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Every detail has a tale to tell in an artist’s residence made unique with her own work and antique flea-market finds

 

Daphne Mandel’s 2,400 sq ft apartment is as light and bright as they come. Situated on The Peak, in a colonialstyle block that was built in 1951, it is blessed with high ceilings, three balconies and myriad tall windows and glasspanelled doors that the landlord has had the sense not to change.

“The amount of light that floods the flat at any given time is almost surreal,” says Mandel, who is French. “I work from home and while I could rent a space in the city to work from, I know I wouldn’t find anything better. I would constantly be thinking up excuses to go back to my flat.”

Light is of particular importance to Mandel because she is now a full-time artist. Although she says she has always painted, it was more a hobby and came second to her former work, as a landscape architect and urban planner. In 2006 Mandel and her business partner were named among the top five young landscape architects and urban planners in France by the Ministère de la Culture but when she moved from Paris to Hong Kong six years ago, with her American husband, she realised it would be difficult to continue in the same industry.

“The process of urban planning in Hong Kong is entirely different from that in France. There, the city layout and buildings are always part of a largescale vision; here, it seems to be more chaotic,” she says. “When I arrived, I was shocked by the restless urban scene and the juxtaposition of things co-existing in small areas. Each architectural project tends to be conceived as independent, with no consistency or regard for the existing site. As it turns out, this has become an inexhaustible source of inspiration for me.”

Her paintings adorn the walls throughout the three-bedroom, two-bathroom flat (in which Mandel and her family have now lived for five years) and reflect her love of architecture. Looking more like photographs than paintings, they feature typical Hong Kong buildings (think Sham Shui Po rather than Central) that are embellished with quirky details such as a menagerie of exotic animals, or chinoiserie-inspired wallpaper covering the facade of a rundown block, all executed in intricate detail.

Creativity is in Mandel’s genes. Her mother writes about art for a Dutch newspaper and her grandmother was Dutch textile artist Wil Fruytier, who was feted for her rope tapestries – one of which has pride of place in Mandel’s living room.

“My grandmother was an amazing lady,” says Mandel. “She’d pick up anything – objects, fabrics – and be instantly thinking how she could use it and what she could turn it into. She was so popular all her pieces were sold and we have hardly any in the family. Every time we find something, we fight over it. I found this one among some rubbish in her cellar – it was almost unrecognisable, all mouldy and dusty.”

Mandel seems to have an eye for picking out “rubbish” and turning it into treasure. Her entire flat is furnished with pieces found in flea markets in London, Paris and Milan.

“Apart from three lamps in the living room and a couple of Ikea items in my sixyear- old son’s room, I haven’t bought any major items from a conventional shop,” she says. “They’re not particularly expensive pieces but I love that everything has a real story behind it – the memory of where we bought it or what it used to be.”

Her desk and that of her son, for example, were both sewing tables in a Singer factory; a bench in the corridor was once seating on a Milanese tram; pendant lights above the dining area come from a wet market; and a foldable iron table once did duty in a French military canteen.

“I also have a passion for furniture design from the 1950s and 60s,” says Mandel. “Designers then created the perfect harmony between form and function. Everything was so clever and efficient – and the designs are so beautiful.”

Into the mix go vintage lamps; vibrantly coloured, lacquered Chinese chests; a silver coffee table; and a fair dose of red and orange. Her apartment is the antithesis of a wall-to-wall designer look – and yet everything works together despite such varying origins.

“My parents’ flat was very 1970s – bright orange, shag-pile carpets and really cool,” says Mandel. “I was very influenced by that aesthetic, too. I find current design trends can often be a bit bland and beige but even if you prefer muted tones you can always spice them up with a burst of colour. To me, your home is so precious and a reflection of yourself – so why wouldn’t you fill it with interesting and unexpected things?”

 

 

