Name: Paul & Isa
Location: downtown Toronto, Canada
Size: 1,900 square feet (plus deck)
Years lived in: 3 — owned
Further evidence that art gives an interior personality and intimacy is seen in Paul and Isa's amazing loft full of playful, conceptual and engaging contemporary art. Their collection includes some impressive names including Ed Ruscha, Larry Clark, Andre Kertesz, General Idea, Marcel Dzama, Harold Edgerton and Jeffrey Spalding to mention a few. Just as the couple responds to arch artwork, their design choices follow suite favoring confident colors, texture and humor. In the spirit of Where's Waldo, see if you can find a hidden stuffed bird; a leftover from Halloween decorations that has become part of the installation.
Apartment Therapy Survey:
Our Style: Curated clutter.
Inspiration:> Isa's parents' old loft — where a few key pieces made the difference.
Favorite Element: High ceilings and southern exposure. The physical space is very important. I feel we are half way through the design process and without the sunlight I don't know if we would have lasted this long with a kitchen from the 80s.
Biggest Challenge: We don't have a lot of space but we both have tendencies to collect…so it becomes a challenge to refine our taste and keep it from becoming over crowded.
What Friends Say: That it is a very unique space…
Biggest Embarrassment: Our coffee table. Something we said we would change upon moving into the place and 5 years down the road it remains the same. Art purchases override practical design necessities most of the time.
Proudest DIY: It is a bit of a stretch but the concrete fireplace we designed and made with our contractor. (Feels like a big accomplishment because the fireplace used to be covered with fake turquoise stone)
Biggest Indulgence: People tend to think art is an indulgence but for us it is a necessity, so I would say our biggest indulgence was our Paul Smith Carpet.
Best Advice: Take your time finding the right pieces that reflect your own sense of style. And invest in design.
Dream Sources: Ministry of the Interior (Toronto). We are making an effort to look at younger designers.
Resources of Note:
ENTRY
- • Large Painting: Jeffrey Spalding
LIVING ROOM
- • Rug: Paul Smith for the Rug Company
DINING ROOM
- • Overhead Fluorescent Chandelier: Castor
OFFICE
- • Wallpaper: Kelly Mark
Thanks, Paul & Isa!
Images: Troy Seidman
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Gorgeous! I love that rug in their living room!
Your place looks huge! I love the rug, it's money well spent. Where did you get your bar stools? Those are great too. I got excited because I thought I found the stuffed bird but happy to also see your adorable dog!
Ha! The rug is the one thing I noticed, too. It looks like possibly a handcrafted Tibetan contemporary rug?
Oh how I want to squish that dog. Love the use of color here, sort of a coordinated chaos.
I love the Paul Smith rug! It's a 'one day...' purchase for me - mainly due to lack of funds but also because of two destructive Burmese.
"Curated clutter" made me laugh.
If you guys ever want to do a house swap in Chicago I have a very similar place.
Great work! The place is beautiful.
If you hate your coffee table that much, you could just add a CB2 Element coffee table. It is reasonable and would fit the space.
I love those shelves in photo 25 - where are they from?
Wow! Amazing, non-cliche, gorgeous.
Those bookshelves and that dog -- OMG!
Great art collection, great shelving unit, great dining set, great minimal bedroom. It's exactly what a loft apartment should be.
It goes against my usual position, but I'd like to see that wooden ceiling painted white. Leaving it as wood emphasises the visual heaviness of the girders and conduits.
The only other thing I'd change is the orange couch and ottomans. A warm neutral (chocolate leather? Off-white fabric?) would let the rug be more of a statement and make the art seem brighter.
But that's just my two cents. It's a beautiful achievment just as it is.
Beautiful and cheerful. Also, you have an orange squiggle on the wall to make AT Maxwell proud, I should think! ;-)
The first thing I saw was that gorgeous Paul Smith carpet, the second your coffee table. You should look into a non-obtrusive perhaps clear or low profile table that will show off that amazing rug to its full potential. Love this house tour!
my - what vertical space, ..I ogle. (=
What the heck! I couldnt find the bird anywhere.. Why hasn't anybody else written about this? I was very excited to find that there was a game involved in this house tour!
There are so many individual elements here that I like but taken together they're not working for me for some reason. I would decorate a space this size and well-lit with select oversized pieces to bring intimacy to the scale, but I see plenty of small and medium-sized items some of which seem to function as space fillers. Don't get me wrong, it's visual treat. Just not for me.
Oh, and the bird -- Is it on the mobile above the bed in picture 20, seemingly perched on the flower decal on the wall? If not, my second guess is the dog ate it.
Score on the basketball hoop, by the way!
I couldn't find the dog.
envy!
Where do i find the b&w picture of the tree - does is it by?
I like most everything about the apartment...except for the rug. It actually makes me hate the orange furniture which I think I might actually like if paired with something a bit more subdued. Sorry, just can't get behind Paul Smith on this one.
I love the couch! Any clues on where I could find a similar style? I've seen a lot of this type out there, but this is the first that's 'grabbed' me.
Its hard to tell for sure, but I think the bird is hanging over the bed with the orange bedspread. Is it an owl?
For a coffee table, I think a more organic-shaped table (like a Noguchi) would work best with your rug and play off the more squared-off edges of your furniture
Another house tour with the dreaded orange...not my favorite color at all. Not liking the carpet either. The loft I love but would look better with warmer colored furniture. Love the art!
The dog is in photo 23 and photo 26 - cute!
On the cactus there seems to be an owl...Photo 18, looks like an owls ear? ;P
?
Love the space. Yay Canada...Heh.
@ CrowNology - I think you're right. I see a silhouette of an owl.
Love the long "scroll" at the top of the stairs that looks like a page from a TV Guide. What is it and where can it be purchased.
Love the entire loft although I'm also not a huge fan of orange.
Just love this home.
I like that rug. But the apartment looks more like clusters of displays in a much larger show room.
+ 1 for dog squeezing. Very sweet dog.
I agree edmarch. There are lots of good elements, but together they seem kind of random. The space its self is interesting and beautiful.
I wish I had your eye for picking out the right artwork for the right space. Well done.
"I so proud you so smart." Is that arch or just racist?
(The poster in pic 22.)
What is up with the picture over the mantle? It looks like a person who's been lynched who is now holding a basketball. Unless I'm seeing that completely wrong I can't imagine having that near me. The mixed imagery is incredibly dark.
AND it's hung beneath a basketball hoop. Oh Jesus.
@bluemamie...
I was going to question that as well.
An air jordan symbol lynched from a pretty southern tree?
this apartment is now TRASH in my opinion.
the owners are idiots.