A glimpse past an enticing front door
Architectural Digest comes to Toronto. It is hosting Architecture Days, which celebrates architecture and design in Toronto, from Sept. 24 to 29. “Inside Rosedale and Forest Hill” is a glimpse into four residences; other sessions include tours of the CN Tower, the University of Toronto campus, the ROM, the AGO and the Royal York Hotel.
The homeowners of this recently finished Forest Hill residence had one major request for Paul Raff of Paul Raff Studio: “Incorporate as much natural light as possible to offset the grey days of winter.” Indeed, the sleek, modern home captures your gaze as you arrive on the street. Vertical strips of green glass adorn one half of the facade, while the other is a custom pattern of square and rectangular charcoal-grey slate.
Glass, slate, bamboo and concrete are repeated throughout the 3,500-square-foot home. From the beginning, Mr. Raff and his team made sure the home would be a green project by focusing on sustainable, local materials and energy-efficient systems.
The main level has concrete floors. Bamboo surrounds the entrances to the powder room and living room. The powder room’s cross-cut stone wall adds texture and matches the grey, cream and brown palette. The foyer leads to a slate-and-glass staircase, taking your eyes to the second level. The staircase is elegantly situated between a wall of two-storey south-facing windows and a slate wall, with cutouts so light enters the home from the second level to the basement. A frosted-glass pocket door on each side of the kitchen entrance create privacy when necessary.
On the north side is a dining room with a rectangular table for six and an oval, crystal light fixture. To the south, up steps, is the living room, highlighted by vertical glass strips on the east window wall, which, viewed from the inside, seems to flow like water. “The changing light of the day creates different effects in the living room,” says Mr. Raff. The living room has a discreet exit in its western glass wall to a stone terrace that overlooks the solar-heated swimming pool and grassy backyard.
Expansive space dominates the kitchen with bamboo cabinetry that wraps around the entire kitchen and the north wall. Stainless steel counters and Viking/Wolf appliances define the work areas, with open shelving for small appliances and cookbooks. An entrance to the backyard is easily accessed after a meal in the kitchen booth, or after reclining on an Eames chair in the adjacent family area. Bamboo cabinetry conceals a television and a nook provides a roll-out top and is wired for gadgets. “This area breaks up the flow of cabinetry to add interest, either for a piece of art or to use as a desk,” says Mr. Raff.
With a steady diet of southern sunlight, the home’s slate wall is an old-school heat source and a creative way to add texture (becoming a chalkboard in the kids’ play area on the lower level). The basement contains a maid’s room, storage and a mudroom entrance with built-in bamboo bench/shelf, as well as an entrance to the two-car garage, to make it easy to step inside the home from the car no matter what the temperature is outside, says Mr. Raff.
The second level includes two children’s bedrooms, a children’s bathroom, a guest bedroom and an office. Light bamboo is in the flooring and the curved staircase and cabinetry in the third-level master bedroom, which are punctuated by south-facing windows overlooking the neighbourhood. The ensuite bathroom combines green glass tile and white marble with a restful view of rooftops from the deep soaker tub.
Although the homeowner will be purchasing more furniture and placing a collection of modern art on the walls, the home provides more than an eyeful for an aficionado of contemporary design. Mr. Raff was happy to work with traditional materials, such as stone and glass, in a contemporary way on this project. “This is an unabashedly modern home, but it’s not out place among its traditional neighbours.”
For more information on the full program, visit architecturedays.com.
Published in The National Post Saturday September 22 2007
