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For over a decade, EBL Interiors & Construction has worked to ignite their clients’ interior vision through the collaboration of engineers, architects, and designers. As purveyors of Italian labels such as Snaidero Cucine and Bertolotto Porte, that vision has been executed with precision and poise. As the firm enters their second decade, they are broadening their scope to that of the exterior with Officine Fanesi Outdoor Kitchens. The team looks forward to bringing interior standards to outdoor living. Their newly renovated showroom will be ready for all outdoor enthusiasts soon. 1482 Rail Head Boulevard | Naples, Florida 34110 | 239.431.5003 | eblinteriors.com

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Creating spaces you’ll love, for the places you live. Get started by visiting our stores! You’ll find a different selection of home furnishings at each of our stores — and everything in our collection is always available for immediate delivery.

North Naples 5510 Shirley Street Downtown Naples 326 13th Ave. South www.baydesignstore.com

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EVERY GREAT DESIGN BEGINS WITH AN EVEN BETTER STORY. YOURS. Discover how our acclaimed design team creates bespoke luxury interior design solutions driven by the chapters of your life that inspire you. Schedule a complimentary personal Design Profile at our inspiration studio located in Mercato, Naples or at DWest.com.

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1696 Vinland Way | Naples, FL | PREMIERSOTHEBYSREALTY.COM

PremierSIR.com | 239.434.2424 Sotheby’s International Realty® and the Sotheby’s International Realty logo are registered service marks used with permission. Each office is independently owned and operated. Equal Housing Opportunity. Property information herein is derived from various sources including, but not limited to, county records and multiple listing services, and may include approximations. All information is deemed accurate.

GWT Outdoors is an official Renson ambassador for all their outdoor aluminum louvered roof structures. Their outdoor shading system is the perfect solution for you to expand your living space outdoors, all year long, no matter the elements. Sleek design, premium accessories and smart technology allow you to experience luxury outdoor living like never before. Create your outdoor living space with Renson shading structures.

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A legacy of real estate. A mastery of real estate marketing. Sotheby’s International Realty® and the Sotheby’s International Realty logo are registered service marks used with permission. Each office is independently owned and operated. Equal Housing Opportunity.

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Dan Cutrona

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H I DDE N CO MP OUN D

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T H E C OH N S’

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Features

Full-Service Interior Design Fine Furnishings Custom Remodeling Interior Architectural Detail New Construction Project Management

www.reneegaddis.com 239.431.8352 15940 Old 41 N., Suite 530 • Naples, FL 34110 FL LICENSE IB26001518

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STAYC AT ION F OR F IVE

A PERM AN EN T

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SWAN SON G

A D AN C ER ’S SAN I B EL

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Features

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T H E F U T U RE IS

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M ARK J. LEON AR D I

TH E ZAI SER S’ R ETR EAT B Y

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Features

From simple to intricate designs, California Closets systems are custom designed specifically for you and the way you live.

239.694.8100 californiaclosets.com NAPLES SHOWROOM 2367 Vanderbilt Beach Rd #810, Naples

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DANIELS MARKETPLACE 6891 Daniels Parkway #135, Fort Myers

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In Ever y Issue Headliners

34 PEOPLE

High Note

3 51

Over ture

Yo s e l i n A l o n s o

N e x t- G e n D e s i g n e r

From the Editor

Departments

Design OBJECTS Made in Southwest Florida

MATERIALS

ESSENTIALS

Marble Creations

Incognito Security

PEOPLE N ex t- G e n A rchite c t S e p e i de h A zin

MATERIALS Wood Revolution

114 SPACES A L ight- Fille d Fo r tre s s

12 6

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Omar Cruz; Courtesy Kreoo, Niamh Barry Studio

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Sculptural Lighting

OBJECTS

Architecture

When PASSION meets

artistry.

DWAYNE BERGMANN INTERIORS / A Full Service Design Firm

SHOWROOMS Fort Myers / Naples DwayneBergmann.com / 239.344.7455

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Environs ES S E NTI A L S Glassy Pools

272

Eco Furnishings

OBJECTS

302

Departments

282 PEOPLE

Nex t- G e n L andscape A rchite ct Mariah Bakke

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Artistry STUDIO PRACTICE The Female Gaze: Lauren Amalia Redding Lynn Davison Hailey Pinkerton

310 OBJECTS

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Courtesy Tŷ Syml; Omar Cruz, Dan Cutrona

338

292

Back yard Oasis

A Santorini- Inspire d

SPACES

Ode to the Chair

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

President/CEO

ART

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Gulfshore Life Creative Director

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INTERIOR DESIGN SERVICES 950 1st ave n - in the naples design district (239) 529-3813

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© Copyright Gulfshore Life is published by Gulfshore Life Media, LLC. The entire document of Gulfshore Life is © 2022 by Gulfshore Life Media, LLC. No portion may be reproduced in whole or in part by any means, including electronic retrieval systems without the express written permission of the publisher. Best of the Gulfshore, MINI, Healthy Life, Taste of the Gulf, Weekend Insider, Shore Thing, Southwest Florida Guide to the Arts, Visitors’ Guide, HOME, Men and Women of the Year and Gordon Drive are copyrighted service marks and are the property of Gulfshore Life Media, LLC., all rights reserved. Editorial content does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the publisher of this magazine. Editorial or advertising does not constitute advice, but it is considered informative. Gulfshore Life is locally operated. Occasionally we make our subscriber list available to carefully screened companies that offer products and services that we believe would interest our readers. If you do not want to receive these offers, please advise us at Gulfshore Life, 26101 S. Tamiami Trail, Bonita Springs, FL 34134. Please include your name and address as it appears on the mailing label of your most recent issue.

The Florida Architect

MHKAP LLC, License #101418 |MHK Architecture and Planning, License #14234

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H E A D L I N E R S

Cori Craciun, the artist and furniture maker behind Sticks and Stones Collection in the Naples Art District, crafts one-of-a-kind pieces from raw wood. Her console, which resembles a Florida panther, is shown in “Of the Earth” (p. 40).

Along with showcasing Kreoo’s arresting marble designs at his two local showrooms, designer Dwayne Bergmann unveils a collection of furnishings and home accents with the Italian luxe stone purveyor, slated to debut this summer at Salone del Mobile in Milan (p. 60).

Suzanne Lovell, who runs a design and art consulting firm in Chicago, is growing her presence in Southwest Florida. In this issue, she speaks on modern wood trends and her work with Thomas Riley Artisans’ Guild to design custom interiors with the natural material as a focal point (p. 114).

Miami architect René González shares his design for a private respite in a landlocked spot, where he used architectural detailing, smart layout choices and elements from traditional homes in the homeowner’s native Colombia to create water views and an open connection to the sky (p. 126).

Naples interior designer Wilfredo Emmanuel teamed up with Stofft Cooney Architects and Architectural Land Design for a staycation resort-like, family home in Pine Ridge Estates. The team played a delicate balancing act, blending the wife’s call for minimalism and the husband’s bold color and art choices—all of which is detailed in “Divine Refuge” (p. 216).

Naples-based modernist architect Mark J. Leonardi has a knack for layered buildings that showcase a unique mix of materials, blend with their environment and promote a sense of discovery at every turn. Case in point: The harmonious Port Royal home he designed for Wanda and Len Zaiser featured in “Serenity Now” (p. 234).

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An avid modernist, Fort Myersbased architect Joyce Owens took a 1971 Captiva woodframed cottage by postmodern forefather Charles Moore and turned it into a functional and inspired family vacation home that’s fully of the moment and exalts its beachfront setting (p. 140).

O n the Cover We trail several next-gen talents to get a glimpse of the future of SWFL design. One of these is landscape architect Mariah Bakke, who trained under R.S. Walsh Landscaping before branching out on her own. Here, she tells us how she uses native vegetation and eco practices to create inspired spaces that look and feel uniquely local (p. 282).

Pictured is the 2021 Bolotas armchair by Estudio Campana, friedmanbenda.com Story on p. 338 Courtesy Friedman Benda/Estudio Campana

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

T H E I T

NO _ 1 4

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F A C T O R

From the Editor

nearby home he’d done for a

breezy design. Architect René

this issue is set apart by a distinctive

friend. She wanted the architect

González also drew on global inspi-

quality that makes it exceptional:

to capture “the celestial” light

rations when designing a home for

the Santorini-meets-Southwest

and serenity of that space, but in

a couple who wanted water views

backyard with an integrated

a way that was entirely their own.

on a landlocked plot. By adding a

waterslide that Michelle and

Leonardi delivered, taking advan-

facade with louvered screens and

Lupe DeLaCruz designed in Fort

tage of every square inch to create

surrounding the property with

Myers; the artistic assortment of

intimate moments for reflection.

water features, he was able to cre-

what would otherwise be everyday

Long, glass-filled hallways allow

ate an amenity where it didn’t exist.

objects in Suzanne and Norman

for a beautiful display of light that

Now, every space delivers a view of

Cohn’s Naples condo; the historical

changes throughout the day, and

the sky or reflection pools.

heritage of a respectfully renovated

nooks throughout create focal

This issue is filled with clever

Captiva cottage initially conceived

points for the Zaisers’ mindfully

ideas like these. I’m partial to

by Charles Moore (known as a

curated art.

the pieces in our “Of the Earth”

pioneer of postmodernism) and

In Oakes Estates, Hlevel collabo-

story, all of which were crafted by

updated by Joyce Owens; next-

rated on a work-from-home abode,

local hands. I love Cori Craciun’s

gen architect Sepeideh Azin’s

where most areas and furnishings

Flora Table—a textured slab of

maker-informed approach to her

play double-duty: A movable

monkeypod wood carved into a

field. The differentiators reflect

kitchen island can fold out and into

muscular-looking console table

what we instinctively know about

itself to be an L-shaped prep area

reminiscent of a Florida panther.

design: The best of it is purposeful

or a smaller breakfast table, spare

Craciun describes it as “graceful

and personal.

bedrooms are outfitted with Mur-

and powerful” with a “presence

That’s the case in the Port Royal

phy beds that disappear when not

that grabs your attention”—qual-

estate that modernist Leonardi

in use, and sliding partitions can

ities that also define the spaces,

designed for philanthropists

separate or unite spaces. Though

people and ideas in these pages.

Wanda and Len Zaiser. Wanda

the design is thoroughly utilitarian,

called on Mark after seeing a

elements inspired by Moroccan riads and Latin American courtyard homes create an inspired,

Stephanie Granada Editor in Chief

Omar Cruz

Every home, person and product in

There’s a lot that goes into our name. Q STOCK is celebrating 20 years of innovation, award-winning design, quality construction and an impressive portfolio of homes in the area’s most desirable locations. As the leading developer and builder of luxury residences in Southwest Florida, the STOCK name has always been synonymous with exceptional craftsmanship and incomparable lifestyle. Whatever your dream, and wherever you want to live, we have a beautiful collection of places to call home throughout Florida.

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

OVERTURE

Strong architecture blends clients’ wishes with smart design principles to create details that are personal, functional and visually captivating. For a spiritualist homeowner, who wanted to create flow for the energy around his home, Naples architect David Poorman created concave windows on opposite sides of the building that he says act as horse blinders, focusing your view and reducing external influences. Photograph by Dan Cutrona

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OB JECT S

Made in Southwe st Florida Next-Gen Designer Yoselin Alonso

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PEOPLE

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Design

M ATE RI A L S Marble Creations _

Courtesy Kreoo

ES S E NTI A L S Incognito Security

O b j e c t s 1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

The

P h o t o g ra p hy by

Mic hael Korb

Craig Hildebrand

Local artisans turn to nature to create sculptural works that ground your home.

Earth

Naples-based Cori Craciun kept much of the Indonesian monkeypod (a.k.a. rain) tree’s stout trunk and some branches in their original state when creating the 8-foot console. As such, the wood’s knots and grain become a central part of the raw, sinuous design. The table took Craciun around five weeks to create, but she can spend up to a year on pieces like this, selecting the right wood and having it cut and dried to her specifications. Once the material arrives stateside, she’ll sand and artfully stain it before completion. This piece, she says, reminds her of a Florida panther. “It is graceful and powerful,” she says. “Its presence grabs your attention.” sticksandstonescollection.com

F LO R A CO N SO L E TA B L E BY S TI C KS A N D S TO N E S CO LL E C TI O N

42 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

O b j e c t s 1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

T I TA N 1C C BY M I C H A E L K R A KOW

The Titans series has been part of sculptor Michael Krakow’s career since the 1980s. Over time, the stout figures have evolved: At first, being more stoic, and now, more playful and human. Although he’s primarily used steel, glass and aluminum, in recent years, he’s taken to working with slab construction clay and copper. This Neo Titan is made of clay, finished with a black-and-brown oxide wash and stands 18 inches tall, making it a powerful statement piece for an entryway. michaelkrakow.net

Design 45

U N D E RWAT E R S E A V I N E BY C O C O O N N A PL E S

Objects

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For all of the spectacular art that man has created throughout history, it’s safe to say nature will always outshine our best efforts. This sculpture from Cocoon stands more than 8 feet tall with a mesmerizing, tangled mass of once-living matter, which store owner Mitchell Siegel hand-selected and then worked with a team of artisans to clean and mount. cocoonnaples.com

If ever there was a coffee table that commanded attention, it’s this three-ball design by Mariusz Dejcz of Luxe Surface Design Studio on Third Avenue North. The large spheres are made of concrete and coated with liquid metal in antique bronze (they can be recreated in just about any texture, pattern or color—a trademark of Dejcz’s ‘metal skins’). luxesurfacedesignstudio.com

S PH E R E CO F F E E TA BL E BY LUXE S U R FAC E D E S I G N S TU D I O

46 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

O b j e c t s 1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

There are interior motives behind everything we do. Your home should evolve just as your life does. With interior design expertise, custom cabinetry, professional space planning and remodeling prowess, let us transform your environment and the way you live.

CABINETRY

INTERIO R DE SIG N

C LO S ETS

View our gallery at edgeinteriorsf l.com Naples, Florida | 239.631.6771

Chad Jensen recently took one of his earliest projects out of the archives and onto the floor at METHOD & CONCEPT. Developed when he was in college, the chair explores the duality and qualities of the materials—laminate on one surface and Mappa burl on the opposite side. “Laminate historically is devalued,” he says. “But if you go back to the Memphis group and what they designed with laminates—they’re still some of the most collectible pieces today.” Contrast that against the Mappa burl that looks warped when viewed in its original form, yet its cut reveals a fantastical pattern that “nothing could ever replicate.” The dualities are everywhere with this piece, Jensen notes. methodandconcept.com

M A PPA B U R L C H A I R BY C H A D J E N S E N , M E T H O D & C O N C E P T

48 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

O b j e c t s 1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

THE CLOSER YOU LOOK, THE MORE YOU’LL LYKOS. We’re here to find what works for you, and be your collaborative partner every step of the way. It’s more than creating your dream home, it’s who you choose to build it with. We invite you to experience one of our homes for yourself—The more you Lykos, the more you’ll trust us.

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P h o t o g r a p hy by

Stephanie Granada

Omar Cruz

People

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

Open Concept

THE FINER THINGS

T h e n e w a s s o c i a t e i n t e r i o r d e s i g n e r a t M E T H O D & C O N C E P T, Yo s e l i n A l o n s o i s d e v e l o p i n g h e r eye for ar t- centric interiors that are hyperpersonal to the people who inhabit them.

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

People

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A University of Florida graduate, Alonso joined METHOD & CONCEPT about a year ago. She was attracted to the gallerymeets-design studio’s approach to creating artful spaces, with nearly every element being custom-built and artists’ work featured prominently. “We use artists as part of the design process,” she says.

Yoselin Alonso has long understood that interior design is more than surface aesthetics. Growing up with a dad who works in construction, she started to learn the ins and outs of the industry early on. By the time she got to college, she already knew how to take down a door, put on a baseboard and build stairs. “My dad always pushed us to know more than you’re expected to know at a young age,” Alonso says. When he’d finish a project, he’d hand his daughter the blueprints and let her have at it. Like many kids who grow up to practice architecture or design, she’d spend hours playing with LEGOs, trying to recreate her dad’s floorplans. Her mom’s work as a seamstress solidified Alonso’s hunger for creativity: “I always liked to work with my hands.” Hands-on is a key descriptor for her role at METHOD & CONCEPT, where she works alongside Chad Jensen to conceive design projects. The work stretches beyond selecting finishes and furnishings. “There are a lot of misconceptions about

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interior design,” Alonso says, adding that while she was studying at the University of Florida, the faculty was talking about changing the interior design program’s name to interior architecture. “That’s really what it is: We develop the layout, work on the electrical engineering—ultimately, it’s everything that has to do with the functionality of the space.” This is especially true at METHOD & CONCEPT, a sister company of the Thomas Riley Artisans’ Guild. Run by Jensen, the company doubles as a design studio and a gallery for emerging and midcareer artists. “There aren’t a lot of places that think about design and art as a cohesive whole,” Alonso says. In all of their projects, artisanship plays a key role and spaces are planned to emphasize the artworks. Jensen and Alonso may turn to Thomas Riley to create custom furnishings or millwork to achieve a specific vision or fulfill a certain function, or conceive a room around a piece of art that the homeowner loves. “We use the artists as part of the design process,” she says. Working with Jensen, Alonso is involved in every step of the process, from helping conceive designs to attending

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

People

Design

She likes working with her hands and knew she’d found her home when she saw founding director Chad Jensen’s office. “I saw all the materials, sketches, renderings and the design process in action,” she says. “There’s something so special about taking every detail into consideration, and I knew that was happening here.”

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

client meetings and site visits to ordering materials to creating the plans. She’s especially apt at creating 3D renderings of projects–something Jensen says was missing until Alonso came around. She’s also helping develop METHOD & CONCEPT’s proprietary line of soft goods, slated to debut next season. When he was looking to fill the associate interior designer position, Jensen admits he was looking for a unicorn. He was drawn to Alonso for her appreciation of art and design, her grit and the dualities in her personality. “She presents herself so polished and well-spoken, but then you see her driving and loading a pick-up truck and wanting to get her hands dirty,” he says. The two speak a similar language, with projects guided by intentionality— considering how the person will feel in each space, how the space is used, and how any given scene in the home changes throughout the day. In Alonso, Jensen also finds an essential trait that is hard to teach: sincere passion for the craft and eagerness to learn. After a long week at the gallery. The young designer is eager

People

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Design

In addition to working on home projects, the young designer is helping METHOD & CONCEPT launch its proprietary line of soft goods, slated to debut next season.

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Pe o p l e 1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

to go into the studio on weekends to learn from Jensen, who is also a practicing artist and maker, creating furniture and functional art objects. When she thinks about her personal creative pursuits, Alonso often draws inspiration from her parents’ native Mexico, recalling places like Las Pozas, a surrealist garden by Edward James, located in the mountains of Xilitla, with only one road in and out. “There are so many beautiful places in Mexico that people don’t even know about,” she says. “That inspires me—the sense of discovery.” And, that’s what she aims to capture in her work. At 27, Alonso is quickly developing her style. Jensen and the METHOD & CONCEPT team are a powerful influence, as is the pull to be close to family in Bonita Springs. “This is the place and spot, and exactly where I want to be,” she says.

