While monochrome typically refers to black and white, it also includes grayscale (a range of grey tones from black to white) and shades of one color. Those old black-and-white movies picture monochrome in motion, and black-and-white photos often capture a certain monochromatic nostalgia and mood. However, the concept of monochrome is applicable to all colors on the spectrum. From its Greek origin, monochromos means ‘of a single color’: monos (single or one) and khroma (color).
The following images showcase a curated edit of monochrome styles in both interiors and objects.
Monochrome interiors
A grayscale living space in the ‘House on Stilts’, designed by Lithuanian studio Dizaino Virtuvė. Photo by Kernius Pauliukonis via Dezeen.A white living space in architect John Pawson’s Notting Hill home. Photo by John Spinks via Port Magazine.A plywood and white office interior in a London maisonette by architect Larissa Johnston. Photo by Rory Gardiner via Dezeen.A concrete living space in C Penthouse, Antwerp, Belgium, designed by architect Vincent Van Duysen. Photo by Koen Van Damme via Vincent Van Duysen.An ash wood prayer room in a Dublin priory, designed by Niall McLaughlin Architects. Image via Dezeen.A black-and-white interior in Vedbaek House (III) in Copenhagen, designed by Norm Architects. Photo by Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen via Norm Architects.A black-and-white meeting space in the Dynamo (II) office in Montréal, Canada, by Anne Sophie Goneau Design. Image via Anne Sophie Goneau Design.A neutral interior space at Atelier Peter Fong in the Tianhe District of Guangzhou, China, designed by Lukstudio. Photo by Dirk Weiblen via Dezeen.
This 7,000 sf house is nestled on a heavily wooded hilltop site in Ross, CA with breathtaking views of Mt. Tam and the San Francisco Bay over native California Oaks in one direction and the town of Ross through majestic old-growth redwoods in the other. The parti is a composition of simple volumes that maximizes a sense of openness to these views while maintaining privacy from neighbors and creating distinct zones within the property. Materials were carefully selected to strike a balance between a precise modernist language and the woodsy pastoral sensibility of this Northern California site. The volumes are clad in a terracotta rainscreen with rheinzink fascias. Custom aluminum doors and windows have extremely minimal sightlines. The landscape design was carefully considered to create different outdoor experiences to enhance the house. The floating master suite volume pushes out over the main living volume towards the canyon and views. The main dining kitchen area opens up to a lush lawn while the main living space steps down from a concrete plinth onto a wood floor that extends outdoors to a wood deck and anchored by a linear fire element. Guest rooms face the concrete terrace and look out over the mirror surface of an infinity edge lap pool hovering two inches above deck level. A fountain conceived as an 18″-high monolithic volume of water is visible from the entry and doubles as a spa. A home theater is located in the basement and a separate volume houses a gym area with a spa and an office for the owner’s business and his employees complete with its own private deck.
