Facebook

Tweet

Help

Back to black

Dark timbers, glossy black cabinets and an acrylic lightbox give this kitchen a sleek Japanese aesthetic

View of kitchen designed by Celia Visser of countertop, interior design, kitchen, white, black
View of kitchen designed by Celia Visser of Celia Visser Design in Auckland featuring lacquered black babinetry, timber bar top and linen stainless steel benchtops, stone fireplace, a shoji-style sliding door and vertical lightbox which reinforces the Japanese aesthetic.

Visual continuity is one of the hallmarks of good architecture. What you see on the outside of a house may not necessarily be replicated on the interior, but it can be reinterpreted to create a sense of progression or uniformity.

The exterior of this new house has a slight Japanese aesthetic, which is echoed by key aspects of the interior design, including shoji-style sliding doors in the main hallway.

Kitchen designer Celia Visser says the shoji influence is repeated in a vertical lightbox that marks the main entry to the open-plan kitchen and living area.


View of kitchen designed by Celia Visser of display case, furniture, product design, shelf, shelving, white
View of kitchen designed by Celia Visser of Celia Visser Design in Auckland featuring lacquered black babinetry, timber bar top and linen stainless steel benchtops, stone fireplace, a shoji-style sliding door and vertical lightbox which reinforces the Japenese aesthetic.

"These geometric elements fit with the owners' desire for a kitchen with a very linear look and strong horizontal lines," she says. "They also wanted black cabinetry, but we didn't want to create a black-and-white kitchen as such. And it was essential that the design would not detract from the spectacular view from the main work bench."

Visser says the solution was to mix a very dark high-gloss lacquer Resene Nero with dark-stained timber battens on the front of the island. A matching dark-stained Tasmanian oak bar top wraps around the island to enclose the main work area.

"The island cabinetry stops short of the wall, leaving a gap beneath the bar top," says the designer. "This helps ensure the cabinetry doesn't overwhelm the space visually. It also means there is space for extra bar stools the owners wanted to be able to seat six people at the counter."

View of kitchen designed by Celia Visser of countertop, house, interior design, kitchen, white, gray, black
View of kitchen designed by Celia Visser of Celia Visser Design in Auckland featuring lacquered black babinetry, timber bar top and linen stainless steel benchtops, stone fireplace, a shoji-style sliding door and vertical lightbox which reinforces the Japenese aesthetic.

The black cabinets are complemented by stainless steel benchtops, one of which features an integral double sink.

A custom-designed ventilation unit with integrated cabinets was carefully detailed to accommodate the sloping ceiling.

"Everything in the kitchen was designed to reinforce the square, linear look," says Visser.

Credit list

a sleek Japanese aesthetic Kitchen designer
Celia Visser,
Cabinetry
Black lacquer in
Splashback
Glass by Applied Coatings
Oven, combi oven, warming drawer and gas hob
Bosch
Sliding doors and light box
Akril, with dark-stained timber bars
Kitchen manufacturer
Countrylane Kitchens
Benchtops
Dark-stained, laminated Tasmanian oak; Linen stainless steel with integral sinks by SJ Crosbie Stainless Steel
Flooring
Dark-stained Tasmanian oak
Pendant lighting
Fersa

Story by: Colleen Hawkes

Photography by: Jamie Cobeldick

28 Jul, 2010

Home kitchen bathroom commercial design


We know the Specialists

Similar Stories