CALIFORNIA DAYS

The home is able to open up completely to the elements for an outdoor-oriented, distinctly Californian way of living that is hard to find elsewhere in the city.

加洲生活

家居採全開放式設計，宏揚戶外生活之美，這種加洲情調在香港實屬罕見。

However, one artist and his creation are particularly cherished by Katie. Indeed, an ink-splashed screen by Hong Kong’s own Frog King takes pride of place in the living room behind a pair of Indonesian ikat sofas. “The brushstrokes and the energy of that artwork really speak [to me] very strongly,” Katie comments. So personal is this connection that the de Tilly residence served as the venue for Frog King’s 70th birthday celebrations where the artist acted out a performance art piece on a rooftop adjacent to the outdoor swimming pool to a crowd of 200 guests.

The house lends itself superbly to entertaining, which takes up no small portion of Katie’s calendar. The ability of the floor-to-ceiling windows to completely open up to the patio creates the impression of an expansive, uninterrupted living room, seamlessly blending the interior and exterior. “I really liked the rectangular windows from 1950s-era Hong Kong colonial architecture,” explains the Los Angeles native. “They’re also very Californian, influenced by [modernist architect] Rudolph Schindler who was in turn influenced by Japanese architecture.” For smaller, more intimate dinners held for visiting artists, Katie receives them at a semi-detached dining room at the near end of the pool, where the burbling sounds of the poolside waterfall feature are allowed to permeate mealtime conversation.

芸芸收藏品中，Katie特別喜歡其中一位藝術家和他的作品：進佔客廳最當眼位置、放置印尼ikat織布梳化後的正是香港本土藝術家蛙王的潑墨屏風。Katie如此評價：「那筆觸和作品呈現的力量深深打動了我。」正因為這種情意結，Katie的家早前便成為慶祝蛙王70歲大壽的場地，當日蛙王更在頂樓戶外泳池旁向200位賓客即席表演。

大屋的確適合用作款客，應酬也佔用了Katie不少時間。落地玻璃可以完全向露台打開，營造出偌大無阻的客廳感覺，把室內外完美連接起來。Katie說：「我很喜歡這些來自1950年代殖民時期香港建築的長型窗。」她續說：「同時又帶加州風情，因為它們均受到[現代主義建築師]Rudolph Schindler的影響，這位建築師又深受日本影響。」舉辦規模較小的晚宴時，Katie則會於近泳池盡頭的半獨立飯廳招待訪客，談笑間更可聽到池畔瀑布裝置的汩汩流水聲。