Alonso draws from her father’s work in the construction industry, her mother’s creativity as a seamstress and the architectural richness of her family’s native Mexico.

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239.758.9500 | METROPOLITANNAPLES.COM ORAL REPRESENTATIONS CANNOT BE RELIED UPON AS CORRECTLY STATING REPRESENTATIONS OF THE DEVELOPER. FOR CORRECT REPRESENTATIONS, MAKE REFERENCE TO THIS WEBSITE AND TO THE DOCUMENTS REQUIRED BY SECTION 718.503, FLORIDA STATUTES, TO BE FURNISHED BY A DEVELOPER TO A BUYER OR LESSEE. All artist’s renderings are proposed concepts shown only for marketing purposes and are based upon current development plans, which are subject to change by the developer, Aura at Metropolitan Naples, LLC, which reserves the right to make changes at its sole discretion, without prior notice or approval of the purchaser. This project has been filed in the state of Florida and no other state. This is not an offer to sell or solicitation of offers to buy the condominium units in states where such offer or solicitation cannot be made. This advertisement does not constitute an offer where prior registration or other qualification is required. Prices, availability, plans, features, dimensions, specifications and amenities are subject to change at any time without notice. All Rights Reserved. Equal Housing Opportunity.

1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7. Materials By

Courtesy Kreoo (2)

Stone

J a y n i e B a r t l ey

T H A N K S T O A C O L L A B O R AT I O N W I T H D E S I G N E R D WAY N E B E R G M A N N ,

Age

K R E O O C O M E S T O S O U T H W E S T F L O R I D A W I T H I T S D I S T I N C T LY M O D E R N TA K E O N M A R B L E .

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Materials

1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7.

For millennia, marble has been revered in art and design, with many centuries-old statues and buildings from ancient Rome, Greece and Egypt still standing today. In the past decade, designers have modernized marble’s appeal, looking beyond the pristine white Calacatta and Carrara, getting creative with anomalous applications and embracing various styles with unique veining and colors. Kreoo, the product design arm of Decormarmi—an Italian marbeen at the center of the marble revolution since its debut in 2010. Now, the brand brings its decidedly modern take on the stone to

“When you’re walking up steps made of marble that were installed more than 2,000 years ago, and you see what artisans were doing with stone in 200 or 300 B.C., there’s this instant attraction,” interior designer Dwayne Bergmann says of the material’s appeal. “It’s timeless.”

Courtesy Kreoo

ble masonry founded in 1963, has

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Materials

1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7.

Southwest Florida via a collaboration with local designer Dwayne Bergmann. The brand partners with world-renowned talent to create pieces— mostly bathroom and living room furnishings and wall coverings—that exalt and reimagine marble. Italian designer Enzo Berti’s Kora bathtub, cut out of a single block of marble, garnered ample attention a few years back for its elliptical shape modeled after the West African instrument; fine-art-trained designer Raffaello Galiotto’s 3D patterned wall coverings give a hip, artistic look to the trend;

and

sculptor

Paolo Ulian’s multifaceted Diamond washbasin has a futuristic appeal with its sharp angles. Bergmann, who discovered Kreoo last summer while looking for a show-

Kreeo works with designers and architects from around the world to develop innovative marble products, like the Texo wall covering by Enzo Berti, which has the stone carved into a voluminous, woven pattern. Courtesy Kreoo

marble-wall

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Courtesy Kreoo (2)

The brand launched in 2010 by respected Italian marble masonry Decormarmi. In addition to showcasing Kreoo products at his showrooms, Bergmann is also working on a line with them.

Materials

1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7. 66 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Design

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Materials

1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7.

piece for a bathroom project, is a natural fit for the marble brand. With his upcoming collection, the designer brings his special knack for livable luxury to the medium. “Luxury doesn’t have to mean formal or unusable,” he says. “You can have a luxurious experience in your shorts and flip-flops. Inspired by the stone artisans of ancient civilizations, the designer plans to include midcentury-looking pendant lights, dining tables, consoles and some smaller objects, like candleholders, napkin rings and tabletop for bigger pieces, like tubs and washbasins. With all this, Bergmann aims to demystify marble and make it more approachable for those who see it sole-

Kreoo’s Sandro Marchesin notes that lately aesthetes have been seeking stones with natural character and implementing marble in creative ways, transforming raw slabs into freestanding tubs, 3D etched wall coverings, furnishings and accent pieces that warrant heirloom status.

Courtesy Kreoo

pieces. He’s also sketched concepts

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Materials

1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7.

ly as a symbol of glamorous elegance. Mirroring

forward-thinking

trends that remix the material with other surfaces (acrylic, wood, resin), some of the designs may feature marble as an accent. You might find, for instance, a wood table with marble legs; a black marble side table with an integrated, brass-detailed magazine rack; or a headboard that incorporates marble accents. “We’re flipping the conversation,” he says. For Kreoo’s partnerships, designers are embedded in the process, traveling to quarries in Italy, Brazil and throughout the Middle East to shop, the Kreoo team uses machinery that works similarly to a 3D printer to precisely carve the block, eliminating

Courtesy Kreoo

select slabs. Back in the Italian work-

Design

Bergmann’s collection for Kreoo—slated to debut at Salone del Mobile in Milan this summer—brings the designer’s knack for livable luxury to the line, with pieces that mix the stone with materials like wood or utilize it as an accent, like on a table with marble legs. “We’re flipping the conversation,” he says.

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Materials

1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7.

error and waste before artisans apply the finishing details. And, Kreoo goes beyond fabricating products. “That’s where the designer comes in—it’s about using the stone in the right way to really highlight its natural beauty,” the brand’s Sandro Marchesin says. Bergmann’s collection debuts this summer at Salone del Mobile in Milan (arguably the world’s most important design fair). In the meantime, you can scope Kreoo’s range of luxe home products at Bergmann’s showrooms in Naples and Fort Myers. “Putting this material into the furnishing side the designer says. “Instead of it being pushed into the corner, we’re going to breathe new air into it with these decorative pieces.”

One way designers are reinventing marble is by incorporating it in new applications. Kreoo’s new Aurora collection, for instance, marries the stone with Murano glass and onyx, with the veining of the marble playing off the convex profiles of the glass and the light’s glow.

Courtesy Kreoo

is not new, but it’s not widely used,”

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By Essentials

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

te homes that are

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ir ski l l s to c rea

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

Gone are the days when creating a secure home required hiring a team of former Navy SEALs, unleashing the hounds or splaying unattractive bollards around your gorgeously landof companies that are integrating mi-

scaped perimeter. There is now a host

and architecture to protect homes— and the people and things inside— from disasters, ranging from art theft to

Essentials

crotechnology into landscape design

storm surges. With the right teams, no one has to know that a hand-hewn door hides a safe room, a Rothko is electronically tagged or a multimillion-dollar view is afforded by elevation that also prevents flooding. For the 0.1%, an entire home can double as a shelter, be it from intruders, hurricanes or even a power now is an electromagnetic pulse (EMP),” Brian V. Camden, principal and founder of Virginia-based Hardened Structures, says, referring to the high-intensity surge of energy that can disrupt or destroy electronics. The company has been building bomb shelters, fortified homes and underground bunkers since 1991. “Everyone is hardening for that now.” Along with protecting a home’s mechanical

The first line of defense is a well-planned landscape. Design pros may lift a beach home atop dunes to prevent flooding or design a perimeter with tall palms, brushy native vegetation or stacked stones that deter human and ecological intruders.

Michael Stavaridis; Courtesy Raad Studio/Robert Wright (previous spread)

surge. “The number one threat right

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

room so that generators and other electronic machinery don’t get fried in an EMP, Camden builds houses using insulated concrete forms with cores as thick as 10 inches. These “hardened homes” are usually about two to four times more wind- and -weather-resistant than a regular home and also happen to be bulletproof. “You put stucco or wood over it, and no one knows the difference,” Camden explains. “That gives you protection against 250-mph winds Naples Premiere Systems offers

and phenomenal insulation.”

end finished doors and windows. “You look at them and think they are just beautiful, but they have up-

Essentials

reinforcements in the form of high-

graded security, motorized locks and different levels of ballistic capabilities,” Premier’s vice president Robert Anderson, Jr. says. The doors are equipped with customizable technology that allows you access via highly personalized biometrics (like your fingerprint or facial recognition) or physical proximity to your Bluetooth-enabled devices. And, in lieu of panic rooms, Anderson says, their home, including bedrooms, into so-called ‘serenity rooms,’ where the walls and windows are weather- andbulletproof. Straying from the cold, windowless image commonly associated with safe rooms, companies like

Zahner designs aluminum panels that protect facades from hurricane-force winds and storm debris without impeding on aesthetics or the flow of light inside. For a beach home, architecture firm Aamodt / Plumb paired with the company to create a striking exterior that’s in tune with the environment and guards the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Courtesy Aamodt / Plumb/Jane Messinger (2)

people are turning entire rooms in

Design

Premiere can now outfit any room in your house to serve as a safe space—equipped with dedicated networks that allow those within to stay in contact with emergency services, as well as cell and internet service to connect with loved ones outside. That’s not to say panic rooms are totally out of the equation. Italian firm Agresti has been creating custom cabinets and safes for over seven decades, but they’ve seen growth in treasure rooms outfitted with customizable cabinets and ultrasuede-drawer linings. The armored door is magically opened with each family member’s pre-programmed biometrics and doubles as a beautiful closet. In the event you are coerced into opening the door, you can use a different finger that will trigger a silent alarm. Many cool, swooping structures you’ve seen around the world are wrapped in Kansas City-based Zahner’s innovative metal designs. The Wynwood Garage and Frank Gehry’s undulating New World Symphony in Miami; Zaha Hadid’s Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum in Lansing, Michigan; Grace Farms’ curvilinear structure in New Canaan, Connecticut—all fabricated by the 125-year-old company. The artful architecture keeps office workers and homeowners safe, since the custom aluminum walls double as art installations that are difficult to penetrate, climb and peep through. They also protect the homes’ facades—particularly those floor-

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

beach—from hurricane-force winds

energy-efficient, and built for lon-

and storm debris.

gevity—even in the face of Florida’s

If good fences make good neigh-

salty, sunny, humid atmosphere and

bors, imagine a barrier as ornate as

storms. Firms like New York City’s

a museum wall; passersby may come

Raad Studio have reimagined the

and steal a look, but nabbing any-

beach house, incorporating man-

thing else will be difficult. Architect

made hydrodynamic dunes into the

James

implemented

skeleton to allow stormwater to flow

this tactic when designing the U.S.

right through the land without dam-

Embassy in London, which sits atop

aging the structure.

Timberlake

a spiral garden and is wrapped in

Fort Myers-based landscape ar-

laminated glazing and a transpar-

chitect Mariah Bakke likes to (re-

ent film that minimizes the sun’s

spectfully) build on the dunes as a

glare while maximizing its light ef-

way to weather-proof the shore. “I

ficiently. “Security should be more

do a lot of dune stabilization on the

integrated, more discreet, and ar-

Gulf side, which is eroded by storms

chitects should first try to think of

and even tidal movement,” she says.

passive ways to incorporate security

She loves to make elevated board-

requirements,” he says. Fabricator

walks out to the water, planting

Cosentino also creates architectural

native species (railroad vines and

cladding, called Dekton, that adds

dune sunflowers) beneath the wood,

to a building’s energy efficiency and

and creating sand paths to the shore

can withstand extreme tempera-

lined with plants and trees, like man-

tures and other weather conditions.

groves, that serve as erosion-defense

Climate change and its effects are

systems. “I know they can get big and

among the biggest threats to coastal

unruly, and I’m OK with trimming.

homes. But smart architecture can

But if you trim too much, your house

future-proof nearly any residence.

will not be protected from surges,”

Conscientious local architects opt

Bakke says. “Those mangroves are

for flat roofs, elevated structures,

protecting our coasts.” The tangled

ample shade and low-impact ma-

trees and other native plants also

Courtesy Cell Art, Premiere Systems

terials that are low-maintenance,

Essentials

to-ceiling glass walls we love on the

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

Design

Modern-day safety features integrate seamlessly into the design, like CellArt’s bank vault-like cellars (below). Naplesbased Premiere Systems (left) can discretely outfit any room—or an entire home—with doors, windows and surveillance systems that are sleek and equipped with everything from ballistic capabilities to biometric access.

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

guard the home from intruders, who are deterred from trekking through the brush. As for the valuables you keep inside, of course, there are plenty But, for those priceless possessions,

of stealth hidden camera options.

if those treasures pieces could be tagged, unscathed and monitored 24/7? Enter Art Guard’s Magnet-

Essentials

we’ll take it one step further. What

ic Asset Protection (MAP) System, which places tiny rare-earth magnets on anything from your grandfather’s Patek Philippe watch to your Giacometti collection, and detects if they’ve been moved with a nearby sensor. Any movement of the magnet—and thus the piece it’s attached to—triggers an alert to you via any or a call to the police. Art Guard’s MAP is used in New York’s MoMA, Sotheby’s and in about 400 private collections around the world. “We can protect anything: art, jewelry, memorabilia,” Anderson says.

A tried-and-true security approach, secret doors, like the ones Creative Home Engineering provides, can disguise the entrance to safe spaces with bookcases, mirrors and staircases that easily lift with a latch.

Courtesy Creative Home Engineering

preset preference: text, a phone call

M E E T T H E E X P E R T S WHAT WILL LOVETTO DESIGN BRING TO YOUR PROJECT? From space planning to product specifications, custom built-ins to architectural detailing, furniture to finish selections, and all things in between, our team’s qualifications and attention to detail will ensure an excellent design experience and a lasting personal relationship. No matter the size or scope of the project, our team looks forward to helping you with the utmost levels of respect, professionalism, and expertise.

Lisa Lovetto

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L.A. DeRiggi

Senior Interior Designer

HOW DO WE EXPRESS YOUR STYLE? We dig deep before we start because we want to get to know you on a deep and intimate level. To get there, we set up meetings with the intention of establishing direction through inspirational elements. In those meetings we ask lots of questions and listen hard to your answers— because your answers tell us who you are, and what you care about. Your answers tell us what you love, what’s sentimental to you, and what you want to express about yourself. After we get to know you, and through detailed consideration, we integrate images that communicate our ideas into a new vision for your home.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN INTERIOR DESIGN AND INTERIOR DECORATION? If your project includes just the furnishings, light fixtures, and some accessories, then “decoration” is the appropriate service for your needs. Many trained designers also offer interior decorating services. If your scope of work includes new construction specifications, or you are working on a renovation of your existing home, meaning—an overall plan that takes into account a concept, a budget, and construction, you are looking for an interior designer who has received training. The decisions you make, whether with a decorator or designer lead to a comprehensive design concept and specifications, and it’s all in pursuit of one result: your stunning home.

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Sculptural Lighting

OBJECTS

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Architecture

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126

S PACES

A L i g h t- F i l l e d F o r t r e s s _

Sculptural lighting makes a statement even when unlit.

By Rima Suqi

Gutter Credit Courtesy Niamh Barry

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7. 8 . Objects

CURVE BALL

Niamh Barry refers to her pieces as “three-dimensional drawings in bronze and light.” This one, called Muscularity, which takes more than 840 hours to create, is a study of organic forms— from the patinated ellipses to the curvaceous vessels balanced within them. These feature an interior finish of warm gold and a mirror-polished plate that emits soft light. Available through Maison Gerard. maisongerard.com

Courtesy Dimorestudio

Design darling Dimorestudio is the creative mind behind this sensuous fixture reminiscent of a dress that might’ve graced the dance floor at Studio 54. The Charleston has a fringed shade (available in three colors) that’s mounted on a light panel. Available through The Future Perfect. thefutureperfect.com

FRINGE BENEFIT

Courtesy History Never Repeats; Metzi/ACH Collection (also on previous spread)

Objects

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7. 8 .

88 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

CUSTOM INTERIOR DESIGN

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Courtesy Andreea Braescu

Inspired by the leaves of the ginkgo biloba tree, the Ginkgo Bespoke features five variations of individually crafted bone china leaves that are meticulously placed. It’s available in various sizes; the larger styles feature about a thousand leaves and can take as long as three months to create in artist Andreea Braescu’s Bucharest studio. andreeabraescu.com

BRANCHING OUT

Objects

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90 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Architecture

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Objects

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7. 8 .

FULL BLOOM

Courtesy Rosie Li

The ancient Chinese tree also inspired Brooklyn-based artist Rosie Li’s 8-foot-long Ginkgo Blossom Chandelier. Seven types of brass leaves, formed by hand in her studio, are placed in a pattern designed to optimally catch the glow emanating from the bud-shaped light sources. rosieli.com

F FICARRA DESIGN

spm photography

A S S O C I AT E S

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Courtesy Regis Mathieu

The drawings of German naturalist and zoologist Ernst Haeckel inspired Regis Mathieu’s Jellyfish, a gilt bronze and crystal fixture designed to highlight 18th-century metalsmith skills in a 21st-century design. The pieces are crafted in his world-famous workshop in southern France, where he and his skilled team also restore chandeliers for the likes of the Paris Opera and the Palace of Versailles. mathieulustrerie.com

SEA CHANGE

Objects

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7. 8 .

94 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

grow.

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Courtesy Lindsey Adelman

Lighting luminary Lindsey Adelman’s latest piece, Paradise, is meant to “capture a spirit of nomadic wandering … with elements [that] are swagged, pierced and illuminated to generate an unexpected clash of couture and punk.” The American-made piece is highly customizable (add any number of clear, amber or pink glass spheres; nickel or brass chains; fringe pieces; or khaki or black lashings), with textured globes blown by New York-based Michiko Sakano and Pennsylvania’s Vetro Vero studio and woven electrical wires by textile artist Taryn Urushido. lindseyadelman.com

CHAIN REACTION

Objects

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96 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

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ROM AN ROCK

Courtesy LASVIT

At a glance, Maxim Velcovsky’s Memento Mori looks like a modern chandelier with some parts artistically askew. In reality, it was inspired by the fixtures made of human bones in Sedlec Ossuary, a World Heritage Site in the sculptor’s native Czech Republic. Look closely, and you’ll see bones in various forms and scales arranged to create this piece, made of handblown and pressed glass. lasvit.com

GOOD BONES

Objects

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98 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Create Function & Storage with Style!

All About Closets is all about innovative design, impeccable craftsmanship and flawless service. Our installations reflect your dreams and your personality, while enhancing your home. We will maximize the storage of your closets, home office, wall units, pantry, and garage or anywhere in your home that requires storage solutions. Our team works from Port Charlotte to Marco Island.

