Pacific House

Modern Marble

Alexander & Co. raids the quarry to brighten a 1990s cliffside Sydney home.

By Audrey Wachs

PROJECT TITLE Pacific House

ARCHITECT Alexander & Co.

LOCATION Sydney, Australia

above and left The supple, curving form of the indisputably 90s home compliments the soothing interiors.

While 1990s homes are not as shockingly retro as the avocado-green and burnt-orange trends of the 1970s, interiors in their second or third decade of life are usually in desperate need of a refresh. That’s exactly what Alexander & Co.’s Shelby Griffiths and Jordan Fleming delivered in Pacific House, a 1990s concrete-framed home overlooking the ocean in Sydney, Australia. Their team, alongside principal architect Jeremy Bull, reconfigured the layout, opening up the dark interior with blond-wood and marble surfaces galore to take advantage of the stunning scenery and honor the client’s taste for classical architecture with a contemporary twist. Before attempting any interior design, the architect reworked the house’s awkward circulation to make it easier for the clients to spend quality time with their children and enjoy the ocean views. While traditional marble interiors often feel stuffy, Griffiths and Fleming strategically deployed white and gray marble surfaces to reflect light throughout the kitchen, bathrooms, and common areas. In the courtyard-facing kitchen, terrazzo-like floors are made from Carrara, Grigio Firma, and Grigio Lana marbles. The oak ceiling is accentuated by American oak veneer joinery by JP Finsbury, while the suave Bianco Carrara marble backsplash and

below An iconic Camaleonda Sofa, designed by Italian architect Mario Bellini in 1971 for B&B Italia, sits atop a thick pile rug that echoes the largeformat terrazzo floors in the kitchen.