Kitchen Design
Kitchen Opens Up to Adjacent Rooms and Outside Views
A new layout and a limited palette help this Australian kitchen feel bigger than it is
In this Q&A interview, architects Nick Skepper and Zuzana Kovar share the thinking behind the kitchen they designed for a renovated 1950s cottage in Brisbane, Australia.
What was the goal? The project involved renovations to an existing 1950s cottage that included a new kitchen, laundry and powder room. The original kitchen was a dark space at the center of the house, isolated from adjacent rooms due to minimal openings, and lacking in amenity in terms of storage and [counter] space.
New openings were cut into existing walls, and the kitchen [was] reconfigured from an L shape to a galley to improve access to light, thus creating views to the garden and connections with adjacent rooms. A minimal and contemporary design approach, which was still sympathetic to the character of the existing cottage, was pursued.
Overhead storage was avoided in order to maintain a sense of openness in an otherwise small space, with flush cabinet detailing also used for this reason.
New openings were cut into existing walls, and the kitchen [was] reconfigured from an L shape to a galley to improve access to light, thus creating views to the garden and connections with adjacent rooms. A minimal and contemporary design approach, which was still sympathetic to the character of the existing cottage, was pursued.
Overhead storage was avoided in order to maintain a sense of openness in an otherwise small space, with flush cabinet detailing also used for this reason.
Where did you start? The central focus of the new design was to allow the kitchen to function as the spatial and social focus of the home. The kitchen visually and literally connects the front door to the rear deck and garden, and this quality guided most design decisions.
What was the color palette?Black floors, white walls and ceilings, natural [woodwork] finishes.
And the materials? Existing wood floors were stained with Feast Watson’s Black Japan. The cabinetry is in a Tasmanian oak veneer, and the [countertops] are concrete. White glazed ceramic tiles were used on the [backsplash], and custom-designed brass details were included throughout, such as on cupboard handles and the kitchen hanging rail.
What are the key furnishings? A Serge Mouille pendant light [and] a custom brass hanging rail designed by Zuzana & Nicholas.
What were the challenges? Working within the existing footprint of the small house put a strict limit on the available space for the kitchen, and storage had to be carefully arranged.
Why does the room work? The strict material palette and simple detailing allow a compact space to feel generous and quiet, while the central location within the house allows for social connections between rooms — a cook can chat to someone in the lounge, on the deck or [to] kids doing homework in the bedrooms.
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Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here: A young family with two children
Location: Tarragindi area of Brisbane, Australia
Size: 22 by 10 feet (6.7 by 3 meters), including the pantry and laundry
Architects: Nick Skepper and Zuzana Kovar, directors of Zuzana & Nicholas Architects