At Home: An Architect's Minimal Family Home

Architect Francesca Oggioni had to set aside her rationalist principles when she was planning a new layout for her listed house in west London, so it would work as a family home, workspace and backdrop for an extensive art collection 

What do you do if your aesthetic is Italian modernist but you have just purchased a six-floor Grade II-listed Victorian town house in west London? This was the dilemma that faced Italian architect and interior designer Francesca Oggioni six years ago when she purchased her home with her Belgian husband, a hedge-fund manager, photographer and art collector.

The couple moved in directly after they bought the house - the only one they had viewed - and, though they loved its generous proportions and light-filled rooms, there were many things that irked them. 'The kitchen was on the lower-ground floor and, as a new mother, I felt as if I was spending all my time climbing up and down stairs,' says Francesca. The extension that ran out from the first two floors and looked out on the communal garden was another blight; it had been built in the Seventies and was an ugly protrusion. The elevated view over London from the upper floors, on the other hand, was stunning.

There was much to do, but when Francesca - who studied architecture at the revered Politecnico in Milan and was influenced by modernists such as John Pawson and David Chipperfield - began to rethink the design, she found she had to throw out many of her entrenched ideas. 'I realised that applying my rationalist rules to a listed Victorian building was impossible,' she says. 'I could not do what I knew very well: change the proportions of the rooms by creating open spaces and full-height openings and let the light do the rest. English Heritage wouldn't allow it for a start, but I also realised that it would do a disservice to the building.'

Nonetheless, the house had to function on different levels as a family home and office, a place to entertain and a fitting backdrop for their art and photography collection. This includes work by photographers Richard Avedon, Irving Penn, Peter Beard and Robert Mapplethorpe, and sculptures by George Minne. 'My husband's love for art played a central role in the __design of our house,' Francesca says. 'An incredible amount of time was dedicated to allocating pieces to the different floors, so that all the collection would be beautifully lit and framed.'

The __design thought process took a year and half before any work started, with the couple, who by then had two children, having to reflect as much on their philosophy of living as considering the functionality of each individual space. 'Living in the space, seeing how the light plays on  the walls throughout the day, helped us design a house that is a true reflection of what we are and how we function,' says Francesca. Ultimately it was the cerebral, deliberately imperfect aesthetic of Belgian designers such as Axel Vervoordt and Vincent Van Duysen that provided the inspiration.

While the proportions of the rooms could not be changed, the configuration across the six floors could. Thus the children's playroom and Francesca's office were installed on the lower-ground floor and the kitchen was elevated to the ground floor. Also on this floor is the dining room, with the drawing room above it. The remaining floors house the couple's bedroom and bathroom, the children's rooms and a spare room at the top.

Long forgotten and mistreated original features such as the stone staircase, which was buried under layers of paint, were reinstated, as were covings, skirting boards and doors. 'We were blessed with an incredible team over the 19 months it took to refurbish,' says Francesca.  The main contractor, Capstone, oversaw the project and fully bought into the vision. All the subcontractors for the stone finishes, flooring and lighting, as well as joiners and painters, were Belgian.

Once the main construction work was done, the finish was painstakingly worked on over six months. Everything from walls and flooring to cupboards was painted on site to ensure a coherent look. The bone-coloured chalk paint on the walls was remixed in each room to appear uniform taking into account the varying light. Storage was an integral part of the vision. Nearly every room has wall-to-wall cupboards for stashing things out of sight. Everything has a place, with televisions and even mirrors - which Francesca finds distracting - hidden. 

A simple muted colour palette, along with a selection of natural materials and finishes, was chosen to ensure a meditative flow. Fabrics, which Francesca did not want to look too 'precious', all come from Belgian interior design company Huyghe Decoratie. Moreover, shop owner and designer Catherine Huyghe helped with many of the choices they had to make about finishes.

The result is a house where each room fulfils its potential, with defined spaces for the whole family. 'It is simple, understated and still. It is functional and tidy, but in many ways imperfect because of the fabrics, objects and art,' says Francesca. 'It is a refuge that holds the most precious memories'.

francescaoggioni.com | capstonelondon.com

Breakfast Room - Architect's Pale Family Home

Living Room - Architect's Pale Family Home

Living Room Fireplace - Architect's Pale Family Home

Kitchen - Architect's Pale Family Home

Ceramics - Architect's Pale Family Home

Dining Room - Architect's Pale Family Home

Seating Area - Architect's Pale Family Home

Study Entrance - Architect's Pale Family Home

Playroom - Architect's Pale Family Home

Staircase - Architect's Pale Family Home

Main Bedroom - Architect's Pale Family Home

Spare Bedroom - Architect's Pale Family Home

Children's Bedroom - Architect's Pale Family Home

Bathroom Basin - Architect's Pale Family Home

Main Bathroom - Architect's Pale Family Home