When Steve first dropped the "I'd like the design of our next home to have a contemporary influence" bomb on me, I was very nervous. Images of a concrete box of a house filled my head. Where would I curl up to read a book? What about all of my French and Swedish antiques? Surely they would be replaced with leather cube furniture. When Steve saw the tears welling in my eyes, he introduced me to the work of Italian Architect Carlo Scarpa (1906-1978)...
I started to calm down when I saw the images of the Museo Canova in Possagno, Italy.
The glowing plaster walls and the steel windows made me sigh...
I loved the juxtaposition of the clean architecture with the beautiful classic sculptures.
Photographer Peter Guthrie created these hauntingly beautiful computer generated images of the Museum.
Image by Peter Guthrie
Image by Peter Guthrie
I thought you might enjoy taking a video tour of Peter Guthrie's computer generated museum.
Museo Canoviano from Peter Guthrie on Vimeo.
I breathed another sigh of relief when I saw this image of the Galleria Regionale di Sicilia. Carlo Scarpa designed this renovation of the Palazzo Abatellis in 1954. Located in Palerme, Italy, this building is proof that contemporary design can blend beautifully with classical architecture.
Image by Richard Bryant
After seeing these images, I could definitely imagine our home having a bit of a Scarpa influence. I started to see hints of Carlo Scarpa in many of my inspiration images.
Like Scarpa's Museo Canovano, this room has beautiful plaster walls, cement floors, and steel windows.
Image from Essentially French by Josephine Ryan. Photo by Claire Richardson
Another one of my saved images shares the simple plaster walls with no baseboard as seen in Scarpa's work .
Image from Essentially French by Josephine Ryan. Photo by Claire Richardson
Like the Palazzo Abatellis, this room combines clean plaster walls with a wood ceiling. The gorgeous paneled doors take center stage next to a rustic sink with a contemporary faucet.
Image via Country French Antiques
After my discussion with Steve, I added photos of Carlo Scarpa's work to my Patina Farm inspiration file, and thanked Steve for his patience. He handed me a kleenex and thanked me for keeping an open mind :)
xo
Brooke
If you would like help creating the home of your dreams, email me about our design services. You can also purchase many items found here on Velvet and Linen as well as "to the trade" furnishings through Giannetti Home. Email Kelly about the details.
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