‹‹ If you had to pin Geerlings down to a signature style, a ‘postmodern
approach to playful inclusiveness’ might fit the bill. “Detailing is
a very important thing for us at the studio, but when everything
is finished perfectly you don’t have a dream anymore,” he says. “It’s
so important to leave some aspects open-ended. This is why I find
real life much more interesting than Instagram. I don’t care about
perfect pictures, but I like stuff that is useful and when technology
and art come into the mix giving depth and meaning to a space.
That’s when the magic happens.”
Take the main salon, where Geerlings ingeniously brings together
a five-metre long craft bench for the kids with a more intimate,
German-inspired stube, or lounge area, for the grown-ups,
separated by a supporting wall that couldn’t be moved. “After years
of designing homes in Amsterdam, we realised playrooms were
never used,” he says. “Kids always stay reasonably close to wherever
their parents are. So, in this very awkward, long and narrow space,
we decided to create something amazing that suited all of us. They
can leave their pencils and pens and toys scattered on the bench, it
doesn’t matter; we have a space that’s a bit tidier and more private
where we can have time with our friends, too.”
This was also the case in the kitchen, which had formerly been an
art gallery. The couple talked about their respective wishes for the
space — she wanted a garden; he didn’t want to lose any valuable
living area — and met in the middle by adding a retractable glass
roof that has become an indoor-outdoor space. “My philosophy is
it’s better to integrate your needs into your spaces from the start,
especially when it comes to family homes,” Geerlings says.
The kids’ bedroom is painted a peachy pink, spiced up with the
addition of a vintage Pluto bench from a collection of children’s
furniture produced by Disney in the 1980s. Morentz, a large
furniture dealer in The Netherlands where Geerlings sources many
designs, gifted the piece to him. “I really liked it,” he says. “It’s just
such a strange object!”
Art has been a big influence. In the first-floor living room, his
o b s e s s i o n w i t h i m p e r f e c t i o n i s c e l e b r a t e d i n w o r k s s u c h a s L a m b e r t o
Te o t i no’s Atmospheric Particulate Matter, a scan of a 19th-century
Dutch master with a reworked, blurred face. In the hallway, there’s
a piece by Paul Citroen, a charcoal drawing of a woman whose face
is also obscured. “It’s unfinished, mysterious, dark and fascinating,”
Geerlings muses, “but also leaves space for your own imagination,
which I think is hugely important in both art and design.” VL
framework.eu @ frmwrkstudio“It’s so important to leave some
aspects open-ended. This is
why I find real life much more
interesting than Instagram”
THOMAS GEERLINGS