ByIainReynoldsLosAngeles(p. 116 )
StudioShamshiritransformsa Hollywood
villaintoa homefromhomeforitsstaff.
Withtheircomfysofas,tequilabar,and
spacious diningkitchen, it’s sometimes
hardtobelievetheseareactuallyoffices–
butthen,forPamelaandRaminShamshiri,
thatwasthedesiredeffect.Cofoundersof
Commune,thesiblingshavenowsetup
theirowndesignpractice,installingit ina
SpanishColonial-stylevillathat,having
lastbeenusedasa cuttingstudio,wassplit
intodozensofwindowlessrooms.After
buyingthe1920shouse,builtforanac -
tor/screenwritercouple,thepairripped
everythingoutandsetaboutcreatinginte-
riorswitha warm,welcomingvibe.Their
informalfeelnotonlyshapesaspectsofthe
firm’sculture– breakfastmeetingsatthe
longoakdiningtable,cookingsessionsin
theevenings– butalsoechoesitsoutput:
“Everything we do has that same atmo-
sphere,whetherit’sa hotel,store, or home.”
BrunyIsland(p. 124 )
AMelbourne-basedarchitectbreathes
newlifeintoanoldseaman’sretreat.
AfterpurchasingCaptainKelly’sCottage,
JohnWardle’sfirsttaskwastoplantsome
9,000treesinordertostaveofferosion.
Situatedona remoteheadlandsouthof
Tasmania,thehouseitselfhadoverthe
yearssufferedvariousindignities,includ-
ingtheinsertionofaluminum-framewin-
dows. The core of the 1830s building,
however, remainedintactand hasbeen
respectfullyrestored,withadditionssuch
asthetimber-linedlivingroomharmon-
izing well with the original structure.
Layersofpaintwere strippedfromthe
oldtongue-and-groovewalls,wherebare
woodnowcontrastswithblocksofmuted
color,whilethekitchen’sbrickworkwas
alsoexposed.Linkingthedifferentspaces
isWardle’sloveofdisplay,withBendigo
Potterycarafes,BritishandJapanesecer-
amics,andrustyfound objects among the
itemsonshow.Marrakech(p. 130 )
Howa templetoMoroccanartwasborn
froma Frenchperfumer’sfertilemind.
“MonsieurLutensplanneditall,”sayshis
assistant,bowingintothespace.And“it”,
inthisdim-litgrandhall,meansevery-
thingfromintricatecarvingstogolden
coffered ceilings to chandeliers of alabas-
ter,jasper,andbrass.“ To u t ”, herepeatsin
thenextroomsonourtour,whichinclude
asalled’eauofmidnight-bluemarbleanda
roomfeaturingtwocamelspositionedbe-
neatha dome.Thisvastandever-growing
phantasmagoriaistheworkofperfumer
SergeLutens,whocametoMarrakechin
1968 butinitiallystruggledtofindhisfeet.
Ashewasabouttoleavein1974,anelder-
lymanledhimtoa ruinintheoldneigh-
borhoodofHartSoura.“Thehousewas
mysalvation,”Lutenssays.“I soakedupits
historyandmadeit mine.”Realizedwith
theaidofMorocco’sfinestartisans,its
renovation,ontheotherhand,floweden-
tirelyfromhisownimagination.SãoPaulo(p. 138 )
MarcioKogan’sGamaIssaHouseis
a triumphoftropicalmodernism.
WhenClaudiaIssaandAlexandreGama
beganthinkingabouttheirnewabode,they
askedthemselves:“Whatwouldit looklike
ifyourolleda museum,recordingstudio,
andgalleryintoa home?”Foranswers,they
turnedtoarchitectMarcioKogan,whore -
spondedwitha sleekrectangularboxcon-
tainingspacesthatreflectthecouple’sdi-
verseneeds– Issaisa ceramicist,Gamaan
adagencybossandaudiophile.Thatpas-
sionformusicisevidentnotonlyinhis
portholedstudiobutinthe20-meter-long
livingroomtoo,wherehorn-shapedAvant-
garde speakers set the tone. Elsewhere,
therearefurthercircularforms– suchasa
largedome-likependant– pluslongban-
quetingtablesthatechothehouse’sshape.
Thecolor schemes,meanwhile, focuson
monochromecontrasts,thoughthere are
alsopaleearthtonesandgreens– notleast
fromthetropicalplantings outside.Chelsea(p. 148 )
Milan’sLauraSartoriRiminiestablishes
a pied-à-terrefilledwithvibrantflorals.
AsonehalfofStudioPeregalli,shecreates
gloriousevocationsofbygonetimes,soit’s
unsurprisingtohearLauraSartoriRimini
bemoantheexpensivelyneutraldecors
thatarenowderigueuramongLondon’s
internationaloligarchs.ForherownChel-
seaapartment,locatedina rowofVictori-
antownhouses,thedesignertookhercue
froma setofhand-paintedantiqueleather
panels patterned with a whirlwind of
flowers. More blooms cover cushions,
chair seats, and even a tapestry fire screen,whilethediningroomwallsdisplaypeo-
nies, cherry blossoms, and magnolias.
Withinthiseternalspringtime,Riminihas
assembledtreasuresoldandnew,including
HervéVanderStraetendesigns,framed
Spanishtiles,anda beautifulSafavidvase,
abovewhichhangsa goldmirrorbyglass
artistAlessandroDiazde Santillana.Munich(p. 154 )
BrandingexpertPeterMartincreatesa
serenesanctuaryforhisgrowingteam.
Movinghisagencyfromitspreviousprem-
ises,a five-meter-highspaceina former
printingworkshop, wasa real wrench–
afterall,thechancesoffindingsomewhere
largeryetsimilarlycharacterfulinMunich
werepracticallynil.InsteadPeterMartin
plumpedfora functional1960sbuildingon
theedgeofMaxvorstadt,thenturnedtode-
signpracticeSevenElohimtoaddthereq-
uisite atmosphere. Today, the revamped
spacesboasta spare,almostmonasticfeel,
thankstoconcreteceilingswhoseribscon-
vergeona largestar(thecompanylogo),
thickconcretepillars,andfont-likedrink-
ingfountains.Initsdetails,however,the
redesignalsocatersforspecificwork-life
needs:fabric-cladpartitionsthuslendpri-
vacyto each desk cluster and there are
sound-insulatedthinkpods that wereadd-
edatthestaff’srequest.Milan(p. 162 )
Stimulationtherapy:thisarchitect’s
apartmentisa feastforthesenses.
AtHannesPeer’sCittàStudihome,reality
oftenseemstotipoverinto magicreal-
ism– somuchsothatwhenthesonof
previousownerEmilio Tadinicame to
visit,hesaidit waslikebeingina 3Dver-
sion ofoneof hisfather’s pittura meta
fisicapaintings.Therearefauxfireplaces,
doorsmodeledonbaroquepalaceportals,
and walls clad in deep-blue tiles that
couldbestraightfroma subwaystation.
Alonegirderprotrudesfroma corridor
wall (previously hidden by a suspend-
edceiling)anda brassstrip inthe liv-
ingroom floormarkstheline wherea
knocked-through wall oncestood.The
furnishings,too,brimwithvisualstimuli
andfeaturenumerousown-designpieces,
amongthema long,lacqueredreddining
table,aroundwhichare1970sWillyRiz-
zochairs,and a steel-barpendantlight
that nods to Bruno Munari’s mobiles.172AD
Summaries