Boerum Hill, Brooklyn’s residential neighbourhood, has been undergoing something of a revival over the past decade or so. Family-friendly, arty and lively, the village feel is palpable. It boasts many historic townhouses, such as this one dating from the 1870s. Its renovation was entrusted to Barker Associates Architecture Office (BAAO), a multidisciplinary architecture and design firm headed by Alexandra Barker. The firm focuses on “exploring spatial and material approaches adapted to the evolving relationship between inhabitants and the built environment”. The bright living room has retained its framed mouldings, the ideal backdrop for the curves of the Julep sofa from Tacchini, which has been teamed with marble and wood coffee tables on a Hatsu Loop hand-knotted rug and the EQ3 Bingo Stool. The new parquet floors contribute to the soft harmony of distinct whites, awakened by the punchy ochre yellow of the Galatea armchair by Malabar Artistic Furniture. This colour scheme is relayed in turn on the original mantelpiece by a gold-coloured composition by Andrew Zimmerman and a Cloud Support sculpture by Mike Hansel.
All the floors have been redesigned to generate as much space as possible for this family of three. The living room in particular has been reconfigured to make way for an enlarged kitchen, which communicates with the outside through workshop-style doors finished with black steel posts. A deep fluted-arch transition above a Norden Hide wool rug by Okej separates the living room from the kitchen cum dining room, framing a bar area tucked away behind smoked glass. Elegant custom cabinetry in light mocha creates a pleasing sense of continuity between the rooms. They are niftily combined, on the one hand, with the elegance of the Calacatta Vagli Viola marble credenza and worktops, and, on the other, under the Phenomena blown-glass pendant lights from Bomma, with the Reade Dining oak table by Maiden Home, flanked by Girafe upholstered chairs by Juliana Lima Vasconcellos (1 st Dibs).
The rebuilt staircase leads to a light-filled playroom connected to the multimedia room and garden at the rear of the house. BAAO worked in consultation with the owners on a spectrum of colours, playing around with a palette of greens, mushroom beiges and purples. The richly veined marble used for the bar lends the space a sophisticated note and is paired with a deep aubergine colour to add another layer of warmth to the room’s cosy, plush feel. The Podium modular sofa by Gus Modern fills the space, while the hand-knotted Irreguler rug from Hatsu ties in with the fluting, the common theme running through the entire house. The organically shaped walnut coffee table was custom designed by BAAO and manufactured by BCapri Studios. The offset ceiling conceals general lighting while, in the summer months, the large bay windows open wide to the outside, while being protected from the scorching sun by a light wood overhang. They open directly onto a slightly elevated terrace of travertine checkerboard, which can be reached up a few steps, to sit around the table lined with chairs sourced from Verner Panton (Vitra).
At the opposite end of the room, the Martin half-barrel armchair by Joss & Main has been upholstered in a bespoke, chartreuse-coloured velvet material that recalls the shimmering tones of outdoor foliage while coordinating beautifully with the coppery hues of the artwork. In keeping with the contemporary allure strived for, a variety of materials and textures rub shoulders and beautiful nuances reign supreme. The transition again features the ubiquitous fluting. It leads onto a hall with a marble guest washroom that also overlooks the garden. The entrance is inviting, with dark green walls and a light green and pink checkerboard floor, a refreshing twist on the more traditional black and white. A custom asymmetrical curved mirror, created by BAAO, picks up on the curvature of the door’s arch. The preserved, white-painted banister newel post is a further nod to the contemporary vibe.
On the top floor, the beautifully curved staircase opens onto a hall illuminated by a skylight. This space has been set aside for the guest room, bathed in an atmosphere that plunges you into the heart of nature, with soft tones of water green and mocha combined with spicier touches, against which the saffron yellow of the cushions and vases offer a striking contrast, magnified by the colours of the painting by Maru Quiñonero (Voltz Clarke Gallery). Above the Napa Queen Bed by Rove Concepts, with its scalloped headboard, a trio of clay pendants echo the shades of the rug. Harmony is the watchword of the house, but each room has its own. On the second floor, the master suite is plastered in a soft lavender grey with stained oak elements and printed linen wall lights that illuminate the customised side tables. In the extension, a large dressing room communicates with a bathroom fitted with a bath and shower, whose parquet floor has been preserved.
Oozing an atmosphere of elegance and sophistication, it features a marble floor and walls, and a large shower clad in green onyx edged with Portuguese rosa aurora macchia vecchia marble, screened by glass walls. Slightly offset from the wall, the bathtub also affords a view of the outside. With its glamorous, gold-coloured Loft 2.0 fittings from Watermark, the bathtub is given pride of place and is anchored in the room by the onyx-covered oak block placed alongside it. In front of the window, whose black steel frames open wide onto the garden, the organic, minimal forms of the Gregg suspension lamp by Foscarini, fashioned from mouth-blown glass, add their poetic touch.
Integrated into the master suite, this desk was custom designed by BAAO. The restful tone of the walls, painted a forest green picked from Benjamin Moore’s Vintage Vogue range, highlights the thick white oak worktop. This is supported by honey-coloured corner storage units, a shade chosen also for the taller, recessed shelf, topped by a circular LED light fixture. The clean lines and orange hue of the small teak Committee armchair from the Pierre Jeanneret tribute collection (Cassina) warm up the parquet flooring. BAAO has succeeded in bridging the gap between past and present by preserving certain structures, while optimising spaces and bringing them up to date thanks to the perfectly mastered choice of colours that run through the house and that are in keeping with the spirit of the neighbourhood.
