Harbour Collector by Brooke Aitken Design

Inspired by the homeowner’s affinity for the opulence of the Hotel Costes in Paris, the interior of this Sydney harbour-side apartment speaks to a sense of theatre, with gallery-like spaces giving pride of place to an art collector’s many treasured pieces.

Previous to the renovation, completed by Brooke Aitken Design in 2023, Harbour Collector lacked natural light due to compartmentalised spaces. A first step involved combining rooms to create flow between zones, which also allowed for appropriate framing of coveted views of Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House available from its varied spaces.

The kitchen opens onto the living and dining rooms, creating one expansive, dinner party-ready space that spills onto a balcony from which to enjoy ever-changing city and harbour views.

The kitchen opens onto the living and dining rooms, creating one expansive, dinner party-ready space that spills onto a balcony from which to enjoy ever-changing city and harbour views. The kitchen features overlapping Calacutta Vagli marble benches, extending the work surface into a full-size dining table with ease, while warm yet sleek timber cabinetry is chosen to match with the parquet timber flooring. Overhead, light pendants add soft, coral-like forms, while black, embroidered chairs with tapered legs lend contrast and opulence.

This level of the apartment is accessed by a dynamic, winding stair encased in soft Venetian plaster, with a momentous sculpture suspended and partially inset into the ceiling overhead. Reflective and pock-marked like the surface of the moon, the sculpture by renowned artist Lindy Lee seems almost ominous in the natural light, and, when illuminated from above, sends disco-like reflections across the stair and into the surrounding spaces.

Warm, neutral undertones carry through to the master bathroom, where a sense of spa-like luxury is created through a collection of soft, natural materials.

Warm, neutral undertones carry through to the master bathroom, where a sense of spa-like luxury is created through a collection of soft, natural materials. This is in perfect contrast to the master bedroom, which features lavish embroidered silk and floral print wall coverings and bedding, alluding to that Parisian hotel so enjoyed by the homeowner. The considered yet unabashed selection of materials and fabrics is in keeping with the many artworks that illuminate the walls of Harbour Collector, providing richness and grace to this out-of-the-box apartment.

Architecture and interior design by Brooke Aitken Design. Build by Grosser Constructions.