SCHWARTZWILLIAMS spoke to David Hicks about his project in the Hollywood Hills.
When Australian designer David Hicks works from his satellite office in Los Angeles, his projects mainly stay behind the closed doors of his wealthy clients.
But SCHWARTZWILLIAMS has been given the opportunity to look inside his recent makeover of a Hollywood home, rumoured to have once belonged to Ginger Rogers.
The 1920s-built home is built into the Hollywood hillside, and is split over two levels. Hicks was tasked with the job of streamlining the floor plan and connecting the newer parts of the home with the original sections.
"The inspiration for the project was the house itself," Hicks told SCHWARTZWILLIAMS.
Read more about David Hicks in The Real Estate Conversation.
"The client wanted to retain its old-school charm and to use the spaces as a backdrop for a collection of mid-century furniture. They wanted to keep things somewhat relevant to the era, but extend that into the 50s and 60s.
"In many of the projects that we do, we assess what items of an existing building we want to keep and incorporate into the new design. If the house has some nostalgia to it, it is nice to keep this and work from it," he said.
"In this project we used the existing timber beams as a sculptural element for the space. This is very indicative of how they used to build, it was called post and beam, and the structural becomes an integral part of the design."
"The romance of this house and its 1920s pedigree offered hints of Hollywood glamour that we did not want to erase, instead revamping it to somewhat of its former glory," said Hicks.
Many of the original kitchen and bathroom features and the existing marble fireplaces were retained and improved. David sourced vintage Hollywood Regency furniture from the 1920s, contemporary works by German artist Thomas Wachholz, and objects by the likes of Gucci and Christian Louboutin for the project.
Hicks also did a cosmetic make-over of the exterior and interior finishes.
"They wanted something warm in texture and feel and simple in material palette. The LA lifestyle was also a big inspiration with its laid back, relaxed vibe," he said.
Read more about David Hicks in The Real Estate Conversation.
Hicks loves working in LA.
"We have been sourcing product from overseas, and in particular LA, for a long time," he said.
"They have such a vast history of mid century design there, which I love. They also had in the 50s and 60s the ‘new’ money to experiment with architecture and design, so there were many amazing building and interiors built. Along with this, a huge amount of international furniture was designed and produced for this market."
Hicks said much of this furniture has now ended up in vintage furniture stores, which he regularly scours for his projects.
"It truly is a treasure trove," he said.
Read more about David Hicks and Australian interior design:
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