Architecture
Knotty and Nice: Highly Textured Wood Has a Modern Revival
Whether it's cedar, fir or pine, if a wood has a knot, it's hot
Just a few years ago, I showed a photo of a knotty-pine-paneled basement during a story meeting and the editors around the table groaned audibly. Knotty pine was considered dated and dowdy — a leftover from the 1950s ranch house that should be torn out as quickly as possible. But lately, I’ve been seeing projects that are celebrating the highly textured wood in a modern way. My own theory? Reclaimed lumber has paved the way for a more accepting wood palette. Or maybe my editors were off base all along. As Phil Kaplan, principal of Kaplan Thompson Architects in Portland, Maine, says: “Knotty pine has never been unpopular in the right context.”
Russ Tyson of Whitten Architects in Portland, Maine, says that using knotty pine in this vacation retreat was a no-brainer. “It’s more durable than other alternatives in an extreme environment,” he says. “The tongue and groove nature of the material allows the interior finish to shrink and expand rather than crack when the temperature and humidity fluctuate.”
Tyson also favors the material because it provides a natural warmth to an interior.
To protect against pine’s tendency to yellow or darken over time, the architects lightly whitewashed, or “pickled,” the wood.
Interior designer Kate Davidson of Kate Davidson Design in Oakville, Ontario, wanted a look that was both rustic and contemporary in this home, so she chose horizontal pine planks. To achieve a whiter look, she covered the boards with a mix of 50 percent water and 50 percent water-based white paint for a milky finish.
Joan Heaton of Joan Heaton Architects in Vermont agrees that knotty pine never really fell out of favor in New England. “In this project, it adds a nice contrast to the white walls,” she says.
The rustic knotty cedar here is a foil for man-made panels of Skatelite. “The natural variation and imperfections of the wood creates an interesting surface,” says Kate Dalene Weil of Bates Masi Architects in New York.
The architects of LASC Studio in Copenhagen, Denmark, show just how modern the classic material can be when they pair it with a bright white and a bold turquoise color.
This house is clad in metal and stucco, so the architects used western red cedar as a contrast. “The wood on the eaves creates an interesting texture and defines the space,” says Aijit Smith, founder of Forsite Architecture in Austin, Texas.
Jan Fillinger of studio-e architecture in Eugene, Oregon, says the trick to making knotty wood less cozy and more contemporary is all in the details. “Use crisp connections and abutments of the materials to each other, exposed metal connectors and no extraneous ornamentation,” she says.
Fillinger says that she’s seeing knotty woods used often in ceilings and cathedral roofs, but in this project she brought it to eye level in a simple and modern barn door.
David Arkin of Arkin Tilt Architects in Berkeley, California, believes that the recent tough economy made people open to less expensive materials like knotty pine. “In a bold, simple design like this one, a more visually active material can work,” he says. “In smaller spaces, it could easily slip into the ‘too busy’ territory.”
The designer of this room and the knotty pine barn door says the low cost of the material is certainly appealing. “But we also like the casual nature it lends any interior,” says Jeanette Forney Van Wicklen of Van Wicklen Design in Austin, Texas.
How do you feel about highly textured wood—is it hot or (k)not?
How do you feel about highly textured wood—is it hot or (k)not?