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Courtesy METHOD & CONCEPT/Lobmeyr

finishes and bespoke ornamentation. Available through METHOD & CONCEPT at The Collective in Naples. methodandconcept.com

same family, using nickel-finished brass and hand-cut crystal beads. Art nouveau floral motifs weave through the design, which is customizable with different

hang at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York) upholds the legacy of the original. More than 100 years later, the piece is still manufactured by the

Based on the design of architect Josef Hoffmann’s 1914 archetype of the Jugendstil chandelier, the Cologne, by Austrian lighting titan Lobmeyr (their pieces

C RYS TAL C L E AR

Objects

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10 0 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

P h o t o g r a p hy by Omar Cruz

Stephanie Granada

Building

People

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

Next-gen Naples architect Sepeideh Azin draws from her Iranian heritage and training as a woodworker.

Momentum

10 4

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Pratt Institute-trained architect Sepeideh Azin spent six years working at Thomas Riley Artisans’ Guild, eager to develop her craftsmanship skills. “I realized not having a deep understanding of how things were built was not serving me,” she says. A year ago, she returned to her profession, joining Mark J. Leonardi Architect in Naples as a junior architect.

Sepeideh Azin often thinks about how of her childhood home in Iran: “What I remember is the smell and how the light came in through the living room and lit up my mom’s plants in the afternoon and how

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

the light would stream into the bedroom

it poured into my room in the morning to wake me up for school. My interest is to create spaces where life can take place in that way.” When she was younger, she was fascinated learning about the Persian empire and the principles behind local traditions like Zoroastrianism, a religion older than Judaism and Christianity that places heavy emphasis on nature. “This 5,000-year-old civilization, and Iran, ic—there are deserts in the middle of the country, you have the Gulf in the south, forests and jungles up north,” she says. “The architecture that came to coexist within all that, even thousands of years ago, was extremely advanced.” Living with an artist mother, there was always art around, and Azin was equally drawn to math and science. Architecture was a natural path. At 17, she moved to New York and studied at Pratt Institute—a school that prides itself on innovation. There, she began to develop ideas about design and architecture and started tinkering with making things.

People

itself, is very environmentally dynam-

NAPLES, FL | CLEVELAND, OH | WDESIGN.COM

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To Azin, product design and architecture are intertwined: One is dependent on the other in the best of spaces, and both require flexibility to allow for the creation of new and exciting things.

Eventually, she decamped for sunnier GUILD, a creative agency that constructs temporary structures for major luxury brands, like Van Cleef & Arpels. The job was equal parts building and design. She

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

climes in Miami, where she worked for

and her team would create elaborate installations before taking them down a few days or a few hours later. In the process, “I realized not having a deep understanding of how things are built was not serving me,” she says. “I was adamant that my next job had to be hands-on.” A quest to find the best people to learn from led her to Thomas Riley Artisans’ Guild in Naples, where she spent six years training with mentors like Chris Zettel, who took her under his work on her own designs. “I’d always stick around after,” she says. At Thomas Riley, Azin learned classic woodworking techniques and true craftsmanship. From the beginning, she’d been drawn to the company’s heritage as a 25-year-old, family-owned business. She began to understand how time-honored principles could meld with—and were even essential to—modern design. “I was already educated in modern design,” she says. “It was important for me to see the other side.” After her seven-year “sabbatical” from architecture, she found her way back to

People

wing. When the work day ended, she’d

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

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With everything she designs—whether it be a piece of furniture or the plans for her own 1956 home in the Bayshore Arts District, which she and her boyfriend have been carefully remodeling—Azin thinks about the feeling behind it. Sustainable design principles are important to her, as is fostering a sense of shared history and creating familiarity even with new builds.

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

She doesn’t approach projects with preconceived ideas for the design. Instead, the wood tells her what it wants to be: “Does it want to be amplified, or does it want to be more quiet to bring the focus into the grain?” It was the same when remodeling her home. When she walked the property, she recognized it did not want to be a standard house. So, she opened up the space, removed the division between the living and bedroom, and put the dining room on the lanai.

Architecture

111

the field last year, this time working as a junior architect at Mark J. Leonardi Architect. “He had the closest philosophy to what I thought of design and architecture,” she says. Architecture at its core, she explains, is simply space, light and materials—and the right combination of those three elements can create magnificent structures. Leonardi is particularly adept with this formula. He also understands the need for architecture to be intertwined with its environment. “One of the things I love about Southwest Florida is its very unique ecosystem,” she says. “It’s vital for architecture and the environment to embrace each other, and that’s some-

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

thing Mark does really well.” As a lifelong student, Azin is soaking up everything she can from Leonardi. After hours, she continues to design furnishings and small objects, which she plans to sell under the brand NÜK. The name comes from the small nook in her Brooklyn apartment, where she’d spend hours daydreaming and thinking about the past and the feeling she wanted to foster with her own work. She designs with intention, allowing the wood to reveal what it wants to be. One of her favorite pieces is a rattle she made for her niece. “Conceptually, I really like it because it’s a piece that is supposed to be an heirloom but that she can also play with now,” she says.

People

To Azin, architecture and design go hand in hand—one is dependent on the other, and in the best cases, the furnishings and the architecture are harmonious. Both practices also require flexibility to allow for the creation of new and exciting things. She’s in no rush to branch out on her own. “Architecture is an incredible responsibility,” she says. “And having the responsibility to do it right is a big thing.” For now, she continues to define her design philosophy and identify the principles that are important to her: creating sustainable buildings

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . People

“In architecture, the details make the whole,” she says. “And the furniture—even the object that holds your keys when you get home—contributes to that whole.”

and objects that respond to the challenges

mango tree-filled parcel next door, and she

designing a deck that extends out from the

of climate change, respecting the regional

and her boyfriend have been slowly reno-

primary bedroom. Inside, clean lines reflect

context of a place, and history (“as an im-

vating it since. They got rid of most doors to

her modernist background, and there’s a

migrant, the past is always there”). When

limit the flow of water that could reach the

playfulness to the space. With every detail,

she designs, she thinks about crafting spac-

home, which sits below flood level; enlarged

she thinks about the feeling the design cre-

es and pieces that feel familiar, even when

the windows to make interiors look bigger;

ates and aims to capture something akin to

they’re new builds. “That’s a real talent

and opened the space, getting rid of the

what she felt in the mornings in her child-

when someone does it right,” she says.

traditional living and bedroom and instead

hood bedroom with the light pouring in or

Her home—an 800-square-foot bunga-

created an opening between the two rooms

sitting in the nook of her New York apart-

low built in 1956 in the Naples Bayshore

that reveals the original longleaf pine frame.

ment reflecting and daydreaming. “Archi-

Arts District—reflects many of these ideas.

To increase the indoor-outdoor flow, they

tecture is part of me,” she says. “I love the

In 2019, she bought the house, along with a

placed the dining room on the lanai and are

romance of it and what it can do.”

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Courtesy NADAAA/John Horner (3), Robin Hill

Materials

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

114 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Arc hitects and designers are shying away from all-white minimalism and warming up to wood.

ARCHITECTURE 115

Materials

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 116 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Architecture

117

After years of ascetic design trends defined by monochromatic palettes and cement- and glass-accented interiors, homeowners crave

ronment and try to absorb what

warmth. Architects and designers

it’s telling us,” Hlevel’s Michaela

are happy to deliver, turning out in-

Reiterer Henning says. The revitalized interest is

modernism with the organic quali-

fortuitous, considering wood

ties of wood. Gone are the laminate wood-paneled

rooms,

lacquered

ating a sense of fluidity and

honey oak cabinetry and decorative

a connection to the wooded

corbels; instead, design now em-

lot. On Sanibel and Captiva,

braces the material’s natural beauty

her team will use light stains

with minimalist lines and textured

to reflect the color of the sand

grains that add to the aesthetic.

outside. Even when a client

“To me, wood is the thing that

asks for predominantly white

grounds a project,” architect Joyce

interiors, she’ll use wood to

Owens says. “We live in Southwest

add character.

Courtesy Tetro Arquitetura/Igor Macedo; Tina Sargeant

Florida, don’t you want nature to be

Another modernist local

part of who you are?” Lumber plays

firm,

a starring role in most of her work.

incorporates local cypress

Several of her local projects use

and pine into most of its

hardwood in the kitchen, where the

minimalist, eco-minded de-

grain subtly mirrors the geometry of

signs: Rows of cypress clad-

the slab cabinets in purposeful rep-

ding cover otherwise stark

etitions. In one Naples project, cy-

facades; sleek floating stair-

press continues across the ceilings

cases get walnut steps; and

(inside and out onto the lanai) cre-

various types of wood are

Hlevel

Architecture

mixed-and-matched on ceilings, walls, furnishings and cabinets to add dimension. “We take a holistic approach, meaning we look at the envi-

Recognizing the ecological value (it’s renewable with a low carbon footprint) and biophilic benefits (being around natural materials enhances wellbeing) of building with wood, architects are reclaiming the resource, but with modern interpretations. For exterior cladding, teak panels can add texture to an otherwise boxy structure, or planks can be arranged to create eye-catching patterns.

spired designs that blend the best of

is a renewable material, and its increased use can help offset the home industry’s hefty carbon footprint (construction accounts for 38% of the global CO2 emissions). “It can be replanted and recycled,” Reiterer Henning says. “It’s also hypoallergenic, sound absorbent, and easy to clean and maintain.” And Pioneering projects, like the 25-story, mass timber Ascent high-rise in Milwaukee, prove the practical feasibility and aesthetic beauty of building with wood. In Miami, Brillhart Architecture has received attention and awards for its cedar-clad Brillhart House. Recognizing most current-day Florida architecture relies on concrete, the

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

An antithesis to the all-white spaces that have dominated recent design trends, wood adds warmth to a room and plays well with other colors.

Courtesy Art Group by Vasilkova Daria/Sergey Krasyuk

Materials

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

118

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

connects you to nature, relieves stress and brings warmth,” Reiterer Henning says. And now, thanks to innovations and new technologies,

more sustainable and authentically Floridian alternative. The glass-and-steel bungalow is surrounded by weather-resistant Western red cedar shutters that provide privacy and protection from the elements while allowing ample cross-ventilation and making the structure look perfectly at home among the trees. Inside, white oak floors and American cherry built-ins continue the eco-conscious theme. Wood’s inherent connection to nature also bears philosophical considerations. The material is an integral part of biophilic design, the idea that enhancing a building’s connection to the outdoors and incorporating natural elements boosts wellbeing. “When you look at wood, it

plenty of room to play with wood. Troy Beasley, of Beasley & Henley Interior Design, is particularly interested in how wood is assembled (whether in unique configurations or paired

besque motifs—something that

with contrasting materials, like

would have taken months to do

stone or glass) and cut to cre-

by hand.

ate texture. “Angles, rhomboid

In other cases, architects may

patterns, tambour panels, wood

employ

stripes with metal inserts, in-

process used in furniture mak-

and-out pattern details—there

ing—to create curved facades,

are a lot of interesting things

interior ceilings or walls that

going on,” he says, adding that

recall the ocean’s swell. Curves

technology, like CNC routers

may also be carved into the

(computer-controlled machines

wood, or planks can be artfully

that can carve intricate pat-

arranged in layers to create a

terns into the surface), expand

wave effect.

steam-bent

wood—a

the possibilities. For one Mo-

More often, though, designs

roccan-inspired residence, his

rely on time-honored princi-

team is using the technology to

ples—seamless, flat-faced cabi-

outfit panels with intricate ara-

netry that recalls the simplicity of a solid slab or rail-thin slatted interior panels inspired by exterior cladding. For a Naples penthouse, Chicago architect and interior designer Suzanne Lovell

Courtesy Suzanne Lovell Inc./Max Kim-Bee; Jeffrey Fisher Home/Venjhamin Reyes

firm created the home to show a

Local designers use wood to delineate spaces. For a Naples penthouse (bottom right), designer Suzanne Lovell worked with Thomas Riley Artisans’ Guild to create a panel that recalls the Japanese lacquer boxes the homeowner loves and separates intimate and public spaces. Jeffrey Fisher used a similar slatted motif to frame the wall behind an outdoor dining table (top right).

architects and designers have

Materials

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

Architecture 12 1

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Using steam-bent wood and cutting and arranging techniques, architects turn wood into undulating structures, free of the material’s standard rigidity. Architecture firm NADAAA set geometric plywood ribs at different profiles to create a curvaceous staircase.

Courtesy NADAAA/John Horner

Materials

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

12 2

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winds its way to our town center—for shopping, dining, and fun events.

parks, trails, open space, and every sort of recreational activity. And it

WAT E R PA R K

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home from one of our four premier builders. Then it heads outdoors to

There’s so much you’ll love here, where to begin? Well, it starts with a

TOW N C E N T E R

OV E R 2 5 M O D E L H O M E S

LIFE

in a Big Kind of Small Town

Materials

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 12 4 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Architecture

12 5

shapes and create interesting shadows. Carlos Castro, founder of Bonita Springs’ Black Mangrove Woodworks, has no-

drew inspiration from the homeowner’s appreciation of Japanese lacquer boxes for a white oak-slatted enclosure that runs the length of the condo, delineating the private and public spaces. The designer often collaborates with millworkers, like Naples’ Thomas Riley Artisans’ Guild, to create wooden focal points. Ceiling-height, woodblock doors with invisible hinges, for instance, can double as solid wall coverings when the doors are closed. “We

Courtesy SAOTA/Adam Letch; Brillhart Architecture/Claudia Uribe; Hlevel Architecture

are seeing really cool applications of concealed doors with flush panels,” Matthew Riley, the guild’s CEO, says. “You may have a hallway with doors that lead to a closet, room or concealed sanctuary, but the hinging we use makes them undetectable.” In the 21st century, millwork has generally gotten slimmer and sleeker. Panels and beams may be accented with LED lighting to accentuate

Wood has a lot to give in Florida’s subtropical setting. In Miami, Brillhart Architecture wrapped a glass-walled home in red cedar shutters (bottom left), allowing plenty of light and air to permeate the space, while creating a sense of privacy. In a Naples project (above), Hlevel Architecture softened a modern interior with thin beams and integrated lighting to reflect barefoot luxury.

ticed a growing demand for accent walls designed with fluted

a sense of calm and spacious-

paneling, which incorporates

ness—and it’s versatile.

popular midcentury elements

But rich walnut and mahogany

but adds striking texture. He

can be striking, too. To go even

notes that with less equipment

darker, designers may replace

to store, entertainment centers

black-painted cabinets or walls

have gotten leaner, too, with thin

with woods that get the torched,

floating shelves (nothing deeper

textured shou sugi ban treat-

than 16 inches), low profiles and

ment, as the ancient Japanese

flush-mounted doors.

practice for preserving wood

Castro notes that wood is best

makes a comeback. In charring

when presented as close to its

the surface to make it fire-re-

natural state as possible—no

tardant, dense and durable, the

espresso-colored stains, orang-

process reveals patterns in the

ey varnishes or shiny veneers.

grain that are as unique as a ze-

“People are staying away from

bra’s stripes and a more natural,

stains and using more natural

warmer finish than you’d get

tones,” he says. White oak and

with paint. Along the same lines,

other light shades are popu-

Riley notes that homeowners

lar now for the same reason

are asking for nontoxic finishes.

white-coated interiors were fa-

“We’ve seen a conscious shift to

vored: The clean look promotes

water-based finishing materials with little-to-no volatile organic compounds,” he says. The ultimate aim is to get closer to nature, and wood—whether for the frame, internal structures, built-ins, furnishings or all of the above—provides a direct and stylish route.

Spaces

Natural ON A LANDLOCKED PLOT, ARCHITECT RENÉ

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

By Rima Suqi

Photography by Michael Stavaridis

Instincts GONZÁLEZ CREATED A HOME THAT EMPHASIZES WATER AND LIGHT.

12 8

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

A r c h i t e c t u r e 12 9

Spaces

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

Architect René González designed this Key Biscayne home to have a connection to water and sky, with natural light filtering through strategically placed terra-cotta louvered panels throughout.

lished his first monograph, Not

From the outside, this Key Bis-

“We wanted to create a sense

cayne home is a study in geome-

of leaving the city behind you

try, a precisely composed struc-

and having a very private condi-

He was the first choice to de-

ture of rectangular forms that

tion once you get into the house.”

sign the 5,200-square-foot home

reads as warm but not entirely

René González, the Miami-based

with very few directives from

welcoming. The vast stretches of

architect responsible for its de-

owners Myriam Rojas, of design

windowless exterior walls sug-

sign, says. González may be best

and construction firm M.Z. De-

gest a small, private museum,

known as the designer of Glass,

sign Inc., her husband Gil Ron, a

where works must be protected

an 18-story residential tower on

mechanical engineer, and their

from direct light or, perhaps,

the southernmost tip of Miami

combined family of four children.

the domicile of a reclusive indi-

Beach; he has garnered a pleth-

“My husband was used to living

vidual with exquisite taste and

ora of awards from the American

in a condominium, and he loved

clear boundaries.

Institute of Architects and pub-

the view, so his requirement was

Lost in Translation, in 2018.

Spaces

Gutter Credit

The geometric exterior of the 5,200-square-foot compound is intentionally sheltered from the outside world, while the inside is serene. “We wanted to create a sense of leaving the city behind you and having a very private condition when you get into the house,” González says.

13 0 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

A r c h i t e c t u r e 13 1

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

A r c h i t e c t u r e 13 3

Spaces

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

Water views were a priority for the homeowners, but the lot was landlocked. To solve for this, one thing González did was incorporate a reflection pool, which visitors pass as they enter the central courtyard.

that he needed to see water,” Rojas,

While Rojas and Ron didn’t have

who acted as the project’s contrac-

a proverbial laundry list of must-

tor, explains. The couple had bought

haves, González did. First and fore-

The resulting home satisfies all

and sold other lots prior to settling on

most, he wanted the home to be tied

the aforementioned requirements.

this one for their first home togeth-

to nature and the sky, with light com-

Despite being, as González describes,

er as a family. But despite being two

ing through the building in unique

a very solid house from the front,

blocks from the beach, the lot was

ways. He also felt it was important

the home is infused with light and

landlocked. González faced the chal-

to make a connection to the Key

breezes that seem to float on water,

lenge of creating something special,

Biscayne community and to Latin

thanks to some serious architectural

including water views where there

America, a nod to the culture of Ro-

magic. The elevation of the home is

were none, “on a site that didn’t have

jas, who hails from Bogotá, Colombia,

strategically placed above the flood

anything special,” Rojas says.

with patios; persianas, or louvered

line; to enter, visitors must ascend

screens; and portales, or porches, harkening to her native land.

