Copper highlights meet sexy curves

Visible to passers-by, this dramatic sculptural kitchen is essentially two: a front kitchen and a back one where all the prep and clean-up happens, writes

Mid-century design influences and highly tactile curved surfaces make this a kitchen you just want to stroke.

The kitchen, in a new house in Point Chevalier, Auckland, was designed by Katie Scott of Sticks +Stones Design for a couple who love Arts and Crafts and Midcentury pottery and design. Which helps explain the sensuous mix of materials that include copper, European oak and travertine.

Scott says the owners requested a simple, unfussy design with a sculptural element. ‘‘And it had to blend seamlessly with their contemporary home.’’

They wanted their kitchen to be a social space, with a large scullery where prep and clean-up areas could be kept out of sight. And there was an additional reason they required a scullery behind the main kitchen: ‘‘The space has wonderful sea views but is also very open to the street, so it is very ‘on show’ – hence the welcoming furniture-like shapes and textures in the ‘front’ kitchen,’’ Scott says.

Other considerations included a strict budget, and the need to integrate a significant structural column and beam into the design. To this end, Scott designed an island and a secondary bench at one side that’s ‘‘anchored’’ by the structural column. This features a bar area that opens out into the living space, and has an integrated Liebherr bar fridge.

The pill-shaped island has a fluted ‘‘skirt’’ featuring custom reeded panelling, and an engineered stone benchtop. One end of the island features a similarly curved raised benchtop for ‘‘socialising’’, in European oak hardwood. This bench is supported by a cylindrical plinth built with folded copper sheets around an MDF substrate.

The curved copper rangehood has similar copper sheets over a substrate. Scott says this design solution helped ensure the kitchen stayed within budget. For this reason she also specified a textured Melamine for the cabinetry – Prime Panel Tahoe Walnut Woodgrain – instead of real wood, and matched travertine tiles for the splashback and bar area, rather than slabs.

With an open-ended ‘‘front’’ kitchen providing easy access from either side to the ‘‘back’’ kitchen or scullery, there is an easy flow around the space.

‘‘The scullery is the working part of the kitchen. As well as providing plenty of storage and

additional bench space, there’s a second sink and coffee centre, plus the bar to the side.

To complement the copper elements, the Soktas Coral Trio light pendant over the island features custom copper caps and black rods.

Appliances include two integrated Liebherr refrigerators, two Miele ovens, and Miele hobs evenly spaced over 1200mm, an Award rangehood and integrated Fisher & Paykel dishwasher.