Upmarket natural materials and a strong sense of symmetry achieve a restful workspace

This kitchen echoes the wider home’s relaxed, light-filled aesthetic with a focus on natural, honest materials and a pared back design

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Sometimes a thoughtful kitchen design will go well beyond making easy material connections to adjacent spaces. Instead, this kitchen by architect Joe McGregor of Bruce Stafford Architects, weaves the wider theme of the home into the design.

“The overall brief was to design a functional home with a minimalistic aesthetic that would respond to the busy life of the owners and their family,” says McGregor.

To achieve the serene feel required, the architect sought to create visual comfort and balance right through the interior, the clean-lined kitchen included. The design strategy was relatively simple – to ensure an authenticity of materials throughout, along with plenty of natural light.

For the kitchen, this translated into a light-filled, cooking and socialising space that is open both to the dining and living zone straight ahead and to the balcony with harbour views directly to the right.

In terms of using honest materials – and bringing a quiet opulence to the design – the splashback is in smooth Concordia marble, with a cool grey quartz veining. The surface is all the more dramatic for its surrounding wall of crisp white cabinetry.

Adding to the natural material palette, the island features a slender black granite benchtop while the front is finished in a rich, warm wood veneer.

“The owners wanted the kitchen to be as much a social hub as a workspace,” says McGregor. “So, to this end, much of the functionality is consigned to the walk-in pantry or integrated into the cabinetry, such as with the refrigeration.”