Andersen's House: Visiting an American Designer

Among Andersen's projects, black walls and especially black ceilings are not often seen. It's understandable: most people fear radical decisions. But for the designer, a palette of deep graphite shades is quite comfortable. Moreover, Sean believes that dark colors look masculine and intriguing. They became the basis of the color scheme for his own home in the eastern part of Memphis. The exterior walls are also black.

The interior of the «modern farmhouse house», as he calls it, and in fact a Tudor-style house with a sharp roof, four bedrooms and several bathrooms, is entirely built on contrasts. This applies not only to alternating dark and light spots such as black cushions on a white sofa and very light floors against dark walls (Sean whitewashed them on purpose to make the interior brighter).

The main focus of the designer is on juxtaposing the new with the old, placing rather worn-out items next to perfect new ones as if their labels were just recently removed.

Generally, giving a second life to old things is a separate topic in the designer's work. Andersen likes to use unexpected objects as furniture: for example, an old Belgian workbench, a fragment of a worn wooden hatch, and a large drum now serve as coffee and magazine tables.

In addition, the house is filled with vintage furniture and collections of insects and animal skulls, which the designer skillfully incorporates into bedroom interiors, hallways, and mixes with pictures in the living room. Here is also a collection of ancient arrowheads—a find of his grandfather.

Paintings and photos on the walls can be examined endlessly. The interior designer admits he mostly selects them based on aesthetic proximity—to himself and the house. For example, a 1940s rowing team photo has no relation to Andersen but fits well into the atmosphere.

It is not by chance that horses appear: several paintings and photos of them remind about the proximity of the house to horse farms and the designer's love for nature. Nevertheless, the house already tells enough about its owner.

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