep into the plan.

Three of their rooms across one day. Scroll, and the sun moves.

A wooden table beneath a glass roof, against an exposed brick wall.
MorningThe glass roof above the combined kitchen and dining area.Crownhill Road
A minimalist bathroom with a sculptural white bath under a skylight, a beam of daylight crossing the wall.
MiddayMain bathroom with angled skylight.Crownhill Road
A contemporary kitchen extension with glazed doors open to a bright planted courtyard.
AfternoonContinuous floor treatment helps extend both the dining space and the courtyard.Heathside House

Built work

Five homes and a hotel, photographed as built. Open one for the story, the facts and more of the rooms.

  1. Heathside House Dartmouth Park, London, 2025 Modernist kitchen with linear wood cabinetry, stainless fittings and green tile, glass doors open to a patio.
  2. Rural Retreat Colston Bassett, Nottinghamshire, 2022 Barn conversion interior with exposed timber beams and a Douglas fir kitchen.
  3. Casa Popeea Brăila, Romania, 2019 A minimalist reception with a curved white desk and timber library wall.
  4. Hampstead Home Hampstead, London, 2026 A luminous Hampstead lounge with expansive glazing onto the rear garden.
  5. Railway Cottage Kentish Town, London, 2024 A bedroom with an expressed butterfly ceiling and two sash windows.
  6. Crownhill Road Harlesden, London, 2017 View from the rear garden into a dining space with a timber table.

Simple, high quality, often natural materials.

Up close first, then the whole surface. Every swatch is a detail from one of their photographs.

Edwardian green timber door with textured glazing above glazed green tiles.
Glazed green tileA tactile palette of glazed green tiles, lime render, and stained timber references local vernacular.Heathside House
Two panelled stained oak cabinet doors with brass handles.
Stained oak and brassBespoke joinery details feature stained oak and brass ironmongery.Hampstead Home
Looking up at Douglas fir roof rafters in a barn conversion.
Douglas firExpressed Douglas fir timber framed roof rafters and sarking.Rural Retreat
Grey ceramic vessels in hourglass and spherical forms.
ClayThe finishes vary slightly in both hue and texture.Popeea Ceramics
Bird's-eye view of an oak table leg joint.
Oak joineryLeg joinery detail.Popeea Furniture
A spa passage with a stone wall, black stone floor and an oak stool.
Limestone and marbleThe Spa features a refined palette including local limestone, black marble and stained solid oak.Casa Popeea

To craft impeccable, elegant and thoughtful spaces and objects.

Manea Kella was founded in 2017 by Elena Kella and Adrian Manea, both RIBA Chartered Architects. The studio is a certified B Corp.

To inform each response they investigate the historic and vernacular context, applying what they learn with fresh eyes and the attitude of a craftsperson.

Their approach always explores volume, light and a sense of space, for spaces and objects that age gracefully and adapt to changing needs.

Adrian Manea and Elena Kella standing beside a table of ceramics in a softly lit interior.
Adrian Manea and Elena Kella, architects and directors
An architect drawing on tracing paper over site plans.

Recognition

  1. 2026FRAME AwardsSilver: HouseHeathside House
  2. 2023AJ Retrofit AwardsShortlisted: House up to £500,000Rural Retreat
  3. 2023RIBA AwardsShortlisted: Regional East MidlandsRural Retreat
  4. 2022Dezeen AwardsLonglisted: Emerging Architecture Studio of the YearManea Kella
  5. 2022British Homes AwardsShortlisted: Homes Transformation of the YearRural Retreat
  6. 2022IFI DDAShortlisted: StayCasa Popeea
  7. 2021World Architecture Festival INSIDEShortlisted: HotelsCasa Popeea
  8. 2021FRAME AwardsShortlisted: HospitalityCasa Popeea
  9. 2021Anuala de ArhitecturăWinner: HoReCa Design AwardCasa Popeea
  10. 2020AHEAD Europe AwardsShortlisted: Hotel ConversionCasa Popeea
  11. 2020HD AwardsShortlisted: Restorations, Transformations and ConversionsCasa Popeea
  12. 2020FX Design AwardsWinner: HotelCasa Popeea
  13. 2020AZ AwardsWinner: Commercial and Institutional InteriorsCasa Popeea
  14. 2020BigSEE Interior Design AwardWinner: Hospitality InteriorsCasa Popeea
The rear extension of Crownhill Road at dusk, its rooms lit from inside.
Crownhill Road, at dusk

Start with the building as it is.

Homes, hotels and workplaces, in London and abroad. Write to the studio about yours.

info@maneakella.com

Studio
39–41 Lonsdale Road, London NW6 6RA
Instagram
@maneakella