Friday, October 29, 2010

A house between past and future

Past and future cross their paths in this house in Liguria, an Italian region I am particularly attracted to, having spent many summers there. The project is by Arch. Marco Ciarlo who was able to merge two distinct houses, one from the 1600's and one more recent, into one. The house has, of course, many different levels due to the slopes of the property but the result is a fluid connection between rooms, using existing steps and entryways or creating new ones.
The past is represented by original antiques mostly from the 1700's and the 1800's, collected by the owner, whose passion is art and design, the future can be found in avveniristic shapes of contemporary design and lightings.

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Hot pink chair, pale blue vintage umbrella vase from the '50s 
and contemporary painting on the wall.


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Big Easy chair by Ron Arad
A 1700's wooden statue, a cast iron chandelier, a vivid blue Big Easy chair by Ron Arad and white stools designed by Ciarlo create tension and interest with soft rounded lines and more clean and graphic ones.


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Another view of the same room with the original fireplace.


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Tolomeo lamp by Artemide
In the library  there are several inexpensive bookcases, a large table to read and work and the Tolomeo floor lamp by Artemide designed by Michele De Lucchi more than twenty years ago and still so modern.


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The adjacent bedroom with antique furniture and a large 1500 oil painting.


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The library is also connected, with an unusual step, to the dining room.


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The kitchen is quite simple but very functional and it was decided to create it
at a lower level than the living area.


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Liberty style windows and glass vases from 1700 are in the oldest part of the house,
with a classic and elegant marble staircase.


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A grand entrance with steep steps worth climbing to reach a
large flat garden where this beautiful house sits.

Photography by Alberto Piovano

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8 comments:

Eva Marie Sutter said...

Harmoniously enchanting. Inspiring to be sure.

Mila said...

I love the modern and clean design of this house. Happy Halloween!

mary said...

I love the fearless european mix of old blended with new. The American aesthetic has not really advanced to this stage, yet. But I keep hoping.

Peggy Braswell said...

Greetings from US..always love seeing your images. happy weekend xx peggybraswelldesign.com

Claudia Juestel said...

The Italians always know how to mix traditional bones with some modern muscle.

Cheers,

Claudia

Dovecote Decor said...

I agree with Mary. We just don't see these rooms here, so its a treat for you to share with us.
Best,
Liz

Anonymous said...

Some of this does not make sense. A fireplace against the edge of the wall near the door, walking out of one room into a kitchen counter top, and a little table for a step down to the next room? Please don't get me wrong, this house does have some very beautiful things from structure to furnishings, and I am all for pushing the limits and experimentations, but it has to be safe and functional as well, doesn't it?

Brillante Interiors said...

Hi Anonymous, I like comments that show interest and create more dialogue. I have to say that the fireplace (one of many I am sure)was a puzzle for me too but I believe that being the original house from 1600's and the other much more recent the architect had to deal with two different buildings already there and he tried to leave the differences intact instead of deleting them to create a more homogeneous interior. It was a courageous choice also to have the kitchen entrance doubling as a workspace. I would not choose it myself but I appreciate new ideas.
Thanks for your comment, I just wish you had a name (even not a real one?)

 
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