Brooklyn Brownstone

The Brownstone’s previous owners had stripped all ornamentation and a bearing wall from the house leaving us with a lot of work to provide some level of interest beyond a white box and restructure the floors, walls, ceilings and roof. The Brooklyn Brownstone project was a study in overlaying a modern aesthetic into an otherwise traditional brownstone.

The family of four were hoping to achieve a lifestyle where they could come together on the parlor floor with the high ceilings but also retreat to their private spaces - the primary bedroom and study on the garden level and the children on an upper floor with a family room and kitchenette.

For the parlor level, we organized the kitchen to the front of house with a dining area complete with banquette. The kitchen island floats between the kitchen and living area and a tall black glass fronted cabinet provides much needed storage.

With the program determined, we set forth in installing heirloom artwork and photography layering with modern pieces and vintage ones highlighting counterpoints of texture.

Not afraid of color, the guest bath became a Mondrian study and one of the children’s bedrooms a color-blocking experiment.