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Spaces

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

Terraces extend from each of the residence’s four levels, increasing the indoor-outdoor livability of the space and nodding to the homeowner’s native Colombia, where patios and porches are features of traditional homes.

a series of steps above and around a re-

through a series of gardens, and next

many Latin American homes, these were

flection pool that leads to a courtyard.

to pools, versus just entering a space,”

crafted by a century-old Italian compa-

(The courtyard, while inspired by Latin

González explains.

ny, Sannini Impruneta. (The company

American architecture, is not as grand

Static, terra-cotta louvered panels

has created tiles for the Church of the

or expansive as one might expect, but

envelop the walls of the courtyard, serv-

Holy Apostles in Florence, the Chiar-

rather exceedingly modern and archi-

ing to simultaneously diffuse the light

avalle Abbey in Milan and the Tokyo

tectural, oriented toward the sky). The

and cast shadow patterns into the inte-

subway; this was their first commission

journey is purposeful, creating “the

rior spaces. Though González chose to

in Florida). The combination of louvers

sense that you are entering a house

use terra-cotta as a nod to tiles found in

and large expanses of glass create the

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951

Plans to build out this neighborhood as proposed are subject to change without notice. Please see your New Home Consultant and/or home purchase agreement for actual features designated as an Everything’s Included feature. Features, amenities, floor plans, elevations, and designs vary and are subject to changes or substitution without notice. Items shown are artist’s renderings and may contain options that are not standard on all models or not included in the purchase price. Availability may vary. Sq. ft./acreage/dimensions is estimated; actual sq. ft./acreage/dimensions will differ. Garage/bay sizes may vary from home to home and may not accommodate all vehicles. Models/lifestyle photos do not reflect racial 41 or ethnic preference. Maps are not to scale and are for relative location purposes only. Lennar does not guarantee the availability of homes within the price ranges above. Price subject to change without notice. Site plans, community maps and/or aerial photos are conceptual in nature and are merely an artist’s rendition. They are solely for illustrative purposes, should never be relied upon, and are subject to change. This is not an offer in states where prior registration is required. Void where prohibited by law. Copyright © 2021 Lennar Corporation, Lennar, the Lennar logo, WCI, the WCI logo, Everything’s Included and the Everything’s Included logo are U.S. registered service marks or service marks of Lennar Corporation and/or its subsidiaries. LENNAR HOMES LLC CBC038894 and CGC1523282. LENNAR REALTY INC (CQ1013633) 12/21.

13 6

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Spaces

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .

Large expanses of glass look out over the gardens and pools that occupy the previously uninspired lot. “We had to create our own views and perspectives,” González says. “We created our own amenity, if you will.”

ultimate indoor-outdoor experience.

protection and views, from the open

over a reflection pool or from the gar-

“You have an incredible amount of

pavilion on the first level to the four

den across a pool. We created our own

openness and leisurely, casual spaces

bedrooms on the second, the office

amenity, if you will,” González says.

that spill from the inside to the outside

and other private spaces on the third,

“They can come home from a tough

quite effortlessly,” González says.

and the rooftop on the fourth. “We

day at work and relax within spaces

This carries through on each of the

had to create our own views and per-

that are meant to be soothing, quiet

four floors, with a series of predomi-

spectives … There are many places in

and contemplative—it’s kind of like a

nantly covered terraces that provide

the house where you are looking out

free therapist.”

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By Laura Fenton

Fe a t u r e s

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HIDDEN COMPOUND IN

WITH SOUL

THE OAKES

By Ayn - Monique Klahre

By Jennife r Fe rnandez

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A D A N C E R ’ S S A N I B E L S WA N S O N G

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By Laura Kostelny

By Jennife r Fe rnandez

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A P E R M A N E N T S TAYC AT I O N

THE FUTURE IS

FOR FIVE

PA R A M E T R I C

By Mic hael Korb

By Jayak r ishna n Ra njit

Photography by D a n Cut ro na

Ay n -M oni q ue K la hre

W O R K

I N G H E A N G L E S

I n this Captiva Island remodel, Joyce Owens built upo n a famed arc hitec t’s visio n to give the 1970s beac h home its next life.

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

14 3

A beach breeze flows directly through the home, swirling in a courtyard as it moves inland on Captiva Island. From the front, the home looks modest: a low

When the homeowners bought this Captiva cottage, designed by postmodern architect Charles Moore, it needed a design overhaul. To update the home, they enlisted architect Joyce Owens, who’s known for her work on historic properties and modern, environmentally conscious beach homes.

sprawl broken by gentle angles, like a placid sea broken by a wave.

teardown, but the owners saw

“You feel like you’re living in

the value of the original de-

and amongst the landscape,” the

sign. “It was both quirky and

homeowner says.

modern and didn’t feel dated

at all,” the homeowner says.

California-based architect credited

“We loved the sense of coexis-

as the father of the postmodern

tence between the inside and

design movement—the original

outside.” They enlisted Joyce

floorplan cited “pods” of interior

Owens, the principal of Archi-

spaces around a central courtyard.

tecture Joyce Owens LLC, for

Outdoor walkways connect each

the renovation, knowing she

pod of rooms, and one long path

would have the eye and skills

leads through the center of the

to preserve Moore’s vision

home, passing by the courtyard

while upgrading the space for

without entering any rooms. “It was

today’s living. After all, Owens

built around a principle of true

gained experience working

indoor-outdoor living—the way

with historic buildings during

you walk through the landscape,

time spent in London, and in

it feels like it belongs here,” the

South Florida, she’s made a

homeowner says.

name for herself as an expert

When the family bought the

in modern, environmentally

home in 2017, it had been ren-

and regionally conscious beach

ovated once but was in need of

home design. She’s also written

some upgrades. To some, the proj-

extensively and curated exhib-

ect might have been considered a

its about the region’s distinct

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Owens took great care to preserve the intent of Moore’s original design while modernizing the space and increasing its functionality. In the kitchen and dining areas, a wall was removed to create an open entertaining space that maximizes the Gulf views.

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The home is segmented into three pods that surround a central courtyard. Visitors enter into the largest pod with a high-ceiling foyer, living and dining areas, and a wall of windows overlooking the water. The primary suite and a guest room occupy a second pod, while the two additional ensuite bedrooms are located in another corner of the home.

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Windows and skylights were added throughout, and keeping with the light-and-bright aesthetic, dark-wood beams were painted white to create a neutral palette that puts the focus on the surrounding landscape.

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guest room; on another corner is a pod with two ensuite bedrooms. “Ever y where you look, it’s green, lush and pretty—this home reflects midcentury modern heritage.

the 1970s when it was less

“It was an honor to be invited

developed,” Owens says.

to work on this house,” Owens

Most of the changes the

says. “We had to be careful and

architect made were to

sensitive with the design and

upgrade tired spaces and

clearly understand the origi-

modernize them. “We were

nal intent of Charles Moore.”

working with the goal of im-

Now, the floorplan consists

proving on the work of a great

of three pods, each a group of

architect, using modern

rooms, centered around an

technologies and capabili-

outdoor courtyard and con-

ties,” the homeowner says.

nected by glass-enclosed hall-

For example, the Plexiglass

ways and exterior walkways.

skylights in the living area’s

The main entryway opens into

archway were replaced with

the largest pod, a high-ceiling

hurricane-proof glass.

foyer and living room, with

They took down a wall be-

a wall of windows offering

tween the kitchen and din-

a view of the Gulf beyond. A

ing room, opening the space

dining area and kitchen con-

to the Gulf of Mexico view—

nect to the living area through

and honoring the more casu-

a unique archway that joins

al way this family dines and

two skylights in an X shape.

entertains. Skylights were

Down a hallway, another pod

added to various bedrooms

holds the primary suite and a

to brighten them up, and low

The views were a key element of the design for both Moore and Owens. “Everywhere you look, it’s green, lush and pretty—this home reflects how Captiva Island was in the 1970s, when it was less developed,” Owens says.

how Captiva Island was in

B a c k To T h e F u t u r e

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windows were placed in one hallway and the dining room to expand the view. “Now, during the day, no matter the weather, we never have to turn lights

Surfaces and finishes were upgraded throughout, including replacing the original clay floors with concrete-look porcelain tile and adding glossy wall tiles to the kitchen and bathrooms.

on because it’s so bright,” the homeowner says. “As we go into

flooring and high-contrast

the evening, it’s beautiful the

wall tile designs with more

way the light changes.”

subdued tones, like large

To capitalize on the scenery,

concrete-look porcelain tile

and for security reasons, the

floors and white backsplash-

front entryway was moved to

es that don’t distract from

the right, onto the same axis as

the scenery. She painted

the foyer and living room. “Now,

all of the dark wood beams

you can see right through the

and accents inside the home

house out to the beach,” Owens

white to match those that

says. She enlarged the decking

had already been painted and

along the main entryway and

to lighten the overall space.

the back of the home to expand

“We found some of those

the outdoor living areas and

decorative accents distract-

make them more functional.

ing—for us, it’s not about the

“Before, you stepped right from

house but the view of the wa-

the sand into the home, which

ter,” Owens says. Together,

was lovely but not very practi-

these changes maximize the

cal,” she says. She was also able

common areas and reaffirm

to enlarge the windows along

the connection to the set-

the entire back of the home to

ting. “We didn’t want people

make the whole living area seem

living in their bedrooms; the

taller and invite in the view.

whole point is to enjoy be-

Other changes included

ing together and to take ad-

upgrading surfaces through-

vantage of the climate,” the

out. Owens replaced clay tile

homeowner says. “We want

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Exterior walkways and glass-enclosed hallways connect the three pods. A single walkway also runs through the center of the home, passing by the courtyard and out toward the beach, without entering any of the interior rooms.

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Before the remodel, the owners would have stepped directly from the sand into the home. Owens expanded the decking along the main entryway and the back of the cottage and partnered with landscape architect Mariah Bakke to enhance the natural vegetation.

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“You emerge through the house into the natural beauty of the landscape, then move through the dunes on a winding walkway and onto the beach,” the homeowner says. “There, I find peacefulness, nature and solitude—and I think, ‘Wow, I’m so lucky.’”

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to really appreciate what an incredible spot this is.” Further emphasizing the connection to nature, many of the built-ins and pieces of furniture were made from a slab of black walnut the homeowners salvaged from a property up

Today, the residence stands

north. “It came up in conversa-

as a well-considered homage

tion that they had these pieces

to Moore’s original vision.

of milled wood just sitting in a

“We’re so grateful to be the

barn,” Owens says. The archi-

current custodians of this

tect, who often designs fur-

amazing home,” the home-

nishings for her projects, used

owner says. And for Owens,

the angles of the house as in-

it was a once-in-a-lifetime

spiration for a dining table, low

opportunity to work on a

storage benches, and a book-

historic Captiva project orig-

case that showcase the walnut

inally conceived by a revered

and complement the archi-

architect. “Every once in a

tecture. “Joyce found ways to

while, I have to pinch myself—

subtly play off the home, like

how did I get this honor? I’m

using a shape that evokes the

so glad my client understood

boardwalk that transects the

how special and unique this

house,” the homeowner says.

space is, and I hope we’ve

“And the color of the wood is

done it justice.”

a nice contrast to the light, bright feel inside.”

By Laura Fenton

Photography by Tina Sargeant

COLLECTORS’ PA R A DI S E

A C O N T E M P O R A R Y C O N D O I S A B R E AT H TA K I N G C A N V A S F O R A Y O U N G - AT- H E A R T C O U P L E ’ S A R T.

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When the elevator doors open into Suzanne and Norman Cohn’s Naples condominium, visitors find themselves in a cocoon of darkness and near-total silence. Surrounded by mirrored walls and greeted by a smiling Buddha, the outside world falls away. A thread of white light in the floor beneath your feet beckons you down a corridor, past a towering glass wine cellar lit from within to a dining table that is itself a work of art. From the dazzling, open living space surrounded by floor-to-ceiling windows, there are views of mangroves and the blue Gulf beyond. Not many people in their 80s would decide to take on a major renovation, but the Cohns are not your average octogenarians. At 83 and 88, Suzanne and Norman are involved with the arts in their hometown of Philadelphia. Norman still works at the Advertising Specialty Institute, his family’s business that connects manufacturers of promotional items with companies, schools and sports teams—and he has no plans to retire. Suzanne, an active arts patron, is filled with curiosity and energy, qualities she attributes to surviving the Holocaust as a child in Poland. Her father encouraged his children to “celebrate life” instead of wallowing in sadness when they emigrated to Australia after fleeing the Nazis and spending years hidden with Christian families. The Cohns are also no strangers to creating a grand home from scratch, having recently redesigned and renovated a penthouse apartment in Philadelphia and, before that, they spent decades renovating the circa-1909 Palladian-style mansion where they raised their five children. When work took Norman to Naples a few years back, the Cohns found themselves smitten with the city’s low-key vibe and thriving cultural scene. Suzanne’s sister and her husband had also recently retired in the area, making Naples’ pull even stronger. The hunt for a winter condo took years. “It would be an exaggeration to say we looked at every condo in Naples, but we certainly looked at most of them,” Norman says. A 2019 visit to the under-construction Mystique in Pelican Bay put an end to their searching. “Walking into the lobby makes my heart sing. That didn’t happen in any of the other buildings,” Suzanne says. “We wanted something unadulterated—something that would just make us feel calm and Zen-like—and we feel that way every day we walk into our building.” Back in Philadelphia, the couple had not only recently relocated from their stately house on the Main Line to a glamorous penthouse in the city; they’d traded the ornate, antique-filled aesthetic of their previous home for an ultra-contemporary, clean-lined style. “It was an evolution of our tastes over time that

In Suzanne and Norman Cohn’s Mystique condo, everything is a work of art, including the LED-illuminated wine cellar designed by architecture firm Cecil Baker + Partners, who helped with the renovation. The extensive cellar, assembled by Norman, an officer of the Naples chapter of the Chaîne des Rôtisseurs gastronomic society, greets visitors as they enter the condo.

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Suzanne reached out to furniture makers and artisans to curate the furnishings. In the main seating area, sofas and chairs by Christian Liaigre mingle with a custom bench upholstered in handpainted fabric that once hung in an Indian Buddhist temple. A large glass artwork by California artist Toland Sand stands against one wall (right), and a grouping of Spinners by artist Kathleen Mulcahy is perched on a ledge (far left). 16 4 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

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The couple filled their condo with clever entertaining spaces and gallery-quality artwork that’s thoughtfully presented. “We are always looking for a unified fluency between home and gallery,” lead architect Cecil Baker says. “Suzanne is a master of that dance. She understands the importance of keeping the domestic elements in harmony with the art.”

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Norman’s desk was crafted by a woodworker from English burl ash and Queensland walnut. When the couple entertains, a section pivots out to create an additional surface for setting up a buffet or other needs. Above the desk is an installation from glass artist Dale Chihuly’s newest Ikebana series.

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took us to a pared-back look,” Suzanne says. They craved the same sleek yet eclectic style for their new Mystique condo, so they called on Philadelphia architect Cecil Baker, principal of Cecil Baker + Partners, once again. “Doing our apartment in Philadelphia affirmed that the bones are important,” Suzanne says, adding that with a pristine backdrop, “whatever you put in can have a voice of its own.” Their priority was to capitalize on the west-facing view and floor-to-ceiling windows by opening the main living spaces. “I’m sure there are other places in the world that have as beautiful a sunset as Naples does, but none that we know,” Norman says. For Suzanne, focusing on the view was personal: “My early life was framed in darkness under floorboards and in attics. I’ve always dreamt of sunsets.” Baker’s firm is known for designing private residences with significant art collections, and the Cohns’ Naples condo was no exception. Equally important to the spectacular view was how the couple’s extensive collection, particularly their glass art, would be showcased. Longtime patrons of the visual arts, the Cohns wanted their home to function as a gallery. And with limited wall space thanks to those massive windows, it was essential they plan art placement from the start. “We are always looking for a unified fluency between home and gallery, so one doesn’t overpower the other,” says Baker, who wants his clients to be comfortable but also highly attuned to the art within. “Suzanne is a master of that dance,” he says. “She understands the importance of keeping the domestic elements in harmony with the art.” Baker got to know the Cohns’ collection before drawing up plans. He and Suzanne would discuss where pieces might go in the home, but Suzanne would also surprise Baker with new acquisitions like the large ghost-like light Gweilo by Parachilna in the living room, which Baker immediately redesigned the room to accommodate. “Certain spaces went through a lot of iterations,” Suzanne says. “He designed the bones for the interior—exactly the right shape and space for the art.” Even the furniture pieces are works of art: Suzanne called all the artisans and artists she’d collaborated with in the past to commission custom pieces for their new home. Canadian craftsman Colin Schleeh created the dining table—a honed steel design that appears as if it’s been torn down the middle—following Suzanne’s direction for something that exuded strength and fragility. For the living room, a woodworker created a bench to highlight a fabric that the couple purchased in India almost 50 years ago.

Much like their art, the Cohns’ collection of dinnerware is carefully curated. The couple began collecting glass and ceramics on their travels and, as they love to entertain, also commissioned unique pieces, like this hand-carved porcelain plate by Florida artists Erika and Tim Peters, paired with artisan cutlery, including an ebony knife, and custom goblets and Champagne flutes.

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Dark metal panels and mirrors give the foyer (left) a serene, Zen-like feeling. Tiled in raw volcanic stone, the powder room (right) features a resin sink designed by the architect. 17 2 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

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As seasoned hosts, the couple needed plenty of space to entertain. Suzanne designed the centerpiece table (honed steel that appears as if it’s been ripped down the middle) with Canadian artisan Colin Schleeh. For the bar, a glass-panel chandelier was commissioned from late German artist Ingo Maurer, the glass bartop was created by California artist John Lewis and the screw stools are by Israeli artist Ron Arad.

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Custom outdoor furnishings were selected so as not to distract from the views of the mangroves and Gulf. “I’m sure there are other places in the world that have as beautiful a sunset as Naples does, but none that we know of,” Norman says. 176 GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

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The Cohns also tasked Baker with creating an entertaining space on a grand scale. Norman and Suzanne are seasoned hosts with a deep love for food and wine. You won’t find a single conventional fork, plate or glass in the home. When the couple traveled, they would buy ceramics and glass that caught their eye. “When we began buying glass, we didn’t think of ourselves as collectors,” Suzanne says. “We were drawn to things that provided a lovely table setting. Then we began commissioning artists to make plates, goblets—that’s how it all started.” With a deep and varied collection to draw upon, Suzanne loves creating new combinations for each gathering, mixing Asian contemporary, European and American pieces. The open marble-clad kitchen was designed with parties in mind and has a dedicated raw bar area. Norman’s extensive wine collection, which he loves to share with guests, is a piece of architecture in its own right. Even Norman’s office, with its beautiful, curving desk, was designed to double as a buffet for large parties. “Two days before, Suzanne will remind me: ‘We are going to be using this for our dessert presentation, so please get everything off of the desk,’” Norman says, referring to his wife’s penchant for turning his office into another nook for entertaining. To highlight the art collection to its fullest, Baker called in lighting specialists who typically work in museums. “Those isolated moments where the lighting makes something special are enormously important,” he says. Lighting also doubles as art in the flat-paneled chandelier, commissioned from late German artist Ingo Maurer, that floats above the bar topped with a slab of glass by California artist John Lewis. The Cohns’ home is infused with moments of whimsy, like a lightbulb that appears to have sprouted wings in one powder room (another work by Maurer) and an installation of kinetic insects endemic to the Gulf commissioned from Viennese studio Mischer’Traxler, whom the Cohns spotted at the most recent Art Basel in Miami. It is also peppered with personal photographs: Snapshots of their grandchildren mingle with photos of the couple posing with former and current presidents. The renovation process was slowed by the bumps and hiccups that many homeowners experienced in the last two years, but last April, the couple finally moved into their new home. “What we did is unconventional in many ways,” Suzanne says. “But even at our age, we still dare to dream.”

