The floor to ceiling mural of the legendary Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album cover is a stunning entry point to an Asian-inspired decor with soothing decorative accents throughout the home.
The owner of this Baltimore Ritz Carlton Residences terrace-level suite invites guests into his home with the same requests—or at least one might get that impression. A floor to ceiling mural of the legendary Sgt. Pepper album on the wall opposite the main entrance “. . . draws you in immediately,” says the homeowner. Painted by Virginia Jarvis of McLain Wiesand in Baltimore, the mural sets the decorative tone. The homeowner continues, “You know there’s something familiar about it, but also something kind of unexpected. As soon as you walk in, it’s something that makes you go, ‘this is gonna be a cool place.’ ”
With panoramic views of the Inner Harbor on one side, Federal Hill on another, a custom-designed Ipe terrace off of the living room, and a collection of music memorabilia to rival that of Hard Rock Café, cool is most definitely an understatement.
Although seemingly a departure from the rock n’ roll aura of the entry, the condo, at its core, is like the most legendary of rock stars: unruffled and seemingly effortless amid any audience or locale. If the entrance vestibule personifies 1967’s Sgt. Pepper, the rest of the home channels John, Paul, Ringo, and George’s 1968 jaunt to the Maharishi’s ashram.
To offset the owner’s vast collection rather than compete with it, the décor had to be somewhat minimalistic and create a calming effect. To achieve this vibe, the homeowner brought on Brian Thim, an interior designer with Baltimore’s Rita St. Clair Associates, who suggested a simple, Asian feel throughout the home.
Brian Thim of Rita St. Clair Associates
Starting at the entry hall, Thim chose a teak wallcovering and applied it to the ceiling and used a natural grass cloth treatment on the walls. The natural limestone flooring has subtle seashell patterns that give it a delicate, organic texture. The rich color of the teak ceiling gives way into the living room, where a tray ceiling adds an airier dimension.
“When I walked into the place, I wanted it to be sophisticated but very warm,” the homeowner notes. “I wanted to…have some wow factor, but I wanted to be able to exhale when I arrived home. That’s what Brian gave me.”
To keep things warm and understated, the existing crown moldings were painted a warm putty hue rather than stark white, gently transitioning to teak built-ins constructed by Moran Custom Cabinets and designed by Thim to house TV and audio equipment, a pull-down desk, and, of course, an extensive album collection. A woven copper treatment on the built-ins gives the entire room added texture and depth. “On the opposite side of the room we did a custom fireplace surround that carried over some similar materials,” says Thim. “They make use of what would otherwise be dead corners, and they also add a warmth and softness to the room.”
The Eastern atmosphere continues into the master suite, where traditional window coverings were nixed in favor of a rolling shoji screen also by Moran Custom Cabinets–the screen affords not only privacy but also a diffused natural light into the room. Thim created a “quasi-Tansu” wall unit, which provides ample storage space against a far wall, and converted an antique Chinese lacquered screen into a dramatic headboard. In the master bath, Thim removed an interior wall and replaced it with yet another shoji screen, creating a kind of water-closet effect. A distinctive split-bamboo treatment on the walls gives the intimate space a personality of its own.
To continue the style of the interiors to the outdoors, the owner called upon husband and wife team Bill Turner and Karen Kelly-Turner of Monkton, Maryland’s Turner Landscape, Inc., who envisioned a subdued, urban design for the large terrace just off of the living room. “Our goal was to create a tranquil space incorporating the basic elements of a Japanese garden: stone, water, and plants,” Kelly-Turner recalls. “Japanese gardens appear uncomplicated, but to achieve that look, it takes meticulous planning and editing. We wanted to create a sense of serenity in the middle of a city that is constantly moving.”
Turner Landscape, Inc. created a tranquil space on this large terrace with basic elements of a Japanese garden including stone, water, and plants.
The Turners began with the installation of an Ipe deck, and brought in river rock and boulders to symbolize mountains and riverbeds in a natural landscape. As for a water feature, the harbor would have to suffice. Plant materials include a bed of dwarf mondo grass, black pine, panda bamboo, variegated red twig dogwood, pom-pom boulevard cypress, smoke trees, and Japanese maple. “We chose to use plants with a lot of texture [that were] drought tolerant and tough enough to handle the extreme wind and other weather conditions present in that environment,” Turner says. Staying within the traditional Japanese palette of earth tones kept things simple, but the Turners opted for a pop of color for some visual interest, with planting material in shades of peach, burgundy, and pink spilling out of jade green planters.
The Turners also crafted a serenity terrace off of the kitchen. A small space with no water supply made it a challenging project, but an Ipe deck mat, more of the jade green planters, tall bamboo stalks in river rock, and a single chair make it “simple, elegant, private, and peaceful,” says Turner. “The perfect place to start your morning with a cup of coffee.”
The terraces—as well as the interior spaces—embody the owner’s personality: sophisticated, with more than a touch of whimsy. “He’s definitely a businessman,” says muralist Virginia Jarvis. “He’s really involved and dedicated to his work, but at the same time, he’s very fun, and there’s something very playful about him.”
Inside and out, the home now embraces the best part of city life: its infectious energy. If spending the evening out on his terrace or enjoying the Zen vibe of his living room, the owner can take in the bustling buzz around him without doing a thing. Yet on a whim, limitless options are at his doorstep. Either way, an ideal end to a hard day’s night.
Annliese Scott is Assistant Editor for ChesapeakeHome.
Contacts:
McLain Wiesand: mclainwiesand.com or 410-539-4440
Moran Custom Cabinets: 410-522-0961
Rita St. Clair Associates: ritastclair.com or 410-752-1313
Turner Landscaping, Inc.: turnerscapes.com or 410-472-9333