Living room (above) The Hammerite grey sideboard and the white side table were both by David Ng, from Matchit, which closed a few years ago. The white Ray T table lamp, by Rodolfo Dordoni (HK$11,100), and the Luminator (to the left of the white sofa; HK$6,700), by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni, both came from Flos (Wyndham Place, 44 Wyndham Street, Central, tel: 2801 7608). The chrome 1970s five-headed Lounge Lamp (HK$6,999), by Kare Design Team, was from Aluminium (www.aluminiumfurniture.com). Bought years ago were: the two 50s Charles and Ray Eames chairs for Vitra, at Parisian flea market Les Puces du Design (www.pucesdudesign.com); the 70s silver coffee table, from the Marché Paul Bert, part of the Parisian flea market Marché aux Puces de St-Ouen; the 1932 Alvar Aalto water carafes, from the Bassin de l’Arsenal flea market in Paris; and the original 60s leather sofa, by Bodil Kjaer, from a London flea market. The white linen sofa (HK$13,000) was custom made by Wai Wing Upholstery & Curtain (21/F, Block 1, Kingley Industrial Building, 35 Yip Kan Street, Wong Chuk Hang, tel: 9013 6162). The red patterned cushions, by Mariko Jesse, cost HK$450 each from Faux (3/F, Harbour Industrial Estate, 10 Lee Hing Street, Ap Lei Chau, tel: 2851 4040). The red tray, by Zak Designs, was from The Conran Shop, London (www.conranshop.co.uk); the blue bowls were from Cat Street market (www.cat-street.hk). On the wall behind the white sofa is a painting, titled The Container Warehouse, by Daphne Mandel (www.daphnemandel.com). Beside it are a rope artwork and screen print by Mandel’s grandmother, Wil Fruytier.
Corridor (above right) Originally a Lunar New Year decoration in a hotel, the circular art was bought for HK$100 from a small repair shop on Kennedy Street, Wan Chai. The 1920s tram bench was bought from an antiques shop in Milan, Italy, and the Indian statues from an antiques store in Trouville, France. The bookshelf (HK$3,000) was bought from Aluminium in 2008.
Kitchen (right) The two paintings to the left are by Mandel, while those at the far end are by an unknown artist and were bought from a street market in Paris. The watermelon slice is a decorative object from London. The green blind was custom made for HK$800 by Wai Wing Upholstery & Curtain. The Pantone (www.pantone.com) espresso cups cost US$60 for a set of six.
Living room detail (above) The black-and-white photograph is of Fruytier’s studio. The paintings, Wallpaper Samples (left) and Yellow Building, are by Mandel. The Sing Sing Sing chairs, by Shiro Kuramata, and the military canteen table were found years ago in the Marché aux Puces de St-Ouen flea market. The Pipistrello lamp (right; €840/HK$8,900), by Gae Aulenti, was from Le Bon Marché department store in Paris. The handmade, Opalino red Murano glass vase was from Venini in Milan (www.venini.com). The white 30s spice jars came from a flea market in Normandy, France, and the 50s Champignon lamp was bought from a vintage shop in Paris.
Dining area (above) Four paintings by Mandel – Country House, Deep Acupuncture #1, Ceramic Warehouse #3 and Indoor Scaffolding #2 – adorn the walls in the dining area. The red pendant lamps cost HK$20 each from the Wan Chai wet market. The dining table and 70s chairs, from the Marché aux Puces de St-Ouen, and the 70s tea set, by Bareuther Waldsassen Germany, from Morn Creations (64B Peel Street, Central, tel: 2869 7021), were all bought years ago.
Office (right) On top of the bookshelves in Mandel’s office, Kassett boxes (HK$12.95 each), from Ikea (various locations; www.ikea.com.hk), act as storage. On the wall hang photographs of Fruytier’s studio and a poster of an exhibition of her work. The desk, a former Singer sewing table from an antiques shop in Milan; the 70s chair, from the Marché Paul Bert in the Marché aux Puces de St-Ouen flea market; and the 70s metal side table, from the same market, were bought years ago. The bookcase came with the flat.

Bedroom (above left) The black-leather-upholstered bed was custom made for HK$13,000 by Wai Wing Upholstery & Curtain and the Retro floor lamp cost HK$2,500 at Aluminium. The 1965 paintings by Raskin were purchased from the St Sulpice antique fair in Paris.

Son’s bedroom (above right) Mandel’s son’s bedroom is a mix of vintage items and new pieces. The white Kritter children’s table (HK$270), Kritter chairs (HK$160 each) and Forsa desk lamp (HK$200), were all from Ikea. The magnetic chess set was S$14 (HK$85) from Kids World at Changi Airport, Singapore. The Planes mobile (HK$315), designed by Ole Flensted, came from Flea + Cents (1/F, 36 Queen’s Road East, Wan Chai, tel: 2528 0808). The world map, in French, was purchased for €12.90 from www.illustrated-worldmap.com. Acquired years ago were: the desk, a Singer sewing table, from Milan, Italy; the chair, found in an antiques shop in London; the 70s pendant light, from a Milanese flea market; and the horse, found in an antiques shop in Trouville. The painting above the piano, called Museum of the Hunt, is by Mandel.

 

Unsightly light and electricity switches that are seldom used are hidden behind a cleverly placed box frame. If Daphne Mandel needs to access them, she simply lifts up the picture.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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