HIVE: Texas Two-Step

HIVE featured a contemporary Austin house where Mark Cravotta brought pattern and texture into rooms with few walls for art. Details include a Vincenzo De Cotiis coffee table, a ceramic chandelier, and an open metal entry screen commissioned from Christophe Côme.

Published in HIVE, the magazine of the Design Leadership Network, 2021. The digital issue is no longer online.

How do you reconcile a client’s desire for pattern and texture in a sleek contemporary house? Mark Cravotta has more than a few ideas on how to create an artful atmosphere in a house with few walls to hang art.

For clients in Austin, designer Mark Cravotta drew on his experience as a ceramicist and jeweler to add distinction via pattern and texture and a variety of standard furnishings. The soft lines of the living room sofa play off against the organic forms of the Vincenzo De Cotiis coffee table. Upholstery in the dining area evokes Africa, a reference furthered by a witty ceramic chandelier reminiscent of a ceremonial headdress. Tree-of-life wallpapers, lively patterned tiles and richly veneered doors contrast with white walls, pale woods, and expanses of glass. The entry’s solid wall has been replaced by an open metal screen commission from Christophe Come, a stroke of artistry that gestures to the many other artful treasures within.

Makers: Vincenzo De Cotiis, Christophe Côme.