Bold Kitchens

How a highly productive collaboration among a trio of creative Angelenas—and a good dose of Barragán—turned a dark and beleaguered midcentury house into a family home for the ages. The resulting design acquired its own flow, full of colorful narrative, spirited counterpoint, and anecdote. Now, in place of dark, disconnected spaces, outdoor rooms echo luminous indoor ones, and experimental filmmaker Laura Purdy and her family’s eclectic collections of art and personal artifacts share space with flashes of pattern and interior planes of saffron and pink stucco.

O'Neill Rose Architects designed each unit of this modern Queens compound based on the personality of the family member occupying it. The kitchen in the brother’s unit is bright and fun with a backsplash made of painted glass. The light fixtures, like many other materials found in the project, were left over from the client’s contracting work; O’Neill Rose bent the found pipes into an array of angles and attached light bulbs.

In the kitchen, artist Riley McFerrin installed custom floating shelves.

Gregory Katz proves that three times is a charm with his trio of concrete homes, which challenge the status quo in this quiet Johannesburg suburb. The kitchen shines in a bright yellow. Photo by: Elsa Young

If the idea of a plain white backsplash doesn't appeal to you, but you still want a neutral backsplash, consider handmade tiles or a material that comes in a range of colors and tones. Here, a cream-colored backsplash made of traditional Moroccan tiles and available through Emory & Cie line the backsplash of the kitchen.

No whiteware here. In this moody apartment in Berlin, multi-toned charcoal gray subway tiles make up the backsplash, which contrasts with the pop of rosy color on the kitchen cabinets.