Nester
Residential Design
About the Site The penthouse is located in downtown Providence, on the 31st floor of the building with two terraces providing a 180 degree view of the city. The floor plate is approximately 3000 square feet.
The space as given is a completely raw. It has large windows with great natural lighting and terrific view. However, the original horseshoe floor plan and oddly placed ductwork made designing the room difficult. Project Duration: 4 1/2 week |
|
Objective/Client Profile
This assignment was to design a permanent home for a couple with three children. Having originally met in Providence as students in the 1990's, this couple recently returned to Providence from New York City in order to pursue their careers.
Iian(father): a set designer and painter. Works both at Trinity Rep Company's facility and home office/studio. Sometimes meets and works with his staff in their live/work space.
Rachel(mother): a graduate of Brown, chef and food writer. Will be opening a restaurant in June in Kennedy Plaza area, which is under construction. She is working on menu creation with her staff and needs working space.
Noah: 11 years old, is artistic and quiet and attends the Wheeler School.
Jane and Tammy: 6 years old twin daughters, attend a local elementary school.
The family also have two cats.
Iian(father): a set designer and painter. Works both at Trinity Rep Company's facility and home office/studio. Sometimes meets and works with his staff in their live/work space.
Rachel(mother): a graduate of Brown, chef and food writer. Will be opening a restaurant in June in Kennedy Plaza area, which is under construction. She is working on menu creation with her staff and needs working space.
Noah: 11 years old, is artistic and quiet and attends the Wheeler School.
Jane and Tammy: 6 years old twin daughters, attend a local elementary school.
The family also have two cats.
When I saw the site and client information, I don't have any idea or inspiration... until the very last sentence that they have two cats. I thought, why don't I design pathway for cats to travel around in the house? Then this concept become broader, and I start designing pathways not only for the pets, but also for the children and adults as well. When I design, I focus more on how cats, children, and adults get around the house, and create pathways, hallways, secrete passageways, and short cuts for them.
As the image shown on the right, the yellow highlights is the main pathway, and the pink is the hidden secret passageway. Second image shown the material choice. The yellow are cork flooring, and blue line highlights are wall coverings that not only guides the way but also gives it a secrete and mysterious feeling.
Due to the code requirement, those two entry doors have to be kept. I isolate one entrance and have it connected to father's studio only. This way his clients are not accesible to the family's private area, but father's studio is connect to the master bedroom through the pivot door.
Behind the L shape wall at the kitchen is the secret passageway, for the children to walk in the hollow wall. It is also three steps raised for the cats to walk under. It leads to two ways, one is straight to the library/playroom, and the other is turn right and climb up the stairs, crawling to father's studio. Some wall have glass, frosty glass, and opaque glass pattern that allows the children to peak out, and also parents to see the shadow when the kids travel around the house.
As the image shown on the right, the yellow highlights is the main pathway, and the pink is the hidden secret passageway. Second image shown the material choice. The yellow are cork flooring, and blue line highlights are wall coverings that not only guides the way but also gives it a secrete and mysterious feeling.
Due to the code requirement, those two entry doors have to be kept. I isolate one entrance and have it connected to father's studio only. This way his clients are not accesible to the family's private area, but father's studio is connect to the master bedroom through the pivot door.
Behind the L shape wall at the kitchen is the secret passageway, for the children to walk in the hollow wall. It is also three steps raised for the cats to walk under. It leads to two ways, one is straight to the library/playroom, and the other is turn right and climb up the stairs, crawling to father's studio. Some wall have glass, frosty glass, and opaque glass pattern that allows the children to peak out, and also parents to see the shadow when the kids travel around the house.