THIS FLORIDA HOUSE IS DEVOTED TO LIGHT, ART AND VIEWS

A NEW FLORIDA HOUSE, IN BOCA RATON, BY ARCHITECTS CHOEFF LEVY FISCHMAN AND INTERIOR DESIGNER DEBORAH WECSELMAN, HAS BEEN SHAPED AROUND AN ART COLLECTION

WRITTEN BY JONATHAN BELL | PHOTOGRAPHY DOUGLAS FRIEDMAN | STYLING BY ANITA SARDISI

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This new Florida house in Boca Raton epitomises the region's Tropical Modern style – sleek, glamorous and filled with light. It is also draped in art and sculpture and furnished with contemporary pieces and custom finishes. Designed by Miami-based practice Choeff Levy Fischman, with interiors by Deborah Wecselman, the Boca Raton house was designed for a client with a passion for signature pieces of contemporary art and strong interior statements. It was built to exacting standards by VJD Construction.

The single-storey house is arranged as three pavilions surrounding a central pool, with artworks of varying scales scattered around in carefully pre-ordained positions that allow them to be appreciated from inside and outside. At the heart of the house is a 130ft-long skylight that runs two-thirds of the floorplan, bringing light into the central spine of the house and giving it a gallery-like quality.

The entrance façade, which adjoins a garage for the owners’ collection of classic and contemporary sports cars, is given a slightly different treatment, with rooms and internal spaces treated like pods that are extruded out from the wall. A shallow reflecting pool is set beneath these structures and is also the site of two large-scale ceramic forms by Jun Kaneko.

Inside, the accommodation includes a kitchen by the German specialist Eggersmann, flanked by an installation wall of custom coloured glass by Amsterdam-based Studio Germans. While there are formal sitting rooms and niches devoted to particular sculptures, paintings and views, the family room is a deliberately playful space, as are the bedrooms intended for the client’s grandchildren. These include a room with walls that appear to be carved from Lego, with an elevated loft-style bed, as well as wallpaper inspired by the late Keith Haring (a friend of the client’s).

The main living room has views across the lake to the golf course beyond, with a chandelier by Apparatus suspended above a round area rug by Tai Ping and cedar-finished Wittmann sofas. A Holly Hunt side chair in deep purple adds a splash of colour. Other art pieces are intended to be seen from inside and out, including the lifeguard sculpture by the pool by Spanish artist Aurora Cañero.

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‘This home exemplifies resort-style living with complete integration of interior spaces utilizing vast opening sliders,’ says Ralph Choeff, principal at Choeff Levy Fischman. ‘The home’s owners specifically requested a one-storey residence, and we provided a programme that pushed the design and the locations of design elements. As always, the site itself figures prominently into the design inspiration.’

The collaboration with interiors specialist Deborah Wecselman brought precious experience to the project – Wecselman had worked on two previous residences for the client. ‘They wanted a home where generations could gather and create lasting memories,’ the designer explains. With its rich interior and exterior landscape shaped by art and sculpture and meticulously appointed furniture and fittings, the Boca Raton house is both private house and gallery space.

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