Michaelis Boyd x House of Rohl for WOW!house 2024
Michaelis Boyd and House of Rohl are proud to unveil the primary bathroom for the highly anticipated and third iteration of WOW!house at the Design Centre, Chelsea Harbour. The collaboration between House of Rohl and globally renowned architecture and interior design studio, Michaelis Boyd, has been one of innovation and friendship and a whimsical journey to discovering serenity.
The bathroom was designed with emphasis on one central and theatrical piece in particular. The focal point of any bathroom: the bath itself. Christiana Gregoriou, Partner at Michaelis Boyd, chose the opulent Taizu bath from Victoria + Albert in a custom olive green matte finish; a one-of-a-kind piece for WOW!house.
Taizu is a collaboration with renowned Hong Kong based designer, Steve Leung, who was inspired by the fine porcelain designs of the Song Dynasty, which the team felt was a natural fit within the ‘transitional’ and curvaceous design. Christina added “once the bath’s location was decided, the remaining design and layout unfolded”.
Billy Bolton"The Taizu bath tub was the perfect ‘protagonist’ in both style and scale."
Encompassing the bath tub, within an up-lit dome, is an ethereal mural by French artist - Claire Basler - who was commissioned in respect of her outstanding attention to detail and ability to encapsulate serenity, with a sense of movement within her work.
Claire is inspired by nature, stemming from her childhood family trips to the rural countryside and mountains. She also shared her love for flowers with her family. Her acumination of skills and experience painting delicate flowers to breath-taking murals has secured her global recognition.
Billy BoltonEach of Michaelis Boyd’s projects are influenced by their surrounding natural environments, local culture and craftspeople. Christina threw further light on the studio's design ethos and belief that luxurious design should tread lightly on our planet.
Building upon this ethos and prior collaborations influenced Christina’s decision to render the central bathrooms’ walls and ceiling with Clayworks - a clay plaster made of unique blends of unfired clays, mixed with minerals and pigments to provide healthy, breathable wall finishes. Clayworks manufactures plaster in Cornwall from abundant raw materials, which are amongst the lowest carbon and healthy wall finishes available on the market.
Billy BoltonA bespoke daybed was designed by Goldfinger - a studio of design and sustainability pioneers. Goldfinger designs and crafts timeless furniture and homeware from sustainable materials for homes and businesses. They are an award-winning social enterprise leading the industry in its embrace of circular design processes and approach to modern British craftsmanship. Through the Goldfinger Academy, its social impact arm, they deliver hands-on training to young people to inspire careers in craft.
Goldfinger was also commissioned to design and build the side table, and the vanity unit topped with a ‘Rainforest Green’ Marble from Diespeker & Co. The unit includes two sunken Victoria + Albert Laceno 56 basins and two Perrin & Rowe Georgian Wall Mounted Basin Mixers, which protrude from the marble splashback.
Billy BoltonFound within the more intimate areas of the bathroom are the Koyohen Border tiles in ‘Vintage Green’ from Raven, that were chosen for their sleek design and flecks of amber to compliment the warm tones of the timber and marble used within the bathroom. The team strategically placed the tiles vertically to extenuate the curvature of the shower area, powder room and drying area.
Based in London, Raven are Europe’s Japanese tile specialist; curating tiles from Japan’s finest Ceramicists. Their team work with a broad spectrum of Japanese manufacturers, ranging from small businesses to international corporations. The architectural lighting throughout was delicately designed by context-specific lighting design and manufacturers – PSLab, who have showcased elements of the bathroom with drama and flair.
Billy Bolton