The Musical Renaissance goblets by Lucio Bubacco, a Venetian glass artist, were made specifically for the Cohns and are among the many pieces of functional glass art on display.

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H O L D I N G THREE ARCHITECTS TEAMED UP ON A CONCEPTUAL RESIDENCE IN NAPLES’ OAKES ESTATES THAT COMBI N ES FU N C TION ALIT Y AN D FLE XIBILIT Y I N SURPRISI NG WAYS .

By Jennifer Fernandez

C O U R T

Photography by Halkin Mason

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Inspired by Moroccan riads and Latin American courtyard homes, architect Jeff Goldstein designed this private Naples residence with a perimeter wall that connects its three structures. The 2,575-square-foot compound rises like a mirage among the bald cypresses and slash pines.

A few years before the coronavirus eviscerated offices across the country, architect Jeff Goldstein received an email from a friend who was designing a house on a secluded lot in Naples. The homeowner wasn’t interested in replicating the cookie-cutter Mediterranean-style residences that fill Southwest Florida; he also had what was considered an unusual request at the time. “He wanted the ability to work from home and not feel like he was working from home,” Goldstein, a founding partner at award-winning Philadelphia commercial design firm DIGSAU, recalls. “He also wanted the house to be both a place of introspection and a place to entertain family and clients, so the layout had to be very flexible.” Also on the design brief, the residence had to take inspiration from the courtyard architecture of houses found in South and Central America—an archetype with elements that can be interpreted in a modern way. “The structure solved a lot of his privacy and security concerns but still allowed the ability to engage with the landscape,” Goldstein says. Adding inspiration from Moroccan riads and the wast ad-dar (middle of the house) courtyards of the Middle East, Goldstein designed a strikingly abstract take on the style using an angular perimeter wall to define and connect three separate structures: a single-story main house, a two-story tower (where the homeowner can entertain clients) and a garage. The 2,575-square-foot compound rises from the bald cypress and slash pine trees like a mirage, its stark white facade in relief against bold blue skies and brilliant green foliage. It almost feels like an abstract ruin, says Naples architects Brandt Henning and Michaela Reiterer Henning of Hlevel Architecture, who collaborated with Goldstein to help root the design in the material vernacular of the region as well as navigate local building codes and troubleshoot on the ground in real-time. Goldstein adds, “We wanted to make it have some element of curiosity and mystery—almost like you discovered it in the middle of that pine forest.” Interiors are similarly delusive. The house is configured as a free-flowing U-shape, but sliding partitions made of plywood panels can be pulled out or folded back to separate spaces. “It’s designed to have as many as four bedrooms and as few as one,” Goldstein says, noting that the homeowner can go from entertaining clients to hosting family and friends to enjoying a private space for work or quiet reflection by simply pulling a wall open or closed. All of the sleeping surfaces, except the one in the primary bedroom, are Murphy beds that disappear into the wall when not in use, making each room as multifunctional as possible. “The house was ahead of its time in terms of flexible living,” Henning says. Prophetic though the design was, it wasn’t without its challenges. “It’s not easy to do something different,” Goldstein adds. “But the client’s conviction and desire to see this through was really rewarding.”

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Gutter Credit

“The wall makes the property feel like a monolithic structure,” Goldstein, who collaborated with Hlevel Architecture’s Brandt Henning and Michaela Reiterer Henning on the project, says of the stucco garden wall that forms the perimeter, maintaining privacy and minimizing the residential aspect of the home. Perpendicular niches along its surface evoke the patterns of the surrounding trees’ bark, while the stark white hue creates a blank slate for the everchanging shadow play created by the sun’s movement. Goldstein also conceived a textural roughening of the stucco in various places to give the structure a timeworn effect, inspired by the grooves and notches in the trees’ bark.

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E X T E R I O R

W A L L

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The home is configured as a free-flowing U-shape, with sliding partitions that can separate spaces to encourage maximum flexibility. “It’s designed to have as many as four bedrooms and as few as one,” Goldstein says, noting that the homeowner can go from entertaining clients to hosting family and friends to enjoying a private space for work or reflection by simply pulling a wall open or closed.

SLIDING PARTITIONS

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Borrowing from a technique used in Middle Eastern houses, the architects strategically placed windows to help control the airflow throughout the home, channeling courtyard breezes that efficiently cool down the structure at different times of the day. “They also frame the narrative of your view,” Goldstein says. “The house constantly reconfigures itself because of the light and location of the windows.”

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W I N D O W S

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I N D O O R - O U T D O O R

F E E L

“The house looks different than what you would expect from the outside,” Goldstein says. “Only once you breach the exterior gate do you realize how strong the relationship is between the house and the landscape.” Located at the center of the main structure, bathrooms deliver the same effect thanks to skylights and clerestory windows that “provide a striking experience of the Southwest Florida sun,” he says.

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K I T C H E N

Flexibility is also achieved through a series of multifunctional furnishings, including a mobile kitchen island set on casters that can fold out and into itself to accommodate different uses. “It’s so cool to watch it transform in the moment,” Hlevel’s Henning says. “It’s a prep area and breakfast counter, it turns into an L-shaped catering configuration, and then when it’s folded in on itself, it becomes a table.”

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I S L A N D

The architects worked to identify typical regional building materials and apply them in unexpected ways. The play of textural and smooth finishes in the stucco is one example.

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M A T E R I A L S

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L E A P

A competitive ballroom dancer partnered with a gifted ensemble to transform a sad cinderblock shack into a modern showplace on the shores of Sanibel.

Photography by

Ve n j h a m i n R e y e s

Lau ra Kos t el ny

F A I T H

O F

Ballroom dancer Susan Scott worked with Delaware architect Leslie Kelley on the floor-to-ceiling remodel of this 3,400-square foot, beachfront home on Sanibel Island, which she filled with art and furnishings from her travels around the world.

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Susan Scott is no stranger to

South America. But when she

Philadelphia almost 14 years

the spotlight. The ballroom

and her late husband, Craig, opt-

ago and set about building and

dancer rehearses year-round

ed to buy a neglected beachfront

renovating a number of houses

at DanceLife studio in Boni-

home in Sanibel five years ago,

on Captiva and Sanibel. None

ta Springs. She’s also waltzed,

she could never have guessed

of them turned out to be “the

hustled and merengued her way

that her ability to wow a crowd

one”—either not in an ideal loca-

through dance competitions all

would become so valuable to the

tion or not sized to their liking.

over the United States, as well

lengthy renovation process.

So, the couple made an unex-

as in several far-flung destina-

The couple glided into South-

pected pivot and decided to buy

tions throughout Europe and

west Florida full-time from

what Scott calls an “absolute

MOVI N G MOU NTAI N S

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Scott originally planned to raze the house to erect a new residence on the lot. But, when she learned zoning would require the new build to be elevated and moved 50 feet inland, away from the water, she decided to renovate instead.

2 01

teardown” on the east end of Sanibel.

pared to raze the home and start

eral feet off the ground,” Matt Wilt, of

While the location of the one-story

fresh. “I called my architect and told

The Wolter Group, explains. To com-

cinderblock home couldn’t be beat—

her to get ready, because I was tear-

ply with local setback requirements,

it was situated at grade-level, right on

ing the whole thing down,” the home-

a new home would also have to be

the water—and that was about all it

owner says with a laugh. But that was

moved more than 50 feet away from

had going for it. “There was no kitch-

before she learned brand-new con-

the water.

en, no bathroom,” she says. “The per-

struction would have to be relocated

Scott wasn’t about to part with that

son who owned it was using it as a

up and away from the existing home’s

prime location, so she set about cho-

storage unit.”

bayfront site. “The first floor of new

reographing the right moves to stay

Like many buyers of local tear-

construction would have to be ele-

put. But first, she had a party. “I’m

downs, the Scotts were wholly pre-

vated up to flood level, which is sev-

also an artist—a watercolorist, an art

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

quilter and I do mannequins—so

a plan to maximize the existing

but Scott also received a round of

I just Jackson Pollocked every-

structure. She also started cam-

applause for not tearing down in-

thing everywhere in the house

paigning. “We had to get an at-

creasingly rare old-school Sanibel

and invited people over,” she says.

torney and meet with the Sanibel

architecture.

Post-fete, she called in her pre-

Planning Commission. We ended

While the plan to transform

ferred team of experts, including

up doing a big presentation of our

the home into a modern coast-

Delaware-based architect Leslie

plans for the home,” she says. Not

al cottage took some time to put

Kelly, landscape architect Bob

only did her vision earn a unani-

together, the execution was even

Walsh and Wilt, to come up with

mous “yes” from board members,

more complicated. Scott had to

Though the design is anchored by white walls and light-tone floors, Scott was adamant that she wanted her home to be more than just a beachy cottage. To personalize the space, she brought in color with Moroccan rugs (center) and artwork, including Darryl Pottorf’s Irrelevant Riddle (right).

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“I’m also an artist—a watercolorist, an art quilter and I do mannequins,” Scott says. On the second floor, a light-filled area serves as a studio, where she creates original works, some of which adorn the walls.

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206

work with the city to implement a series

built relationships with through the years

in Venice, I visited a gallery in Sicily and

of renovations consistent with the zoning

made it less painful. “This project came

saw these fabulous blackbirds,” she says.

requirements. “There are rules around

with a shorthand because I hired people

“Four years later, I came across a picture

how much remodeling you can do based

like my go-to floor installer and many of

of them. It inspired me to find a guy to

on assessed values of a home, so we had to

the other subs that I like,” she says. “I was

recreate them. They’re made out of sheet

break the project down into phases,” Wilt

able just to say things like ‘If you don’t

metal, powder-coated in black, and hang

adds.

find me, paint it white, and I’m happy.’”

from the ceiling on fishing line.”

Though

the

construction

process

Trusting her team, she was able to step

When construction of the 3,400-square-

seemed never-ending, working with

out of her comfort zone for daring de-

foot, three-bedroom, three-and-a-half-

many of the same professionals Scott had

sign elements, too. “When I was dancing

bath home was finally complete, Scott

Entering through an orange door into the art-filled foyer sets the tone. On one wall, a framed work by Scott, featuring torn strips of watercolor canvas interwoven with black and white fabric, hangs above a driftwood console.

Pattern play continues in the bedrooms and bathrooms, where textured furnishings, colorful textiles and bold wallpapers are exuberantly layered.

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With three bedrooms and three-and-a-half bathrooms, there’s space for guests. One bedroom is designated as a sweet sleepover spot for Scott’s granddaughters, with matching white bunny-frame beds accented by colorful fabric pillows and quilts.

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“This project came with a shorthand because I hired people like my go-to floor installer and many other subs that I like,” says Scott, who had previously renovated a number of other homes on Sanibel and Captiva before finding, “the one.”

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The exterior spaces are intentionally more subdued, with natural ipe decking and benches overlooking the water and predominantly native plantings designed by landscape architect Bob Walsh.

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could turn her attention to filling

From there, she brought in an array

ma—both inside and out. Thanks

the space beneath the birds and

of natural-fiber furnishings and a

to Scott’s strong eye for design, not

between the crisp white, nickel-gap

vibrant art collection that includes

only does the space artfully blend

walls. “I didn’t want this house to

pieces she’s collected over time by

a dynamic, colorful palette with a

be seaside-ish,” she says. “I went to

artists like Darryl Pottorf and Pe-

neutral white background, it also

Marrakesh for a dance competition,

ter Combe, as well as those crafted

creates “an intimate relationship

and I bought a bunch of rugs in Mo-

by her hand. The result, says archi-

between the living spaces and the

rocco. That’s what got me started.

tect Kelly, is a space that’s a perfect

landscape of native plants,” Kelly

It all began from the bottom up.”

combination of precision and dra-

says. As it should be.

A Zen-inspiring spa and modern clubroom are only some of the amenities that turn this

Ph ot o gr a phy b y

Ro bi n H il l

Ja yn ie B a r t l ey

Pine Ridge Estates compound by Stofft Cooney Architects and Wilfredo Emanuel Designs into a permanent staycation locale.

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Radka and David Mogull searched the area for months to find a home that was not only big enough for their family of five but also suitable for the subtropical setting, without overdoing it on coastal design. Flipping through a local magazine, Radka found a Stofft Cooney Architects-designed tropical modern estate in Port Royal that seemed to check all of her boxes. Though the home was occupied, architect John Cooney set up a property tour and offered to draft a similar model. The resulting structure, sitting on an expansive greenspace in Pine Ridge Estates, blends a modernist stone-clad facade and sharp steel railings along the balconies with ample windows and tropical details like a hipped roof for shade. “I’m not usually one to mix styles or make a hybrid, but when someone wants a contemporary version of tropical, I get really excited,” Cooney says. Designing a dream home for a former realtor with a penchant for clean, organic design and her entrepreneur husband, who leans toward the grand, artistic styles of his native New York, required some careful negotiating. David had leaned traditionalist in previous homes, filling interior spaces with antiques. Meanwhile, Radka would be happy not to see a single object atop cleanlined tables. In addition to marrying their contrasting styles, the Mogulls wanted the space to feel like a permanent staycation getaway—inspired by Radka’s many travels to stylish hotels in Africa, Indonesia and Thailand, and time she spent living in Miami—with dedicated spaces for work and play. Cooney worked with Wilfredo Emanuel Designs to create an inviting family home with all the glamour and amenities of a five-star resort, plus ample spaces for the kids, ages 8 to 13, to grow. Emanuel catered to Radka’s desired organic feel throughout the home with the use of varying woods, textured wallpaper and fabrics in soft shades of white, while standout details delivered on David’s desire for drama. The mono-stringer staircase is a focal point, seen from nearly every area in the home, including as you walk in through the front doors, which are surrounded by glass. A

For this Pine Ridge Estates home, Stofft Cooney Architects’ John Cooney and interior designer Wilfredo Emanuel performed a masterful balancing act. The architecture blends elements of modern design, like a stone facade and angular steel railings, with a tropical hipped roofline. Inside, Emanuel had to integrate the husband and wife’s opposing tastes.

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The wife, Radka Mogull, loves organic minimalism. In the kitchen, zebrawood cabinetry in a five-lacquer finish conceals storage, a pantry and the Sub-Zero fridge. Above the six-seat waterfall island, a cascading pendant fixture from Sonneman speaks to her husband, David, and his appreciation for artistic details—without distracting from the kitchen’s clean lines.

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The private clubroom is where David’s taste for opulent design shines. He’s had a blue room in every home he’s owned (a callback to his days as a model when his New York condo was decked out in navy Ralph Lauren decor)—and, he continues the tradition here. The hue features prominently, from the royal blue window treatments and feature wall to the backlit agate bar. “David wanted a New York feel in this room,” Emanuel says. “It takes you out of the ambiance of lightness of the rest of the house.”

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piano and black-and-white photographs hung below the staircase pay tribute to David’s father, a music publisher who was close friends with Nat King Cole and Vic Damone (two of the famous crooners pictured). “That was the one corner where I could channel that traditional vibe—it has its own energy separate from the rest of the house,” David says. Moving through the home from the front entrance, one steps into a large open space, with the kitchen to the left and the main living area to the right. In the kitchen, Wilfredo blended Radka’s minimalist style with David’s knack for entertaining. Zebrawood kitchen cabinetry, handcrafted in Radka’s native Czech Republic with a five-layer lacquer finish in shades of honey and maple, spans floor-to-ceiling concealing most appliances, the pantry, and all cookware and dinnerware. Only the essentials are exposed—though still in elegant ways. Metallic handles allude to the Sub-Zero refrigerator’s location and a white Carrara marble backsplash frames the Wolf gas range. Subtle details through the home draw the eye and create a sense of cohesion. Above the T-shaped six-seat waterfall island, which separates the kitchen from the rest of the open-concept living area and creates an area for David to entertain guests while he cooks, a drop ceiling mirrors the island’s shape with precise dimensions. Lighting plays a brilliant role in the design. Emanuel used sculptural pieces from Hubbardton Forge, Sonneman and Italian studio Artemide to create a visual impact without impeding on Radka’s wishes for minimalism. “David is really drawn to art,” the designer says. “That’s why the furnishings and the lighting are almost sculptural.” Each piece stands on its own, from the cascading pendants above the kitchen island to the origami-style fixture above the dining table. David’s style shows most prominently in the private clubroom, situated off the main living area and opposite the primary bedroom. Designed to be a modern version of the vintage clubrooms

An upstairs space doubles as a gameroom for the family and an art studio for Radka. The mother of three sews costumes for her and her daughter’s dance recitals and is an avid painter. Often, she recreates famous works she loves, like Andy Warhol’s 1967 Marilyn Monroe.

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A private spa was at the top of the Mogulls’ must-have list. Outfitted in teak, stone and light wood, the standalone casita has a coldplunge pool, steam sauna and space for workouts and treatments, as well as a hot tub situated just outside in a courtyard between the main home and the spa.

found in big cities, the space is like stepping into an entirely different place. “David wanted a New York feel in this room,” Emanuel says. “It takes you out of the ambiance of the lightness of the rest of the house.” David has had a blue room in each of his homes, dating back to his days as a model, when he had an apartment decorated in mostly navy Ralph Lauren furnishings. It’s no different in this Pine Ridge clubroom: David’s favorite color features throughout the room in varying shades and textures, including in the royal velvet window treatments, feature wall and bench. There’s also a textured metallic sea salt, elevated-ceiling detail that Cooney’s team created by installing panels that he calls “clouds,” suspended from the original ceiling with lights illuminating the space between. The club room is anchored by marble-topped pub tables and a backlit agate bar that sparkles with gold, navy and aqua shades. Opposite the bar, Emanuel carved out an intimate theater space with a plush sectional and a TV hung against a tufted wall panel. It’s the perfect playroom for grown-ups. For all its luxe finishes, the home is family-friendly through and through. The Mogulls wanted to be able to congregate together and for the kids to enjoy having friends over. That’s why, in the living room, Emanuel fixed twin custom sectionals from Planum Furniture in Germany around an artful assortment of ottomans and stylish cocktail tables—leaving ample spaces for little guests to play with their toys, grown-ups to place their drinks or for the Mogulls to rest their feet during movie nights. Designated spaces throughout the home further enhance its livability. “They wanted to create a family resort,” Cooney says. “And we had fun with a lot of the spaces.” A courtyard off the primary suite (which has his-and-hers bathrooms that match their respective styles) leads to another

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Architectural Land Design’s Christian Andrea consulted on the landscape and exterior design. The large lot has plenty of space for staycation amenities, including a pool, outdoor living room, sunken conversation pit, pizza oven, hockey rink for the boys and expansive lawn.

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“They wanted to create a family resort,” Cooney says. “And we had fun with all the spaces.” Though the design has plenty of luxe finishes, livability was the ultimate consideration. “I always ask clients to think: How do you live now, five-to-10 years from now. This house checks all the boxes,” he says.

