When meeting new clients and fleshing out a brief, interior designer David Flack doesn’t ask many questions. He doesn’t even say much. "They probably think I'm a bit of a weirdo," says the Flack Studio founder and principal.
"I just pick up on what people want, and how the home should make them feel," he explains. "What music they like or what their everyday life looks like all plays into a person, while the house and its geography tell you what to do. It's just intuition — I guess it's my little superpower — and it’s why all our projects look different."
The owner of this three-story house in a pint-sized beachside Sydney suburb is a hardworking native New Yorker with a blended family. “Coming home needs to be complete respite for him,” says David.
But as calming as it was, the "white on travertine on white" coastal interior design of the original house was incongruent with the client’s personality. "New Yorkers have this edge to them; they’re straight-shooting, witty and kind," David explains. "So that was a starting point."
He's also a guy who knows what he likes. "The client had always wanted to live in that house, so he knocked on the door and he asked if you could buy it, and they sold it to him," David Flack recalls. "He’s a very intentional person."
But not prescriptive — happy to defer to David and his team, giving them carte blanche to reimagine every inch and sumptuous layer of the interiors. "It was a really wonderful relationship from the get-go."
Besides the addition of a bathroom, there were no significant structural changes. David introduced rich woods such as walnut and American oak, polished plaster painted in jewel tones, terracotta tiles, and a smorgasbord of marbles.
"I wanted it to feel a bit New York and a bit European," he explains. "Weirdly, the work feels Australian, as well, because of its context."
Featuring a hammered brass rangehood, Portuguese tiles, and rust-coloured stone, the modern kitchen indeed evokes the feel of a Renaissance oil painting.
The modern living room gives major brownstone-salon vibes with its timber library walls, timeless furniture and curious objets d’art.
While the cellar and tasting room imbue a 1970s nightclub, complete with irreverent Kiron Robinson neon wall art.
"Sometimes the simplest details are often the most significant," David says. "There's a thin little red line creeping through all the library joinery, like a beautiful little solid bead. I love that."
It’s just one example of how Flack Studio punctuates spaces with intricacy and intrigue. "When you've got a client who respects that level of detail, you push each trade to create something really bespoke, because you know they'll appreciate it."
A well-curated art collection includes works by Daniel Boyd, Dale Frank, Bill Henson and Tracy Moffatt. "There are some heavy hitters, plus some fun emerging artists in the mix, like Nadi Hernandez and Jason Fu," David says.
After supplying every glass, sheet, towel, knife, fork, and salt and pepper grinder, did the family bring anything with them on moving day?
"No, just their clothes," laughs David. "It was a turn-key situation."
The client still texts David regularly (and randomly) to say how much he loves the house; sometimes his partner sends photos of the family’s latest party. "It’s so cool," David muses. "I don't need anything else… that's the icing on the cake for me."
