Blantyre House

Project Details

Project Description

Kitchen / Honorable Mention
Fittingly, what defined the wood-clad kitchen in this single-family home in Toronto is the preservation of a century-old Norway spruce at the back of the site. With a depth of 45 feet, instead of the 120 feet typical of this Victorian-era neighborhood, the design team at Williamson Chong Architects decided to devote the entire ground floor to what they term a “kitchen studio”—a functional kitchen space that still serves as a gracious entry to the home. In order to maximize the use of the space, the architects secreted the ductwork, plumbing, closets, cabinets, appliances, and a refrigerator behind sleek millwork panels that are detailed with beveled edges and recessed profiles to give the impression of a single continuous plane. “It’s beautifully crafted and the composition is very beautiful,” juror Cary Bernstein said. “It's a piece of design.” Calling the kitchen wall unit “sculptural,” juror Gregory Hoss noted that “you don't read any constituent parts; it looks like one big piece. Realizing that all these cabinet doors open and reveal lots of different things is really wonderful.” —Katie Gerfen