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space on the Mogull’s checklist: a private casita with a personal spa. Teak, stone and light wood are a serene setting for a cold plunge pool (“David loves it; it’s too cold for me,” Radka laughs), a steam sauna, and a separate room for yoga, massages and workouts. There’s also a private hot tub in the courtyard between the home and spa for late-night dips. Beyond the adult-friendly spa area, the Mogulls made it clear that the outside spaces were meant to be the children’s domain, Cooney explains. The team brought in Christian Andrea and his team at Architectural Land Design to capitalize on the large Pine Ridge Estates lot. In addition to the pool and outdoor living room, complete with a TV for alfresco movie nights, Andrea created a tucked-away rink for the boys—who are both hockey players—to practice. Plenty of the backyard was left open for the little ones to run wild. There’s also a pizza oven and a sunken conversation pit for the adults to slip away to with a cocktail while the kids play. Back inside the home, the upstairs is mostly the children’s domain, too. The boys’ rooms sit on either side, while their daughter (the oldest) gets the middle room with an ensuite bathroom and a balcony overlooking the backyard lake. There’s also a second laundry room for the kids to tend to their dirty clothes. “That was important for me,” Radka says with a laugh. A bonus room above the garage serves as a space for the kids to play video games on the custom-made, rainbow-embroidered Moschino sofa. It’s also an art room for Radka, who paints and sews dresses for herself and her daughter’s ballroom dance recitals. “I always ask clients to think: How do you live now, five-to-10 years from now. This house checks all the boxes,” Cooney says.

The mono-stringer staircase is a focal point seen from nearly every area of the home. On a wall below the stairs, black-and-white photographs of Nat King Cole and Vic Damone nod to David’s father, who was a music producer and acquaintance of the crooners.

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By Jennifer Fernandez

Photography by Nick Shirghio

Serenity Now

ARCHITECT MARK J. LEONARDI DELIVERS A HOME THAT’S COOL, CALM AND COLLECTED FOR A PHILANTHROPIST COUPLE WITH AN AFFINITY FOR STRONG MODERN DESIGN.

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Some people turn to meditation apps; others visit the spa. But for Len and Wanda Zaiser, going home. “When you walk into this house, it almost feels like you’re entering into something monastic,” Naples architect Mark J. Leonardi says. The philanthropist couple collaborated with the architect after they purchased a large waterfront property in Port Royal. “Everything seems connected,”

of its own—contributes to an

he says.

overall feeling of tranquility

That’s because, as in all of

achieved through the repeti-

his highly personalized proj-

tion of shapes and forms. With

ects, Leonardi took an exacting

the exception of the living

approach to the design. Every

room, which soars to 15 feet, all

detail in the 8,700-square-foot

of the ceilings are a standard

home—which was inspired, in

10 feet high, and the rooms are

part, by another house he de-

arranged on a single level, with

signed, but soon took on a life

most bedrooms on one end. Windows are defined by a series of vertical rectangles rather than large picture windows centered on a view; the figure continues in the hallways and doors, many of which guide the eye toward a singular focal point, whether a piece of art or a sculptural outdoor water feature, like the ones in front of the property, which Leon-

For this 8,700-square-foot Port Royal home, Naples architect Mark J. Leonardi imparted a sense of tranquility through the architectural repetition of shapes and lines that functions like design elements for the home.

finding serenity is as easy as ardi also designed. “There’s a real homogenizing consistency that creates a certain rhythm throughout the entire building,” he says. The same effect arises from a sense of seamlessness evoked by the uninterrupted transitions between surfaces. Floorto-ceiling glass panels meet Portuguese limestone flooring in the same way the turf meets the hardscaping in the property’s exterior patios and walkways—a function of Leonardi’s horticultural background (his father was an agriculturalist) and his close collaboration with landscape architect Ed Westwood on the project. Meanwhile, the omission of baseboards and casings lets walls float above the stone floors for a feeling of continuity. Stor-

Seamless transitions between surfaces, like the floor-to-ceiling glass panels and Portuguese limestone floors, contribute to the home’s unceasing flow, extending to the exterior walkways and patios.

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HOME

Leonardi collaborated with landscape architect Ed Westwood on the resort-like exterior spaces, which—like the rest of the architecture—take cues from tropical modern design found in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.

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en structures connected by glass-filled hallways, contributing to the resort-like atmosphere that was heavily influenced by tropical modernism in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore—counage and technical systems are concealed behind hidden doors and sweeping soffits. Leonardi even extended the idea to the ceilings, where the fixtures are nestled with concealed flanges to underscore that sense of unceasing flow. “There’s a reason for everything in this building,” he says, noting Wanda’s steady input and Len’s attention to detail, a consequence of his engineering background. “It’s all a reflection of the attitude of Len and Wanda.” The Zaisers—who were coming from a beautiful but decidedly darker, wood-heavy Harry Weese-designed home subtly inspired by Len’s love of boating—took a hands-on approach to conceptualizing the property, beginning with the organization of spaces. The property features an organic arrangement of sev-

“Water is a really important element—the sound of it, the look of it, the coolness you feel from it,” Leonardi says.

tries whose architecture has long inspired Leonardi. The configuration encourages a constant state of discov-

are intended to elicit a re-

ery—the idea of alighting on

sponse that feels a lot like en-

something novel rather than

lightenment.

merely transitioning to anoth-

In the Zaisers’ home, the

er space—at every turn. Rather

experience begins when you

than defaulting to the banality

reach the first set of mahog-

of negative space, the architect

any gates that lead into the

takes advantage of every square

motor court. Another pair of

inch between the facades of

5-inch-thick, 11-foot-tall ma-

the structure’s components to

hogany gates with concealed

“build layers of sequence and

hardware leads the family and

privacy as one moves from the

their inner circle to the fore-

front to the back.” Gardens,

court, where twin reflection

courtyards, water features: all

pools set the stage for a peaceful transition before you even walk through the front door. “Water is a really important element—the sound of it, the look of it, the coolness you feel from it,” Leonardi says. Directly beyond is the main

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A sequence of courtyards, with a pair of sculptural water features designed by Leonardi in the forecourt, enhances the privacy. Guests enter through the main gate, passing through two sets of mahogany gates and the motor court, before reaching the innermost forecourt, which serves as an intimate sanctuary for the family.

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In lieu of large picture windows, the home features a series of smaller rectangular units and glass-enclosed hallways. As the sun rotates around the property, dappled light acts as a natural design element. In a living area, an Alfred Haberpointer artwork made of spruce with an acrylic stain (left) furthers the home’s connection to natural elements.

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The Zaisers left the interiors intentionally spare, allowing furnishings to evolve organically over time to fit the desired components of each space. Two years in, the home is slowly being populated with cherished collectibles and art. 248 HOME

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The architecture has a distinct rectangular symmetry, exemplified by the glass-enclosed halls that connect the property’s seven structures. “There’s a real homogenizing consistency that creates a certain rhythm throughout the entire building,” Leonardi says.

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living room, with hallways that satellite out into the kitchen, bedrooms and other spaces, and out back into the lanai and the pool drawing focus to the view of the waterway behind the home. The orientation—combined with the abundance of windows and wide, open outdoor spaces—cre-

While the light creates its

ates an everchanging light display

own dynamic design element,

inside as the sun rotates around

Wanda chose to leave the inte-

the property throughout the day,

riors clean and spare, preferring

imparting natural illumination

to double down on the soothing

that Wanda describes as celes-

nature of the building’s architec-

tial. “Unlike some of these box-

tural envelope. After nearly two

or U-shaped houses you see, the

years in her home, she likes to let

building becomes very thin,” Leon-

the design develop organically

ardi says. “Light can penetrate it in

as the space reveals its desired

different ways all day long.”

interior components, filling the holes with cherished but highly collectible furnishings and art that have special meaning to the couple and their family. A Jeffrey Bigelow table has pride of place in the living room; a cowhide chair in the primary bedroom sparks textural interest; and a collection of brass animal sculp-

An abundance of outdoor patios, glass and layered spaces sets the residence apart from other Port Royal builds. “There’s a reason for everything in this building,” Leonardi says. “It’s all a reflection of the attitude of Len and Wanda.”

lined with royal palms, gently tures by Sergio Bustamante, which Len started collecting before he and Wanda were married, surprises visitors throughout. The result is a residence that serves as a potent yet imperceptible antidote to the frenetic nature of modern life. “There’s a graciousness to the space,” Leonardi says of the relationship of the various structures. “In a lot of these Port Royal homes, you can stand at the street level and look right through the entire building, but this home is more about layers of spaces. We were creating spaces between things to establish this sense of intimacy, like what you’d find at a museum or gallery.” Call it a sort of visceral hush. But for the Zaisers, it’s just home.

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By Jayakri s hnan Ranj i t

E L

With parametric design, structures and interiors are equal parts futuristic and organic.

cal about projects like Mexico City’s Museo Soumaya, Santiago Calatrava’s building at Florida Polytechnic University in Lakeland and the Walt Disney

The exact meaning of the word

Concert Hall designed by Frank

is contested, but when industry

Gehry in Los Angeles. But even

leaders talk about the next great

as these mind-boggling exteri-

style after modern and post-

ors curve, warp and drape, they

modern

are very much of this earth,

referring to parametric design.

grounded in math and science.

Believers pose that parametric—

architecture,

they’re

Produced through a practice

which can be applied to every-

known as parametric design,

thing from a piece of jewelry to

these wonders of construction

furniture to a skyscraper—is de-

result from carefully integrated

fined by elegantly complex forms

computational programs that

that are curvaceous, fluid and

use algorithms to define forms

reminiscent of patterns found in

and structures based on given

nature. Nature’s hypnotic forms

parameters.

and systems have inspired architects since the dawn of design. In 1 B.C., Roman architect Marcus Vitruvius Pollio wrote De architectura, one of the earliest books on the topic. He noted the importance of finding the right com-

bination of stability, utility and beauty in construction, and his work inspired acolytes to later create curving and domed structures like the Pantheon, buildings in the Roman Forum and triumphal arches. By the 1900s, legendary Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí had made significant contributions to the curvaceous cause with several buildings you can still visit in Barcelona, including the Sagrada Família. While he didn’t use the word parametric, he spent 10 years crafting a hanging chain model with weighted strings to see how the natural arches would fall and how the structure was affected when a weight moved. Gaudí also applied biomimicry

Getty, courtesy Antony Gibbons Designs (previous spread)

There’s something fantasti-

Parametric architecture uses algorithms to design forms and systems based on specified parameters. Zaha Hadid is known for several of these marvels, including The Guangzhou Opera House (opposite) in China and the One Thousand Museum residential high-rise in Miami.

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Rather than the straight lines and hard edges that have defined modern architecture, parametric yields free-form, curvaceous structures. Frank Gehry is considered a pioneer, thanks to his projects like Walt Disney World Concert Hall in Los Angeles, with its sweeping shape and complex geometries. While programming is not needed for parametric (Antoni Gaudí designed Barcelona’s Sagrada Familía using a hanging chain model of strings and weights to determine the shape of the building), practitioners like Gehry tout the decreased time and resources needed with computational design, which allows for more experimentation and lofty thinking.

Getty

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structures take on the characteristics of living things. “There are no straight lines or sharp corners in na-

mass production, standardization

ture. Therefore, buildings must have

and form-follows-function mental-

no straight lines or sharp corners,”

ity—gave birth to modernism, the

Gaudí proclaimed.

digitally enabled Fourth Industri-

Today’s architects have the free-

al Revolution moves toward highly

dom to manipulate, animate and in-

customizable, contextual and adap-

teract with entities, such as splines,

tive design. The decrease in time

NURBS and subdivisions, with the

and resources spent, along with the

aid of fluid 3D models. Every variable

computational enhancements, aids

is considered—wind direction, sun

experimentation, allowing architects

path, load calculations, geographical

to shift paradigms and rethink the

features—and helps alter the form,

building process.

performance and perception of the building’s design.

Paradoxically, in employing parametric, designers are often looking

You can consider parametric to be

to the organic. Many parametric ex-

a natural evolution. While the Sec-

ercises aim to analyze and map out

ond Industrial Revolution—with its

the complex physical forms and organizational systems found in nature and apply them to improve on the built world.

It’s tempting to focus only on large feats of construction—Gehry’s Guggenheim Bilbao Museum and the swooping facade of Heydar Aliyev Center in Baku by Zaha Hadid—but parametric is also seen in other areas. It can be something as contained as the wavy, latticed roof of the Kogod Courtyard at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C. We see it in interiors, like Boston architect Steven Harris’ dramatically curved walls and stark white staircases that resemble an unfurled streamer. John Brevard in Ibiza designs parametric benches and chairs inspired by morphogenesis, the biological process that causes a tissue or organ to develop its shape. And, Antony

Courtesy Antony Gibbon Designs

to his designs, wherein sustainable

Parametric is used to enhance facades, interiors, furnishings, fashion, graphic design—just about anything. Designer Antony Gibbon’s Twine concept has the home sitting beneath a roof of twisted concrete that reflects the undulating surrounding landscape.

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Zaha Hadid’s only United States project, the One Thousand Museum high-rise in Miami, showcases parametric at its best. The anthropodlike exoskeleton widens and thins out where needed with a web of glass-fiber reinforced concrete conceived for aesthetics and hurricane resistance. Since the frames are along the perimeter, the interiors are almost column-free.

Courtesy One Thousand Museum/Alena Graff

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L e a r n i n g C u r ve s

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Getty

how architects alter form, shift paradigms and improve performance.

Set parameters, such as air circulation, sunlight, materials and how people move through the space are precisely calculated in parametric design, influencing

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Parametric design has the ability to enhance sense of place and adapt to its environment. Built on the edge of a lake that represents Florida’s connection to water, the Santiago Calatrava-designed Innovation, Science and Technology Building at Florida Polytechnic University features a lightweight aluminum trellis exterior that minimizes the building’s solar gain and a hydraulic louvered canopy that adjusts to the position of the sun, reducing glare within the building.

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Gibbon Designs creates a circular laser-cut aluminum Salt Table Series and sculptural Ilume lighting— in addition to his architectural and interior projects. Here in Southwest Florida, it can be easy to dismiss the importance of loose design when you’re surrounded by boxy shopping centers, ranch homes and Mediterranean-inspired villas. But take in Miami’s One Thousand Museum residential tower by Zaha Hadid, and see if you’re unmoved by the waving wonder set along the waterfront. Even if the aesthetics don’t impress, the engineering should. A

Getty

continuous frame resists the coast-

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The repeating forms found in parametric structures reflect the complex patterns and organizational structures found in nature. The idea: Everything is connected and biology already has the blueprint for building resilient, attractive structures, objects and systems.

al wind loads and the curving diagonal bracketing is meant to abrade the intermittent hurricanes that befall the city. The structure alternately gets thicker and thinner, weaving a pattern to break the dull facade and permeate structural loads and breeze flow. However it’s used, the very best of parametric design takes direction from its location, defies expectations, unlocks innovations and ultimately creates a moving experience.

For over 25 years our client-focused approach makes the building process seamless and enjoyable.

For 25From yearsresponsive our client-focused approach is designed to make the building process both seamless and enjoyable. project managers to experienced on-site supervisors and the finest trade partners, Working with the finest trade partners ensure a great outcome for our homeowners. we ensure greatcontinues outcomestofor our homeowners. NEW CONSTRUCTION NEW CONSTRUCTION SIGNIFICANT RENOVATIONS CUSTOM RENOVATIONS REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT PARTNERS TRADETRADE PARTNERS

Throughout Southwest Florida BBuilding uilding T hroughouT S ouThweST F lorida GULFSHORE HOMES • 8891 BRIGHTON LANE, SUITE BONITA SPRINGS, SPRINGS, FL 947-2929 • WWW.GULFSHOREHOMES.COM GULFSHORE HOMES • 8891 BRIGHTON LANE, SUITE 101101, • BONITA FL 34135 34135 ••(239) (239) 947-2929 • WWW.GULFSHOREHOMES.COM

GULFSHORE.HOMES.0119.AH.indd 1

11/28/18 10:01 AM

Courtesy HEY-SIGN

Back yard Oasis

A Santorini- Inspire d

S PACES

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Mariah Bakke

Nex t- G e n L andscape A rchite ct

PEOPLE

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Environs

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ES S E NTI A L S

Glas sy Pools

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OB JECT S

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Eco Furnishings ----

1. Studio ThusThat uncovers the sustainable potential of unlikely materials. With the This is Copper series, they flip the script on metal mining using slag (copper waste) as an alternative to cement. Pieces, like the TC Coffee Table 1, retain the rugged qualities of the industry with their rocky texture and form. thusthat.com 2. When one thinks of furnishings fashioned from objects found in the ocean, plastic waste, capiz shells, and sea glass come to mind. Experimental design studio Tŷ Syml combines seaweed with recycled paper waste to create a durable bio-material—like cork in texture but with faint smells of the sea—that is molded into the Algâu pendant. tysyml.com 3. New York designer Mike Ruiz Serra combines paper pulp and gypsum for his monolithic Collection 1 furnishings, done over inflatable molds and finished with soap wax—no toxic materials in sight. mikeruizserra.com

Down to Earth

Courtesy Studio ThusThat, Tŷ Syml, Mike Ruiz Serra

Sheila Kim

3 O b j e c t s 1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

polished looks—allowing ample opportunities to outfit your spaces in organic style. Here, we present nine exemplary designs.

Fortunately, eco-design has come a long way from the days of yore—whether it’s with material innovation, clever concepts or more

Perhaps nowhere is the need for sustainable practices more evident than by the sea, where evidence of nature’s fragility is everpresent.

