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other hand is busy. It’s an elegant solution to a problem
I never even considered. Can you think of other insights
that change how we use the kitchen?
RM:
Our kitchens are designed to work as a system, and every
part of the system has been considered so that the whole
of the space becomes more than the sum of its parts. One
place in the traditional kitchen that becomes a wasted
space is the backsplash behind the faucet and sink. In a
traditional kitchen it seems to become cluttered and so
that is something that we reconsidered for our system and
introduced “function boxes” which are like drawers that
fold out from the wall behind the sink. When the doors
of the function boxes are closed, everything is tidied
away; there’s nothing to interrupt the view or the form of
the kitchen. But behind them, an ergonomically arranged
storage solution is concealed. The function boxes come in
different types, so if you need a sponge and some soap,
that’s where it lives, where in a traditional kitchen it might
live beside the faucet and clutter the space.
GE:
Can a moder n kitchen work in a traditional home?
RM:
It’s an interesting question for me because I grew up
in Europe, where in most cities there is very little new
housing. If you buy a home in a European city, it has
probably been there for a long time, and long ago they
turned the horse stables into something else. In London,
nobody thinks twice about putting a modern kitchen in
an older home. They love the old-world charm, but they
are modern people and expect everything that modernity
has to offer. That being said, we will work closely with a
client to build a kitchen that is functional and beautiful and
lives in harmony with the home. We have designed and
installed kitchens for Bill Tull adobe homes and classic
Arcadia ranch homes and everything in between.
GE:
The first house I ever saw with a bulthaup kitchen seemed
like there was no distinction between kitchen and living
room, just a large space with elegant kitchen elements on
one side. Is this intentional? What’s the thinking behind
blurring the line between different rooms?