Belle 2020 Fiona Lynch House feature

Melbourne

ROCK SOLID

The classical proportions of this chateau-style home the chiselled, brute strength of stone to create a

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These pages, from left The facade of the house presents as a traditional chateau. The setting adds to the manor-style sensibility with a path of oak trees and a pebbled forecourt. The sculpture is a custom wardrobe designed by Fiona Lynch hand-finished in aluminium, wax crayon and solid maple. The sitting room features a Gubi ‘Modern Line’ chaise from Criteria. Bella Design rug from Halcyon Lake. ClassiCon ‘Roattino’ lamp from Anibou.

in Melbourne have been offset with sense of warm minimalism.

Words CARLI PHILIP S Photography SE AN FENNESSY

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This page View from the central circular foyer into one of the rear living spaces. Sculptural artwork by Consuelo Cavaniglia from STATION gallery. The home’s old parquetry floors were stained black but the classic skirting boards remained untouched. Opposite page One of the two front living rooms features a Baxter ‘Chester Moon’ sofa by Paola Navone from Criteria, Gervasoni ‘Nuvola 05’ armchair from Anibou, Baxter ‘Matera’ side table from Criteria and blanket from Abode Living. Flos ‘Captain Flint’ floor lamp from Euroluce. The chunky fireplace hearth is made from rough split-face bluestone.

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eatly poised behind iron gates, this house sits in a pebbled forecourt lined with red oak trees. Lush and leafy in summer, stripped and bare-boned in winter, they diligently stand sentry towards the porch where a robust door marks the very centre of the property’s deeply symmetrical facade. With its series of shuttered, arched windows, there’s a chateau-like sensibility to the picturesque setting. Only a weighty aluminium and timber sculpture-like object hints at the unlikely interiors to follow.

Beyond the entrance, designer Fiona Lynch has worked her magic. About 15 years old, the house has now been transformed into a more contemporary canvas for the new owners who were drawn to its flattering composition and the oculus that pierces through both levels. No structural changes were made (aside from the gentle repositioning of the powder room) and the footprint remained the same. Of the architecture, Fiona says, “There is something quite Roman about the architecture of this house, with its archways, glass-topped void and domed ceiling … it has lovely proportions.”

Light from a skylight in the central atrium pools into the circular foyer and fanning outwards are communal areas; one living room each to the left and right of the entry, a dining room and a sitting room towards the back, and the kitchen at the rear. Charcoal-stained timber stairs lead to the mezzanine

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floor where blackened steel balustrading rims the circumference, designed to “frame views between levels … creating a gallery for art and objets over two floors”.

Upstairs, the floor plan is split in two, with a master wing along one side. Opposite are two bedrooms (one in use as a generous walk-in robe) with ensuites divided by a study. There is also a large bathroom oriented around an existing bathtub heavy with traditional engraving. The palette on this floor tells a vastly different story to the downstairs, with neutral colours, paler marble choices and organic shapes. “We designed bespoke wardrobes lined with wheat-toned linen and fine timber door pulls. For tactility there’s bouclé woollen carpets. Light is diffused with linen drapery, while earthy tones and aged bronze accents give it an enduring quality,” says Fiona. In the bathrooms, close attention has been paid to soft silhouettes with fixtures and fittings such as Gubi’s ‘F.A.33’ mirror, Piero Lissoni’s curve-edged ‘Garden’ washbasin and Agape’s round ‘Eclipse’ mirror hanging over a floating basin in Rose marble.

The use of stone was fundamental to the design concept.

Throughout the house, it has been carved and sculpted, adding heft to the interiors. It is perhaps most evident in the kitchen, where a monolithic, rough-edged island bench is topped with a honed, milky-veined Calacatta marble slab. “We wanted to explore going from a polished finish to a chiselled finish … »

Melbourne These pages In one of the two front living rooms sits a Gervasoni ‘Ghost 11’ armchair by Paola Navone behind which is positioned an Artek

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P H OTO G R A P H Y X X X X X X X X X

P H OTO G R A P H Y X X X X X X X X X

‘Screen 100’ by Alvar Aalto, both from Anibou. Artwork by Adam Lee from STATION gallery. Oeuffice ‘Ionik’ stool from Criteria. ‘Fosbury’ metal pendant light by Davide Groppi from De De Ce. Oluce ‘Agnoli’ floor lamp from Euroluce beside the fireplace. On mantel, Untitled 50 artwork by Sean Bailey from Daine Singer Gallery. Pair of chairs by Liam Mugavin.