Environs

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O b j e c t 1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

1. Sustainability encompasses more than recycled materials. It also involves responsible practices, which luxury rug maker Merida excels at. Its wool and linen yarns are rapidly renewable and durable, reducing the carbon footprint from synthetic-fiber rug production and increasing the product’s longevity. The latest collection, Atelier 2021, takes inspiration from artists and creatives, as seen in the Ray rug, which alludes to Man Ray’s surrealist motifs. meridastudio.com 2. A relatively young French brand, TIPTOE brings a fun DIY vibe to the sustainable furnishings market with its latest series aptly called the New Modern table line. Equal parts Scandi minimalism and industrial in appearance, the collection comprises vibrantly colored trestle-style steel legs to mix and match with eco-certified oak tops or, taking things up a notch, a new material that reads like terrazzo but is made from recycled yogurt cups. The tables—which come with parts in different shapes and sizes to create the perfect pared-down bespoke desk or dining, coffee, side or high table—are flat-packed for shipping but easy to assemble (another eco characteristic). tiptoe.fr 3. German design company HEYSIGN uses felt—one of the oldest sustainable materials still in use—to create ecologically responsible furnishings and home accessories, from room dividers to placemats. Among them, the Enya vase is a study in geometry: A flat piece of felt is partially cut into strips, folded over vertically, and joined end-to-end into a circle. The result is an eye-catching form that also cleverly resembles a flower bulb while concealing a glass vessel at its center. hey-sign-shop.de

Courtesy Merida, TIPTOE, HEY-SIGN

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Courtesy &New

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O b j e c t s 1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

Taking recycling to another level, the female design duo behind &New created the Jää line of benches and cubes using recycled postconsumer plastic (a.k.a. waste that’s been diverted from landfills), aside from the small steel parts that hold this flexible-design together. The frame is made of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) plastic and is recyclable, reflecting the growing circular economy movement. You get it, recycle the cardboard packaging, assemble, enjoy for years, and then when it’s lived a full life, disassemble, toss the plastic into recycling and keep the steel parts for reuse. andnew.co.uk

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O b j e c t s 1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

On his drive into Lisbon, French designer Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance took in the sights—not of the scenic coastlines and castles, but of remnants of the country’s all-too-familiar forest fires. The charred timber occupied his thoughts when establishing his studio—Made in Situ—there, but so did the resilience of Portugal and its supremacy as a harvester of natural cork trees. Like a phoenix from the ashes, his limited-edition Burnt Cork series of tables and chairs sprung from these contemplations. Each sculptural piece alludes to the dichotomy he witnessed upon arriving in Lisbon, with noticeably rough cork pieces forming structural bases and smooth, finer cork shaping the fluid tabletops and seats. madeinsitu.com

Courtesy Made in Situ

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Courtesy Natuzzi

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Designs that embody environmental fervor are rarely seen as handsome, but prolific London-based designer Ross Lovegrove has a knack for turning the ordinary into extraordinary works of art. His Ergo chaise lounge, for one, can pass for an organic abstract wooden sculpture. Designed for the 60th anniversary of furniture maker Natuzzi Italia, its undulating, spine-supporting seat-and-back shell rests atop a roundedcorner base. Both elements sport an exaggerated, almost faux bois–style wood grain. FSC-certified wood and natural wax–finished veneer make up the frame, while the seat padding is natural latex upholstered in a blend of wool, cotton and linen. natuzzi.com

The (Sub)tropical Moder nist

P h o t o g r a p hy by

Jaynie Bar tley

Omar Cruz People

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Mariah Bakke grows Viva Landscapes with lush designs throughout Southwest Florida.

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Mariah Bakke trained under Bob Walsh at R.S. Walsh Landscaping in Fort Myers before launching Viva Landscapes in 2020. She works with residential and commercial clients, like Narrative Coffee Roasters, to create lush green spaces that combine tropical and native plants.

People

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Mariah Bakke, the 30-year-old behind Fort Myers’ Viva Landscapes, is obsessed with tropical plants. Her backyard is a botanical garden of potted alocasias, swaying philodendrons and massive pothos that scale the length of a more than 50-year-old Cuban laurel she and her fiance converted into an adult-sized treehouse with a private deck. With a growing reputation as a talented landscape architect, Bakke is responsible for verdant backyards across the region that balance a mix of photogenic tropical blooms with water-saving native plants. Her green thumb is also reflected in biophilic commercial spaces, like Narrative Coffee Roasters’ two Naples locations, where she blends low-maintenance succulents with faux greenery to create an urban indoor-outdoor vibe. “Landscape architecture is everything: It’s the benches, the planters, the site elements—it can make or break a space,” Bakke says. “It also goes into your physical health, the air you breathe and how you enjoy a space.” Her knack for creating environments that are visually and functionally impactful—a poolscape layered with lime trees for a client who loves to make gin and tonics, or a fortress of mixed palms that

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serves as a natural fence around a waterfront estate—recently earned her the 2021 Outstanding Young Professional Award from her alma mater, Iowa State University College of Design. In school, she was inspired by Brazilian landscape architect and artist Roberto Burle Marx, whose art-filled urban landscapes and public parks shaped the tropical modernism movement. “There’s such a broad realm of landscape architecture,” she says. “I love to see how it all comes together and how people experience the living environment.” After graduating in 2015, Bakke took a job with R.S. Walsh Landscaping in Fort Myers, where she bonded with the firm’s owners, Lisa and Bob Walsh. She took on clients and trailed Bob as they designed, installed and managed greenscapes. Aside from serving as a strong influence, Bob taught her to stand firm and not be taken advantage of—a common issue women face in male-dominated fields.

People

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Meditation spaces, edible gardens and entertaining nooks, connected by verdant walking paths, are trademark elements of the landscape architect’s projects, many of which are located on Captiva and Sanibel Islands.

4’ x 4’ Oil on Canvas

Original Art, Commissions by Julie Magardino Gallery in Chesterdales | 4910 Tamiami N Naples, Florida 34103 | (239) 777-0607 elizabethjulesdesigns@gmail.com elizabethjulesdesigns

Bakke takes a holistic approach to design. “Landscape architecture is everything: It’s the benches, the planters, the site elements—it can make or break a space,” she says. “It also goes into your physical health, the air you breathe and how you enjoy a space.”

People

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“It is kind of intimidating because you have to work with general contractors, and it is a male-dominated field,” she says. “Bob helped me with knowing you’re worthy to be in that field, you know what you’re talking about and to not let anybody minimize that.” Though she left R.S. Walsh in 2020 to launch Viva Landscapes, Bakke still works with the firm. As Viva Landscapes grows, Bakke has been exploring other areas of the business. She created Viva La Casa to turn dated Fort Myers homes into Instagramable Airbnbs that show how her eye for tropical modern design fits perfectly in Southwest Florida. She’s also been traveling to eco-friendly resorts in Costa Rica to study sustainability, and she has sat on boards for the City of Fort Myers to push for more greenery throughout downtown and lobby for more public green spaces. “That’s why people visit down here,” she says. “They see [the lushness] and say, ‘Oh my gosh, this place is amazing. I Bakke also has a portfolio of renovated, tropical modern Airbnbs through her Viva La Casa brand and has sat on boards for the City of Fort Myers to encourage the creation of public greenspaces downtown.

want to vacation down here. I want to be here.’”.

Earth, Air, Fire, Water + secret family formulas + generations

Pottery As Art Old 41 Road

Historic Bonita Springs

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Spaces

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C y c l a d i c

A F O R T M Y E R S B U I L D E R A N D D E S I G N E R C O U P L E T U R N E D

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By Laura Kostelny

State A TIRE D TE ARDOWN I NTO A RESTOR ATIV E , FA MILY- FRI E N DLY RE TRE AT.

Photography by Dan Cutrona

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When designer Michelle DeLaCruz and her builder husband, Lupe, were looking for the perfect lot in Fort Myers’ Buckingham neighborhood, they stumbled across an overgrown property with a run-down home that was for sale by owner. Undeterred, the couple purchased the property and renovated the residence, creating a family-friendly modern farmhouse.

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Life in the bucolic Buckingham area of Fort Myers is sweet for Michelle DeLaCruz. She values the Hispanic culture that flows in from nearby Lehigh Acres and the influx of people who are relocating from Miami and abroad. Spaces

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But the draw is more personal than cultural. “When I first came to Florida as a little girl of 8, I remember driving through this neighborhood with my parents. We had nothing, and to just look at these majestic properties—it was a dream,” she says. Manifesting that dream was an exercise in patience. DeLaCruz and her husband, Lupe, hunted for the perfect plot for years before she stumbled across a property that was less than pristine. “I came to look at a lot, and next door to it was this huge corner parcel that was full of weeds,” she says. “I saw a faded sign through an overgrown orange grove, and it said, ‘For Sale By Owner.’” She called the number on the sign and left a message. Then she left another. And another. Finally, someone called back. “We made the deal over the phone, right then,” she recalls. “I was astounded. It really felt meant to be. I didn’t even know the lot came with a house.” While the average couple might be tempted to walk away after finding out they had unwittingly bought a residence built in 1997, Michelle, a designer and co-owner of DeLaCruz & Co. with Lupe, has made a business out of making the retro more refined. “Any builder can build from scratch, but

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Inside, DeLaCruz mixed white, black and gold finishes and furnishings to create a “modern and Old World” aesthetic. At 3,000 square feet, the exterior spaces are nearly as large as the home itself, with a pool, outdoor kitchen and entertaining area to accommodate more than 100 people.

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to make this house feel lived in and new at the same time? That’s magic,” DeLaCruz says. They knocked down walls, opened the floorplan, carved out a chef’s kitchen, transformed the former primary bedroom into a boutique-style closet and added a new primary suite with his-and-hers bathrooms. To complete the design, DeLaCruz chose finishes and family-friendly furnishings in black, white and gold, describing her style as “modern and Old World at the same time.” The true showstopper is the outdoor living space, which measures roughly the same as the nearly 3,000-square-foot interior. Initially, DeLaCruz planned to outfit the pool area with traditional river rock, but one night she had a revelation. She’d been researching a trip to Santorini and was captivated by its Cycladic architecture and cave homes. She also thought about sun-drenched locales like California, Mexico, Spain and Texas, where homes have large, enclosed white-walled patios that create privacy. And, though the project presented a heavy investment and there was no local playbook (“I have personally never seen this done here,” she says), she was convinced. DeLaCruz and her husband created the walls, a cave and a cupola inspired, in part, by the Dome of Juan Ponce de León in Puerto Rico, DeLaCruz’s native country. Outfitted by Lynx Professional Grills, the outdoor kitchen, where the family can host more than 100 people,

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Spaces

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White-washed walls in places like Santorini, California and Mexico inspired the backyard’s design, with stucco walls, an intimate cave, lounging nooks and a cupola fashioned after the Dome of Juan Ponce de León in Puerto Rico. Another standout feature took its cues from the couple’s kids: a curving waterslide that DeLaCruz designed to blend seamlessly with the rest of the space.

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The resulting home is the realization of a lifelong dream for DeLaCruz, who struck an ideal balance between sophisticated retreat and family-centric abode. “When I first came to Florida as a little girl of 8, I remember driving through this neighborhood with my parents,” she recalls. “We had nothing, and just to look at these majestic properties—it was a dream.”

E n v i r o n s 3 01

was tucked under a curved, Greek cave home-inspired roof; the patio was enclosed in white hand-plastered stucco walls; and mod, chic details, like the Tuuci striped umbrellas, a nod to Spaces

1. 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .

the iconic scenery of luxury resorts around the world. “Umbrellas are an afterthought to a lot of people, but they’re probably one of the most important things in the design,” she says. “If you were to visually disappear all those umbrellas, the place wouldn’t be the same.” Every detail is intentional—from the low-maintenance ribbons of turf that frame the pool and break up the large pavers to the translucent LED globe lights that set the scene aglow at night. Other Florida-specific design choices include vanilla travertine decking, which stays cool and prevents feet from burning, and the 44foot pool with a waterfall and spa. The couple’s children, 14-year-old Geo and 11-year-old Mia, imagined the centerpiece slide. “The first thing the kids told me was they wanted a slide, and they didn’t want a ‘baby slide,’” DeLaCruz says with a laugh. “Honestly, their rooms are a bit small, so I had to do them right.” The fun feature fits the design scheme seamlessly. “I call it a sexy slide. It curves, and you almost can’t see it,” DeLaCruz says. For the designer, the fun addition also offers the prime position to appreciate just how far she’s come. “When you go up the stairs, you can see the whole 7-acre property and then some from that slide,” she says.

Courtesy CPlusC Architectural Workshop/Murray Fredericks

Essentials 1. 2 . 3 .

By Si Si Penaloza

Art of Glass ACRYLIC-ENCLOSED POOLS PL ACE WATER’S HYPNOTIC SHIMMER FRONT AND CENTER.

Courtesy GWA Architects/Ed White Photographics

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Essentials

1. 2 . 3 .

Demand for acrylic-wall pools is increasing thanks to their use in luxury resorts. While installation can require feats of engineering (and big budgets) the possibilities are endless. “The engineering with ‘glass look’ acrylic is growing bolder, and techniques are getting more refined,” Andy Kaner, president of Miami-based Aquatic Consultants, says. “It was unheard of to accomplish this. Now projects are emerging in reality, worldwide.”

In an era of statement pools that defy

These designs became more preva-

panel about 20 feet long—an elevated

categorization, there’s something in-

lent about 15 years ago, mostly in hotels

pool you’d see in the backyard or from

herently sublime about glass wall pools.

or resorts seeking a wow factor to im-

the bay,” Young says, noting the project

Using acrylic boxes can highlight a

press guests, according to Naples-bred

was abandoned due to cost. “It’s still

deep blue backyard jewel, or dropping

David Young, the principal architect at

a rather rare animal because of the

a glass-bottom pool into a living space

DWY Landscape Architects. As more

expense. Think about trying to insert

can create a world-class resort feel with

residential clients started looking for

acrylic into concrete.”

the barefoot luxury of home. In the

similar designs, the practice expand-

Across Alligator Alley, one of Miami’s

right hands, it can enhance the subtle

ed—and contracted, so to speak: The

top pool designers bears a whimsical

blurring of the indoors and outdoors

expense has frightened some home-

sensibility inspired by the city’s thriv-

and act as a jaw-dropping centerpiece.

owners away. “We were working on a

ing arts scene. Andy Kaner, president

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

of Aquatic Consultants Inc., has pulled

acrylic floors that span skyscrapers and

space rather than making it a separate

off ambitious residential poolscapes

hang off the sides of buildings. It was un-

component. He’s even seen designs

that would capsize a lesser talent. A

heard of to accomplish this. Now proj-

expand into the landscaping itself,

recent project required a 63-foot-long

ects are emerging in reality, worldwide.”

with grass coming right up to the edge

acrylic panel that had to be shipped on

Young notes that the trends have

of the pool. But the bar has been raised,

a flat-bed truck, floated by barge to the

shifted a few times since the emer-

and where it goes from here is a matter

home site and installed with precision

gence of acrylic designs. For some

of creativity.

by crane. “The engineering with ‘glass

clients, raising the pool beam to cre-

“There are new things being done

look’ acrylic is growing bolder, and tech-

ate the illusionary infinity edge was

all the time—I can’t imagine what the

niques are getting more refined,” Kan-

the goal. Others wanted to integrate

latest trend will be,” Young says. “It’s

er says. “You can see whole pools with

a spa aesthetic directly into the pool

up to someone’s imagination.”

Courtesy DWY Landscape Architects, Fernanda Marques Arquitetos Associados/Filippo Bamberghi

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Architects often use these pools to blur the boundaries between indoor and outdoor spaces. An acrylic-bottom pool draws the eye up, creating an instant sense of calm in the entry of a Boca Grande home (left) by Naples-bred David Young. And Brazilian architect Fernanda Marques ran an acrylic-wall pool the length of the living space in this São Paolo apartment (below).

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STUDIO PRACTICE The Female Gaze: Lynn Davison Hailey Pinkerton Lauren Amalia Redding

Courtesy Andreu World, Omar Cruz

Ar tistr y

338 OB JECT S Ode to the Chair

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Studio Practice

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Ly n n Dav i son

----

H a il ey Pi nke r ton

I t ’s a Wo m a n ’s Wo r l d

----

Southwest

Florida,

women

command

the

conversation

with

thought-

qualities through their art.

for beaut y and an u ncan ny abilit y to commu nicate life’s ephemeral and essential

provoking works in diverse genres and styles. Meet three mavens who share an eye

changing.

Female ar tists still represent only a fraction of the ar t market, but that’s steadily

L au r e n A m a li a Re d d i ng ----

Wi th a n unc ompromisi n g eye and a pe nc han t f or i nno va t io n , t h e s e d e s ig n p ro s a re re s h a p i ng t he l o o k a nd f e e l of Southw e s t Fl or i da .

THE FINER THINGS 3 11

Hand in Hand

P h o t o g r a p hy by

Lauren Amalia Redding

Omar Cruz

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In h er l atest wo rk, p rol if ic Na p le s a rt is t Ly n n D a vis o n s h o w s t h a t ha n d s a re w i nd o w s to the s oul .

Studio Practice

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while she works is like watching a stone skip across the water; her fingers flit across panel and paper, lifting and landing, with a quiet and controlled confidence that comes from years of building muscle memory. Davison’s hands themselves are a sight: small, but not fragile; expressive, but measured. Unlike stones that are

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Watching artist Lynn Davison’s hands

buffed and softened by water over time, her etched and angled appendages reveal her nearly eight decades of life—much of

ing the inevitable progress of time. “As the hands around me have gotten older, they have also gotten more interesting to depict,” she says. “When my daughter was younger, I would complain because her hands were too smooth and perfect. They’re much better now.” The Naples-based artist has been nationally recognized for her complex oil paintings and drawings of the human figure, in which she explores shadows— both external (like sun-dappled effects on her subjects’ bodies) and internal (reflecting the figures’ private emotional states). Over the last few years, in addition to exploring digital art as a medium, she began a new series of oil paintings centered around a subject that’s long fascinated her: hands and what they reveal about a person. Without a portrait to convey emotion or limbs to convey body language,

Studio Practice

hands are her subject matter, celebrat-

that time spent as an artist. Often, her

Artistry

Naples artist Lynn Davison’s latest series depicts the expressive individuality of hands, painted with realistic detail on sanded aluminum panels. “The crook of a finger can be an expression of a whole person,” she espouses. Bottom left: Mother Always Loved You Best (2021).

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3 17

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Artistry

the hands’ expressions seem more concentrated, deliberate and intense. The calculated flexing of a finger or the contraction of joints in her paintings convey a range of emotions, from fervor and anguish to contemplation and redemption. “The crook of a finger can be an expression of a whole person,” Davison says. Her painted hands pull various ribbons and strings, grasp at each oth-

ers’ wrists and sometimes simply relax with palms exposed and open.

Studio Practice

The nationally recognized artist is known for her complex oil paintings and drawings of the human figure that convey the look and emotion of the subject. She also dabbles in other mediums in her studio, including digital art.

In I Can Prevail, Maybe, painted in 2020, two hyperrealistic hands grip each other, tendons taut, amidst a dark web of frenetic, abstract scribbles. Another pair of roughly drawn hands, childlike and clumsy, frame the realistic figures at the center and a gaping mouth above them. In 2019’s Hands with Blue Sleeves and Plastic, hands enfold a thin, transparent piece of plastic; the cool blues in the painted sheen are echoed in the suggestion of a blue sleeve. If I Can Prevail, Maybe speaks to raw, primordial pain trapped inside one’s head, Hands with Blue Sleeves almost recalls the maternal tenderness in religious artworks, with hints of blue that have long been associated with Renaissance Madonnas. Like many of her recent oil paintings, the hands are painted on thin, sanded aluminum panels instead of more ubiquitous canvas: “I can be more precise with the painting and not have the weave of the canvas get in the way,” she says. The nubbly texture of canvas—unavoid-

In recent years, Davison has found herself moving away from textured canvas, instead gravitating toward smoother surfaces that allow her to paint with hyperealistic detail, capturing the lines and shadows of her subjects. Left: Two Gisela’s (2022).

Studio Practice

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“A hand doesn’t always translate or bring it down to a particular person,” she says. “And as feelings are universal, anyone can look at hands and project their own feelings onto them.”

able in even its finest weaves—can be a nuisance to a meticulous painter like Davison, as the tiniest nooks and crannies can disrupt the delicacy of her brushstrokes. “I’m finding precision and detail to be my current priority rather than the looser, more expressive work of my earlier years,” she says. “I see so much more, like colors, that I just didn’t see when I

Studio Practice

was working loosely.” In taking the time to paint more precisely, she can examine what’s going on beneath the skin. “These things make me think about our own finite life,” she says. Given the luminosity with which Davison paints the skin over the pebble-shaped bones, it’s clear these ruminations aren’t always dark or jaded. “They are very much self-portraits,” Davison explains of the works. She prefers not to portray her own face as she “finds it rather bland.” But painting her hands, she gets the best of both worlds: She can share more private, sensitive emotions, but they don’t have to be resolutely associated with her as an individual. “They can be universal hands,” she says. “A hand doesn’t always translate to a particular person. And as feelings are universal, anyone can look at hands and project their own feelings onto them.”

