Large central island makes kitchen the hub for entertaining and family life

A kitchen design often references elements beyond its own footprint, complementing or enhancing the wider interior design or even the home’s architecture or its views. This project, by designer Kirsty Davis, is a pared-back example.

“The kitchen forms part of a concrete, tilt-slab modern home with soaring 3m-high ceilings, an open layout, lots of windows and polished concrete floors. “In keeping with this look, the kitchen itself is sleek and contemporary – while at the same time creating its own statement,” says Davis. 

“The kitchen is the hub of the home both in terms of entertaining and family life. So, the owners wanted a generous island with space for casual seating. In response, we designed the large, 6m-long central island with a mitred waterfall benchtop at one end and a gravity-defying 1.2m-long cantilever at the other – making it a feature and a secondary, informal dining space.”

In reality, the long, floating bench is underpinned by a steel supporting structure.

“The owners also wanted to take in the home’s rural and tree views while they prep or clean, so the hob and sink are set on the island.” 

Another feature of the home is a rich Rimu batten ceiling with black negative detailing. Working with this, Davis designed a matching drop-down bulkhead to seamlessly house the cassette rangehood and ducted ventilation system.

Offering a modern, minimalist backdrop, the rear of the kitchen is a wall of white vinyl, punctuated by a line of reflective ovens. Storage and smaller appliances are fully integrated here.The large fridge-freezer, wine fridge and the dishwasher are all located in the open, walk-in pantry, accessed from the side of the kitchen.

Black painted glass splashbacks in the pantry were set at the same height as the wall-mounted appliances in the kitchen. And the pantry is also in the same colours and materials as the kitchen, making it appear as a continuation of the more social space.

“The owners really wanted a handleless, minimalist kitchen and to achieve this we used the Blum Servo-Drive drawer hardware and push-to-open doors as well as the advanced Servo-Drive Flex push-to-open hardware for appliances,” says Davis. “With the use of the latest materials such as the vinyl wall covering, and high spec hardware, the kitchen is at once highly contemporary, yet understated.”