"Kitchen as place and design process is
as complex as any other part of our life. I know things should be kept simple,
but in order to do that, we first have to unfold the complexity of the
situation, draw the essential idea, and apply it further creatively.
The thing that fascinates me the most
is to see clients wanting their new kitchen to fit not only family needs and
lifestyle but account for friends’ and relatives’ gatherings for celebrations:
‘So here is where we put the platters, the drinks are there, and the children
can have a snack in here! And we need the kitchen by August for our daughter’s
sixteenth birthday!’
Each partner sees the kitchen from
different perspective, and sometimes there is a bit of controversy between
partners. You can then see how strong the relationship is or how good the
communication is between them. One would say, ‘I want an island and also to
keep this chopping block in the same position as in the old kitchen.’
The partner would say, ‘Why do you want
that old chopping block in a new kitchen? I want a beer fridge instead.’
The answer is ‘It is my kitchen. I cook
every day, and I thought of this for so long.’ In the second meeting with these
clients, the island is kept, the chopping block is replaced with a wine fridge,
and everybody is pleased.
Renovation of the kitchen is an
occasion for reinforcing one’s happiness. A lovely couple in their sixties
asked to completely change their old kitchen into a contemporary style: gloss
flat door, Caesar stone, long handles, symmetry, light under cabinets,
pull-outs, and under-mounted sink. All the latest gadgets! They said, ‘We have
this kitchen since we build the house twenty-five years ago. We couldn’t
renovate it sooner as we had to upbring our children and support them
throughout schools. Now they are grown-ups with their own families and homes,
so it is time for us for a change.’ The thing that impressed me the most with
this couple is that they wanted to change everything in the room apart from a
table attached to the kitchen bench. They wanted a new one but in the same size
as the old one. They said, ‘We both sit here every morning and read our
newspapers and chat and laugh. In the evening, we sit here for a tea and watch
TV. We do this for the last fifteen years, and we want to keep doing it.’
Kitchen can sometimes be the flagship
of a change long time awaited for. Another lovely elderly couple living in a
castle-like mansion wanted to completely modernize the ground floor including
the kitchen. Instead of dark timbers, earthy tiles, and Spanish whites –
like the colour scheme of the house – the lady wanted a white gloss kitchen,
light tiles, and red glass splashback! She said, ‘I am sick and tired of these
dark tones. I lived with them for twenty years. Time for a change!’ The ground
floor became light, optimistic, uplifting – as oppose to the rest of the house –
still heavy, and dark. The owners needed a spark of excitement in their life!
I can see kitchen as an overlapping of
diagrams generated by different activities and persons. Just by imagining
everybody’s foot steps, you can draw some amazing maps of kitchen use. The mom
will spend most of the time between sink, cooktop, pantry, and fridge. The boy
will wander between fridge, microwave, and breakfast bar. Dad will swing
between coffee machine, fridge, and corner of the peninsula, by the phone. The
dog will follow anyone and any smell of food, and the cat, well the cat, has no
walking pattern!"
Fragment from the book: "Kitchen Designer-Your Dream Job!" by Valentin Tinc