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Studio Practice

Art-chitecture

P h o t o g r a p hy by

Lauren Amalia Redding

Brian Tietz

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Ar ti st H a ile y P ink e rt o n d ra w s o n h e r e d uc a t io n i n a rc hi t e c t ure f or he r ge om e tr i c a r tw or k .

For as long as she can remember, 26-year-old Hailey Pinkerton has had a knack for what she calls “art-chitecture.” Being predisposed toward precision, repeating motifs and intricate construction, she began drawing mandala-like patterns

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324

and arranging building blocks by color, unprompted, when she was 3 years old. “I was always the daughter in trouble for painting geometmy closet door or for painting my

room walls with sparkly nail pol-

Studio Practice

ric compositions on the back of

ish designs,” she says. Her Texan grandmother, Myrla, nurtured her creative spirit. Every few years, as a birthday present, Grandma would paint the kids’ bedrooms—and this was no run-of-the-mill touchup, Pinkerton recalls: “One year, my grandmother painted the most realistic, beautiful clouds on a bright blue sky on my bedroom ceiling. To this day, it is one of the most beautiful paintings I had ever seen—and, it was all for my eyes only.” Now, working as an architecture consultant for one of Naples’ top firms, Herscoe Hajjar Architects, Pinkerton’s hypnotic abstract artwork ranges from paintings covered in painstakingly created geometric patterns to topographical wall-mounted pieces made from

Artistry

Hailey Pinkerton’s artwork—which includes paintings, sculptural paper art and ceramics—reflects architectural principles related to color, structure and the use of negative space.

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undulating rows of curled paper. One recent commission for Naples’ highly anticipated Del Mar restaurant spans nearly floor to ceiling with white quilled creations resembling rosebuds. The Columbus, Ohio, native graduated with a bachelor’s degree

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326

in architecture from the University of Cincinnati in 2017. “It was as intuitive for me to go into ar-

a toddler,” she says. She credits her continued fascination with art and design to summers spent with her grandparents on the Texas Gulf, doing craft projects and touring seaside mansions. “I never had to second guess my intuition about architecture,” she says. Though her architecture courses demanded most of her energy, Pinkerton found the time to study art. A color theory class during her sophomore year affirmed her thinking that the relationships she instinctively noticed between colors, particularly when layered or arranged next to each other, were formally documented and utilized in the worlds of art and design. During her junior year, Pinkerton faced a particularly challenging architecture assignment that serendipitously led to her current series

Studio Practice

those first mandalas and blocks as

chitecture as it was to assemble

Artistry

327

The 26-year-old artist sketches, stencils and then paints freehand, creating geometric forms with impressive precision. “Each polygon of color is individually painted and treated as a structural ‘unit’ in relation to their monotonous and repetitious whole,” Pinkerton says. “This is seen in architecture, as well. A building is not one whole, but a sum of its units—columns, beams, windows, doors—copied and pasted to create a composition.”

of paper works. Students were instructed to craft a three-dimensional object simply by creasing a square sheet of paper. “The inclass experiment was to question the way we think about space, challenging us to start thinking outside the box—or square, in this case,” she explains. After what she describes as a few bland attempts, she laid a pencil flat onto the paper, with its tip in the center. By twisting the paper around the pencil as she moved it, she realized she could create a curl in one of the square’s quadrants. She repeated this movement in the opposite corner, creating a cone of curling edges, which she then pinched in the center to hold, “allowing the paper folds to relax but never come undone.” She had created her first “paper unit.” Those units, resembling an abstracted flower, would become a building block in her current series of wall-mounted paper sculptures.

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Studio Practice

To assemble her artworks, she stands the paper units upright, compressed against

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follows when painting: continuous itera-

the use of negative space—the empty area

tion and scale experimentation.

surrounding an object (in Pinkerton’s case,

dozens—if not hundreds—of others, creat-

Though Pinkerton has always painted,

the exposed canvas between the shapes in

ing futuristic-looking fields with varying

she began creating more serious works us-

her paintings)—she guides the viewer’s eye

sizes and colors. The units are then indi-

ing oil and acrylic after college. Her abstrac-

through the painting as if moving through

vidually handstitched onto canvases, which

tions depict linear rows of small, compact

miniature hallways seen from above. “I en-

often span a few feet in diameter. For all the

shapes painted with unflinchingly bold and

joy precalculating what I want the negative

crispness of the paper, which has to be rigid,

saturated colors and unerring precision,

space to imply and what the implications

like cardstock, the exposed edges create a

so the rows—which undulate and swell in

will do for the negative space,” she explains.

curving lattice of fluid lines. In essence, the

their width, height, and positioning—al-

This is no coincidence: “Negative space is

process abides by the same principles she

most read like optical illusions. Relying on

probably the largest concept out of these

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Artistry

329

that I reference daily in my architecture

igins of architectural draftsmanship, where

is seen in architecture, as well. A building is

practice,” she says

students used protractors and rulers to cre-

not one whole, but a sum of its units—col-

While neither her paper works nor her

ate the illusion of 3D spaces. The edges and

umns, beams, windows, doors—copied and

paintings resemble architectural blueprints,

angles in her paintings are so sharp that they

pasted to create a composition.”

the spatial relationships reflected in them—

almost look kinetic—a feat, considering all

To Pinkerton, art and architecture are

the paper units’ varying heights and depths,

of her paintings, though sketched and sten-

two sides of the same coin. She says, “Even

and the hypercalculated snippets of bare

ciled, are painted freehand. “Each polygon of

though I attribute many of my artwork con-

canvas in her paintings—are like those seen

color is individually painted and treated as a

cepts to my architecture study, there is no

in the diagrams of building interiors. Her

structural unit in relation to their monoto-

denying that the obsession with color and

paintings’ exactitude recalls the analog or-

nous and repetitious whole,” she says. “This

creativity runs through my blood.”

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Interstellar Reflections

By Jonathan Griffin

P h o t o g r a p hy by Brian Tietz

N apl e s a r tist Lau ren Am a lia R e d d ing ’s ne w s p a c e - ins p ire d s e r i e s ho no r s t he pa s t a nd the f uture .

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

One day in October 2019, Naples’ artist Lauren Amalia Redding was scrolling through Instagram when she stumbled across NASA’s livestream of the first all-female spacewalk outside of the International Space Station. She was gripped.

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332

“The pure meritocracy of that moment,” she reflects. “Those spacewalks are life and death situations; the astronauts chosen had nothing

She thought about how far things had come from when her mother, a Hispanic immigrant, was told she’d never go to college. Since she graduated from the New York Academy of Art in 2011, Redding has built an impressive body of work around her extraordinary skills as a draftswoman. Figure drawing and portraiture are at the core of what she does. While she is adept in oils, graphite and drypoint etching, she is best known for her drawings in silverpoint, a centuries-old technique used by Dürer and da Vinci in which a silver nib is applied to a gesso ground, producing a delicate, precise but ethereal effect. Redding was in her second year of graduate school when someone suggested silverpoint to her after seeing how neat her apartment was. “I was really insulted,” she says with a laugh. But she soon began to appreciate the exacting medium’s

Inspired by NASA’s first all-female spacewalk, Lauren Amalia Redding created the Interstellar Insulation series, a collection of mixed-media works, many spanning up to 12 feet long, on display at Pensacola State College’s Switzer Gallery through Mar. 11.

were the best people for the job.”

Studio Practice

women were chosen because they

to do with virtue signaling. The two

Artistry

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

unique characteristics. “I’m a geek,” she says. “I love art history. I love silverpoint’s relationship to history. And I love the fastidiousness of it.” In a time when it’s all too easy to be distracted scrolling through screens, she appreciates how silverpoint anchors her to extreme levels

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334

of self-discipline and focus. Perhaps, it’s ironic that Redding’s latest series began on Instagram, but

Pensacola State College through March 11 as part of her solo exhibit, Interstellar Insulation. The exhibit signals a sea change in Redding’s work. For most of the past decade, she was absorbed by tender portraits of her mother’s Cuban family. Her grandmother worked as a housekeeper in Naples for more than 40 years, and Redding grew up among an extended community of immigrants. When she lived in New York, the project presented the artist with a way to anchor herself to her family. In 2018, Redding and her husband, sculptor Brett F. Harvey, decided to leave New York and make a life in Naples. Together, they set up H&R Studio in East Naples, where they produce their work and host workshops, events and private lessons. “All of a sudden, I had a lot more physical and geographic proximity to the people in the exile community that I was depicting,” Red-

Though the new series is a departure from her previous portraits, which often depicted her mother’s immigrant family, Redding sees similarities between the two subjects. “Both step into this unknown frontier and take this tremendous risk without knowing what’s in front of them,” she says. “Ultimately, you’re a stranger in a strange land.”

on display at the Switzer Gallery at

Studio Practice

superficiality in her work, which is

there’s no trace of the digital world’s

Artistry

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

The works intertwine elements from Classical art, literature and philosophy with sketches of astronauts and spaceships commenting on the cyclical relationship between the past and present. From top: Bookends (2021), Zoetrope (2021) and Fertility Goddesses (2021).

Studio Practice

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Artistry

337

ding says. “I started to feel less engaged

history: the imminent obsolescence of

with that particular subject—probably

the technology that makes space travel

because they were always calling me

possible and the enduring importance

wanting to know if I was hungry.”

of Classical art, literature and philoso-

It was only after some months of

phy. She thought about the Roman god

drawing astronauts that she realized

Janus, a two-faced being who looked

immigrants and astronauts are not so

both to the future and the past. “Each

different. “Both step into this unknown

astronaut is a presentation of Janus,”

frontier and take this tremendous risk

she says.

without knowing what’s in front of

She also created mixed-media draw-

them,” she says. “You can have all the

ings in which the silverpoint space-

preparation in the world behind you,

suits are overlaid—and underlaid—

but ultimately, you’re a stranger in a

with copies of Old Masters’ pieces in

strange land.”

silverpoint and acrylic. In one draw-

As she sketched the astronauts, Red-

ing, the figure within is a replica of a

ding confronted a series of existential

16th-century portrait of Sir Thomas

questions: What does the spacesuit

Moore by Hans Holbein.

stand for? What’s inside it? What do

Redding’s project comes at a time

these things encapsulate? The more

when space travel is beginning to seem

she drew, the more layered meaning she

less like a superhuman endeavor, and

delved. “The spacesuit is a protective

more like a commercial service, much

device, like an armor, that allows you to

like plane travel was in the 1940s. In

go into hostile environments and com-

Bookends, one of the 12-foot panels,

plete your mission,” she says. The cords

Redding positions a spaceship between

on the suits, Redding reflects, function

a two halves of a fragmented Parthe-

as umbilical cords, tying you back to

non frieze. The ship’s nose points to the

your home base. “There’s an awful lot

horse, reflecting the “endlessly circular

of meaning there,” she says.

conversation between past and pres-

The focus of Interstellar Insulation

ent,” she says, adding, “Once our trans-

is a suite of panoramic drawings in ink,

port was limited by the animals we

charcoal, graphite, pastel and acrylic

could ride, now we can fling ourselves

on Dura-Lar (a polyester film similar

into outer space.”

to acetate), most around 12 feet long. At

In the midst of a bruising two-year

first, she drew herself inside the astro-

pandemic, we are all, like Redding,

naut suits, a decision that arose, in part,

looking toward the future and reflect-

because she didn’t have much access to

ing on the past. Redding’s work, and

live models during the pandemic. She

the questions she poses, could not be

soon moved beyond autobiographical

more apt or timely for our current un-

projection to reflect on the long arc of

certain moment.

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Gutter Credit

Objects

By Beth Dunlop

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

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be to s ue in

A T

bject of obse ssi an o

ra rc h

and

The

ers

aesthetes—an

A V

d f or go

. ir

re a .

stu

Art of Design

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he origins an d r dy t e

lev a

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Javier Mariscal’s 1995 Alessandra armchair takes cues from the classic wingback style. The previous spread shows Mariscal’s Saula Marina black-and-white sofa from the same collection. Both available through Moroso at Soft Square in North Naples. moroso.it

Courtesy Moroso

Objects

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Artistry

Stop for a minute and consider the chair. In the world of furniture, we take it for granted—it’s basic, and in fact, essential. But no other piece of furniture offers such a range of creative opportunities. In the words of designer Michael Wolk, there are “no real boundaries between architecture and design, no hiatus between painting, drawing and sculpture, and no hierarchy between high art and applied art.” A chair can be a sculpture or it can be architecture. Chairs can tell stories of another place or time. Chairs can be whimsical or serious, elaborate or simple, formal or rustic. “The chair becomes an exciting canvas,” gallerist David Alhadeff, of famed design center The Future Perfect, says. “It is, in many ways, the most important piece of furniture you can design. You can express yourself in a very clear and beautiful way.” Of course, the primary purpose of any chair is function and comfort. Zoe Welch, who ran the education programs at Miami Beach’s Wolfsonian museum, calculates that the average American adult sits 2,372.5 hours per year—that’s almost 99 days worth of sitting. Welch developed an entire curriculum based on the challenges and opportunities of chair design. Indeed, the chair you sit in today could quite easily show up in a museum tomorrow. Chairs are a significant focus at the Vitra Design Museum in the German town of Weil am Rhein. The Vitra Museum’s extensive collection focuses largely on the 20th century. Still, chairs from all epochs—dating back to ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome—show up in museum collections worldwide, proving Wolk’s axiom that the boundaries between art and design are often invisible when it comes to the chair. To validate that point, in 2018, Alhadeff asked artists, industrial designers, ceramicists, sculptors and interior designers to design a chair of their imagination for an exhibition at his New York

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Michael Wolk Designs’ 2016 Donovan style speaks to the form and function of the chair with its exaggerated shape. Available through Michael Wolk Design in Miami. michaelwolkdesign.com

Courtesy Michael Wolk Design

Objects

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342

ELISE REMENDER

CARLOS RAMIREZ

KEVIN SLOAN

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Objects

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The limited-edition 2021 Bolotas armchair by Estudio Campana accentuates comfort with sheep’s wool. Available through Friedman Benda in New York City. friedmanbenda.com. Opposite: Claire Van Der Swan’s 2019 Out of the Box Chair turns the sofa concept on its head to make a single-seater. clairvanderswan.com

Artistry

location for The Future Perfect (he has galleries in San Francisco and Los Angeles, as well). The results range from wildly imaginative (some impossible to sit on) conjurings, many of them infused with a wicked sense of humor, to the elegant and ethereal, to the beautiful and practical—but all of them, as Alhadeff says, “are an expression of the artist’s voice.” The chairs shown in these pages explore some of the many facets of chair design. Javier Mariscal’s brightly color-blocked piece takes its cues from the time-honored wingback—a style that has long intrigued designers. But, it plays with color and proportion in a way that is a nod both to the Memphis movement (the Milan-born 1980s aesthetic that blends Art Deco, Pop Art and kitsch as an antithesis to minimalist midcentury modern design) and postmodernism (which exaggerates traditional motifs).

Courtesy Friedman Benda/Fernando Laszlo, Atelier van der Swan

By contrast, the Welsh Stick Chair by the East London-based design duo Wilkinson & Rivera takes a humble historic Welsh stick chair and reiterates it in an elegant form that is both historical and contemporary. Michael Wolk’s Donovan chair is a sculptural ode to the form and function of the chair that timelessly speaks to a

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

The 2021 Welsh Stick Chair by the East London-based design duo Wilkinson & Rivera reiterates the historical style with a modern twist. Available through The Future Perfect. thefutureperfect.com

Courtesy The Future Perfect

Objects

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ARCHITECTURE JOYCE OWENS

ARCHITECTURE

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INTERIORS

COMMERCIAL

STUDIOAJO.COM

RESIDENTIAL

MODERN

TROPICAL

GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Giovanni Travasa’s 1965 Eva chair brings new life to rattan with its curving back. Available through Glottman in Wynwood, Miami. glottman.com. Opposite: Philippe Starck’s 2021 Adela Rex explores the chair’s possibility to be fully sustainable with no hardware and a frame made entirely of plywood. Available through Andreu World. andreuworld.com.

Courtesy Bonacina 1889, Ralph Pucci Opposite: Courtesy Andreu World

Objects

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Artistry

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modern aesthetic. Giovanni Travasa’s rattan Eva chair is at once whimsical and unexpectedly unsophisticated. The limited-edition Bolotas Armchair from Estudio Campana (run by brothers Humberto and Fernando Campana) is made of sheep’s wool and ipe wood, materials that speak to and tell a story of their native Brazil. So take a seat, and think about the chair, that one piece of furniture that is often ignored and always has enormous possibilities.

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Objects

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The 2014 Wally Armchair by Elizabeth Garouste shows a whimsical interpretation available through Ralph Pucci in Miami. ralphpucci.com

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Your next collectible may come from a fine jewelry boutique, thanks to Naples’ Yamron Jewelers horological sculptures from Berd Vay’e. The artisan-duo behind the brand highlights the craftsmanship of watchmaking through contemporary art, sourcing components of vintage timepieces—often stock from famed watchmaking houses—which are restored, polished and set in Lucite to form sculptures in the shape of skulls, globes and spheres. In Time Framed (above), about 4,500 parts are displayed in backless frames. Talk about being suspended in time.

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GULFSHORE LIFE H O M E

Courtesy Yamron Jewelers

High Note

At Kalea Bay, the perfect day ends in “Y” Deciding which day is the best day at Kalea Bay is quite simple. It’s any day that ends in “Y.”

Mondays are made for workouts on our sky deck. Tuesdays are for tennis. On Wednesdays Wednesdays, watch the sun setting from your oversized lanai. Treat yourself on Thursdays with poolside service – around each of our three pools. Friday night fun is always found at the Club and around the bar. Splash away your Saturdays atop 23 stories at our rooftop pool. Sunday morning mimosas taste best when sipped in your very own stylish, sophisticated space.

Yes, every day is the best day at Kalea Bay.

Now selling Tower 400 | Tower 300 SOLD OUT Prices over $2 million 13910 Old Coast Road, Naples, FL 34110 KaleaBay.com | 239-793-0110

Oral representations cannot be relied upon as correctly stating representations of the developer. For correct representations, make reference to this brochure and to the documents required by chapter 718.503, Florida statutes, to be furnished by a developer to a buyer or lessee.

CELEBRATING A DECADE OF AWARD-WINNING INTERIOR DESIGN | FINE FURNISHINGS NAPLES,FL 2777 TAMIAMI TRAIL N 239.261.HOME (4663) BOCA RATON, FL 1351 NW BOCA RATON BLVD 561.440.HOME (4663)

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