Oak Hill Residence

This residential renovation began by grappling with a now-common Nashville conundrum: do we tear down or renovate? The design team and homeowner determined that we could reconceive their existing house and preserve it. The guiding principle was that we could build well without over-building. Keep what you have, make use of it, and extend its life.

The new layout surgically removed or opened up several walls to connect entry, kitchen, dining and living rooms, and wholly reconfigured the kitchen. Low ceilings were eliminated from the kitchen/living room, and skylights were introduced into the now vaulted space, making the modest footprint feel suddenly voluminous and airy.

The clients, who love to travel, wanted to pull inspiration from memorable trips to both Mexico and Japan where they were drawn to the use of handmade tile, wood, and stone. While the primary interior palette sets a neutral tone—white walls, wood flooring and millwork—color is embraced whole heartedly. The dining room storage cabinet is a monolith of teal, sitting in conversation with the green tile backsplash in the kitchen and the navy thin-brick that re-clads the existing living room fireplace. An original phone niche, salvaged and painted a gloss candy-apple red, now winks as an artful relic in the hallway. The hallway bath is a contained rush of color and pattern, with cobalt tile, geometric wallpaper, and a mossy green vanity (the super-saturated Casa Luis Barragan was an early inspiration the clients offered). A blush of pink warms the newly vaulted ceiling over the primary bathroom shower. A ribbon of oxblood red punctuates a wall of wood shelving in the den.

A full landscape plan includes new outdoor patio spaces, fruit trees, and a bioswale garden.

2023 Metro Nashville Preservation Awards, Honorable Mention

Photos by Joseph Bradshaw