Good proportions, elegant details, and a simple color palette make this kitchen the crown jewel of a new house in an old Minneapolis neighborhood. Its cool, monochromatic color scheme is a quiet foil for the well-defined millwork and the cabinetry's varied vertical planes. Ceiling beams, upper cabinets, and the range hood are all centered on the island, which anchors the room. Wrapping the corner at the sink are large windows, which let in southwestern light and a long, borrowed view of the neighbors' backyards.
“Composition is always important in a kitchen, and we thought about it as pieces coming together to make a whole,” says architect Jean Rehkamp Larson. Our jury agreed. “It's classic and feels like a space unto itself, even though it's part of the great room across the hall,” one judge commented. The result is a clean cottage aesthetic that befits the house and the neighborhood.
Entrant/Architect:Rehkamp Larson Architects, Minneapolis
Builder:JS Johnson & Associates, Hopkins, Minn.
Interior designer: Alecia Stevens Interiors, Minneapolis
Project size: 260 square feet
Construction cost: $280 per square foot
Photographer: Ken Gutmaker
