For This Designer A London Townhouse Became Fertile Ground For Innovation

The success of a project is determined by many standards. But this townhouse in the Holland Park section of London elicited such creativity that it inspired the launch of an entire furniture collection in 2019. It also established designer Alexander Purcell Rodrigues as a force to be reckoned with. He had designed furniture previously for other homes – selling through showrooms like Holly Hunt and Promemoria – but it was the Holland Park project that begat Atelier Purcell, available now in its entirety through Dennis Miller Associates. The townhouse was, he explains, “a kind of petri dish for new products. Pretty much every piece was developed with the clients.”

From the start, the client-designer relationship buzzed with creative dynamism. The fortysomething couple were parents of a schoolmate of Purcell Rodrigues’s son. “They quite liked having everything pared back,” observes the designer. That might have generated starkly modern interiors, especially since the circa 1860 residence required a total gut. (The elderly former owner, overwhelmed by the 4,550-square-foot structure’s maintenance, had let it fall into disrepair.) But neither designer nor clients wanted to disrespect the original stately architecture of James Hall, with its yellow brick façade, stucco trim and Corinthian cornices.

Adapting to modern comfort and lifestyle did necessitate opening up the entry “to make it grander,” relates Purcell Rodrigues, and joining living and dining rooms into one contiguous space. But for the architectural envelopes, he notes that, “I created a custom paneling system that sits somewhere between traditional boiserie and a more contemporary reveal.” That reveal is the subtlest of shadow lines running around spaces at chair rail height between upper and lower recessed panels. New chevron floors throughout add warmth and period authenticity, as do refurbished original fireplaces.

Then Purcell Rodrigues’s signature style takes over. “We emphasize the tactile aspects of our projects over the architectural detail,” he reveals. “We tend toward real materials – stone, wood, bronze – and try to bring out an object’s integrity, materiality and craftsmanship. Each piece tells its story without distraction,” meaning that forms, no matter how complex, are not overly decorative. “The rest is a play of shadows and light.”

The primarily black-and-white palette accomplishes the latter. Materiality is immediately evident in the entry hall’s bespoke Deco-style console of Nero Marquina marble clasped aloft by sinuous hand-cast bronze legs. Overhead is a glass and ceramic fixture by London-based Vezzini & Chen. Even the extravagant door hardware here is specially designed. The living room is simultaneously spare and sumptuous. That sounds paradoxical, but the secret lies in the material character of the furnishings and lighting. The long Aare sconces “are sculptures in their own right,” shares Purcell Rodrigues, and telegraph an almost ritualistic force, largely through a handcrafted bronze patina you not only see but feel. A Klippen sofa and lounge chairs balance faceted angles (a klippe is a craggy rock formation) with rounded backs and seats, as well as lush upholstery. Art by Gareth Edwards, Claire Burke and others adds the finishing flourishes, but also works as a harmonious component in the overall composition of rooms, rather than commanding so much attention that it upsets the balance of the various elements.

Keeping furnishings pared back required artful concealment. Here, a door blended imperceptibly into paneling opens to reveal a richly grained macassar ebony bar. In the kitchen, all appliances recede behind lacquer-look cabinet doors. “Because it’s all white I wanted something with a texture, with a soft, tactile undulation to it,” comments the designer. Hence the leather- finished black granite countertop on the nearly 20-foot island, which he repeated overhead with three boxes containing lighting and exhaust. Using three boxes, rather than one, gives “a certain rhythm to it,” he explains. “It emphasizes their weight but makes them look like they’re floating, too.”

Opposite this are what eventually became Atelier Purcell’s Elysian dining table and Khepera benches. “It’s a super skinny space,” he notes. “A line of chairs would affect the thoroughfare. This offers a smoother, more practical flow.” Practicality and function, of course, underlie the entire project. But they become integral yet invisible, ceding attention instead to the inspired furnishings and sensual touch of every surface.

Photography by Andrew Beasley

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