Inside a Paris home with an Eastern aesthetic

An air of tranquility settles around this home, which is situated in a corner of Paris close to the Bois de Boulogne park and the Louis Vuitton Art Foundation in the 16th arrondissement. Accessed by a decked garden terrace of Ipe timber, which is wrapped by a verdant wall of trees and bamboo, it could be a million miles away from anywhere.

The sense of simplicity, order and of being immersed in nature is a prelude to what lies beyond the threshold. French architects and designers Samantha Hauvette and Lucas Madani, a pair that met as students at the prestigious École Camondo in Paris before establishing their interior-architecture practice in Neuilly in 2010, have drawn heavily from the design ethos of Japan. Natural materials establish a calm, contemplative tone throughout the open-plan space, where expanses of glass frame nature, transforming windows into an expression of light in shades of green. The design duo cite the architectural rigour of Tadao Ando as influencing their vision, but also reference the “radical simplicity” of French designer Andrée Putman, which creates balance in a space where they have designed the interior and much of the furnishings.

In the hallway, natural light seeps through windows on either side of an oak door, which was designed by Hauvette and Madani with a grid of punctured circular glass insets, casting pools of light across the oak floor. The same flooring flows into the adjoining dining room, where the verdancy of the garden fills the room, wrapping around the oak dining table, which is complemented by the designers’ La Coupe Chair and Fontainebleau floor lamp. Dedar fabric was used for the upholstery on the bench, injecting softness and colour in the scheme. Oak is a dominant material in the palette throughout the house and extends into the kitchen, where it finishes the custom made cabinetry. A verde marble extends from countertop to wall, blurring the boundaries between inside and out.

In the living room, the dominance of wood is pared back, and the focus drawn to neutral walls that lend a lighter, airier tone to the space. The huge log fire is the welcoming heart of the home, and artworks arranged in vignettes, create energy around it. A large, almost creature-like surrealist sculpture by Agnès Debizet stands beside the hearth. On the briquette mantelpiece is a sculpture by Monique Rozanès, framed by paintings and drawings by French artist Pauline Guerrier, all of which they found at Galerie Gastou.

Upstairs, in the open-plan bedroom suite, a new element is added to the palette: mirror, which is the focus of the vanity area behind the bed, reflecting and amplifying light. Soft, textural elements – the simple greige bedding and tasselled Fortuni wall lights, help to counter the hard lines of wood. As the sun filters through the curtains, casting dappled light across the room, the serenity is palpable…

hauvette-madani.com