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These pages Amplifying light in the kitchen are surfaces such as the island cladding of Calacatta marble in Gris Pearl from Apex Stone and polished plaster on the custom joinery. The refrigerator cavity and joinery wall are American oak finished in Dulux ‘Western Myall’. Fiona normally prefers not to expose the appliances but says she made an exception for “such beautiful pieces” of equipment. “We wanted to explore monolithic forms … and the island bench can just read as a beautiful, big block of stone.”

Wolf oven and ‘Professional’ gas cooktop and Sub-Zero ‘Classic Side by Side’ refrigerator, all from e&s. Boffi kitchen mixer with pullout spray. Chair designed and made by Liam Mugavin. The oculus in the domed ceiling.

“I don’t usually like appliances being exposed, but these are such beautiful pieces so we’ve made an exception.”

« simple little changes that were beautiful and required hand craftsmanship,” says Fiona who worked closely with Apex Stone in Melbourne. Fixtures from Wolf and Sub-Zero are on show, neatly slipping into a joinery wall made from American oak and finished in a charcoal grey, Dulux ‘Western Myall’. “I don’t usually like appliances being exposed, but these are such beautiful pieces of equipment so we’ve made an exception.”

From hard marble to black flamed granite and bluestone, Fiona used up to six stones throughout. The inspiration for the home’s smooth buffed surfaces offset against its brawny, muscular form came from Henry Timi, an Italian designer Fiona first discovered in Milan and whose pieces can be found locally at VBO Australia. “He uses big blocks of stone and handchisels chunky detailing and fineness that are just incredible.”

Now stained black, parquetry floors run through the ground floor, contributing to a subdued environment complemented by a selection of restrained furniture in muted tones. Rocky stone fireplace hearths in split-face bluestone anchor the front two living spaces, both of which feature a selection of ambient lighting in minimalist profiles such as Davide Groppi’s slim ‘Fosbury’ pendant light and Oluce’s rail-thin ‘Agnoli’ floor lamp. Polished plaster was layered over the limestone walls to “make the light bounce around a lot more”, says Fiona. “The downstairs was originally dark and moody, and while using so much polished plaster wasn’t in the original brief, the client loved how it brightened everything up,” she says of the finish that was also applied on some of the kitchen joinery.

Fiona says that what started off as plans for a small makeover has resulted in an evocative home that strikes the perfect balance of both power and sensitivity. “A study of material identity and atmosphere, the interiors of this house give it an inherent sense of strength and grace,” she says. # fionalynch.com.au

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Melbourne SPEED READ » The owners of this Melbourne property loved the home’s exterior chateau-style sensibility with its shuttered windows and pebbled forecourt. » While they loved the classical proportions, the interiors

This page Polished plaster walls create a soft glow in the master bedroom and illuminate a Flos ‘Taccia’ floor lamp from Euroluce. Bedding from Abode Living. ClassiCon ‘Non Conformist’ chair by Eileen Gray from Anibou. Carpet from Whitecliffe Imports. Opposite page, clockwise from top left The first-floor mezzanine is punctuated with blackened steel balustrading, framing views between the two levels. In the main upstairs bathroom the Gubi ‘F.A.33’ mirror by Gio Ponti from Criteria, Apparatus ‘Trapeze’ wall sconce and a new Agape ‘Sen’ floor-mounted mixer add a contemporary flavour to the existing bath with its traditional engravings. Agape ‘Eclipse’ mirror and ‘Sen’ wall-mounted tap from Artedomus. Mr Kitly ceramics.

were lined in limestone and were too traditional for their liking so they called on designer Fiona Lynch for a complete renovation. » Aside from the relocation of a small, ground-floor powder room, no structural changes were made. » The floor plan centres around a circular foyer with a double-height domed roof above with an oculus. » Key to the scheme was the use of hand-chiselled stone and exploration of marble surfaces. » Newly stained black parquetry flooring and a slew of marble and stone finishes create a moody atmosphere on the ground floor. » For the private spaces upstairs, a palette of light neutrals was introduced.

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