Meet the Team: five most beautiful rooms, by Georgia Grunfeld
We’ve asked our team to pick their five favourite rooms from The Modern House’s sales roster, including homes currently on the market and those from our 12-year-old archive. To open the series, we’re talking to Georgia Grunfeld, our Principal Sales Advisor and longest-serving member of staff.
After graduating from the Courtauld Institute of Art with First Class Honours, Georgia cut her sales teeth in commercial art galleries and auction houses before joining The Modern House. Georgia currently lives in Peckham, but dreams of one day decamping to a rural idyll in Norfolk, where she grew up.
Here are her top five favourite rooms:
Haveringland, Norfolk
“This is the dreamiest house ever.
“It was built to look like a barn that was on the plot before and it adheres to the existing floorplan, but is completely new.
“I think its beauty lies in its simplicity, with that long stretch of glazing that faces the garden. I love the fact there is no inbuilt artificial lighting in the house and so all light comes from lamps and the open fire; it’s charming in its modesty.
“It also overlooks the Norfolk Fens, which is an area of the world I love. I can imagine living there.”
Ware, Hertfordshire
“Another favourite. Like the house in Haveringland, it’s a very traditional clapboard house that is meant to mimic the old worker’s cottage that was there before, on the land of a huge estate.
“But Hopkins Architects, who designed it, and have led the High-Tech architectural movement since its inception, introduced a very modern kitchen.
“I’m drawn to the fact that it’s quite playful and creates a sense of volume and drama as you walk up the staircase and look down. It’s like being on a ship.”
Grasslands, Gilston, Hertfordshire
“I think this whole house is fantastic, but I’m particularly fond of the kitchen.
“The owner has used Vitsœ’s shelving system in a really creative way to divide the space, and then softened it all with those beautiful ceramics.
“I could really imagine myself living there because it’s utilitarian yet peaceful and tranquil. It’s a combination I really fall for.”
Middlesex Street, London E1
“We sold this apartment about a year ago for an art historian. He has an amazing eye, combining paintings, sculpture, found objects and ornaments that he has collected over the years.
“It’s a warehouse space that was gutted, and then a really elegant intervention was made in the form of a modern box, which holds the bedroom, bathroom and library/study area.
“I think it was done in a particularly beautiful way, and I like the marriage of the old warehouse with contemporary additions.”
Queensbridge Road, London E8
“This is my all-time favourite house we’ve ever sold.
“It’s very difficult to find an image that actually summarises the space, because the house is made up of four very different parts.
“But in the end, I decided to settle on a picture of the kitchen, which is so light and airy, and leads straight into the garden; it’s beautiful.
“The house comprises a period house with a modern cedar-clad extension, ‘Vicco’s Tower’. In one of the rooms, there is a vertical window that perfectly frames a tree outside. It’s full of surprises like that.”
