Structural Collaboration:
Domiteaux Garza and NPI Design
Interior Design: NPI Design
Builder: Provenance Builders
Artisan Carpentry: Luis Alvarez
Metal Works: La Fraqua
Exterior Collaboration:
Matthew Murray Design and NPI Design
Pool: Claffey Pools
Exterior Sculpture: Niki Samuel
I wanted to create a very personalized “Art Box” for my husband and me. A home that merged comfortable and inviting living areas with an artistic purpose; space designed for ART and FAMILY. Based on Bauhaus principles—straight lines, glass, and function—the intention was to design an architectural box with museum-like form reminiscent of Parisian boutique hotels and one of my favorite museums, the Musée Rodin.
The hand-contoured staircase, positioned in the center of a wall of glass panes, serves more as a featured art installation than access to another floor. Construction alone was a yearlong process.
The staircase is artistically the axis point of symmetry, melding architecture and art.
Creating the staircase was a true labor of love. After the technical challenges were resolved, the steel spine was constructed off site and craned in through a large-framed window opening. The artistic phase was equally laborious. We worked day after day, sanding and shaping, until the perfect gracefulness was achieved, and wax plaster could be applied. The final touch: A custom-shaped bronze handrail.
Custom staircase developed by: Lance Raney, Michael Stenstrom, Lotec Metals, Luis Alvarez and Raul Alfaro, Niki Samuel, Josh Lindley, and La Fragua Metal Works.
Custom features throughout the house add to the artistic feel. The handcrafted walnut and bronze patina dining table, for example, was locally made and created to be a place for festive family meals, crafts with my grandchildren and other inventive activities. The chandelier and black marble fireplace are NPI Design originals. Chic designs should also be usable.
Collecting art is an opportunity to celebrate the talents of others while enhancing the design and feel of a home. I looked for months for the perfect figurative painting to hang above our 1940s French deco antique credenza before finding Blanco Dahlia. Spanish artist Alberto Galvez is beyond talented. The beauty of the painting is captivating—the ideal feminine layer needed against strong, brutalist gray limestone floors and steel windows.
KEY ELEMENTS
Texture, Glass, White Tones, Metal, Natural Fibers, Organic Shapes, Straight Lines, Art, Nature, Architectural Lighting, Natural Light.
Serene and quiet spaces are a necessary retreat from the modern busy life.
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