How I Curate My Space: Louise Olsen’s Vivid, Ocean-Front Living Room
In a new interiors series, we ask designers and tastemakers to open the doors of their most-loved room, sharing the stories and inspirations behind its style – and their favorite pieces within it. Here, Sydney-based designer LOUISE OLSEN, co-founder of sculptural homewares brand Dinosaur Designs, welcomes us into her vibrant, beach-side living space. By KATIE BERRINGTON
The awe-inspiring outlook from Louise Olsen’s Sydney home gazes down onto Bronte beach. “We live up on a hill and we look down towards the ocean,” she says of what first attracted her to this picturesque spot when she and her husband – fellow artist and Dinosaur Designs co-founder Stephen Ormandy – moved here two decades ago. “Our house is surrounded by gum trees and other native Australian trees, which I love because it brings all the birds, like kookaburras – they’re very happy here.”
Nature is of perennial importance to the couple, who met at art school 30 years ago and founded their brand while they were there, with its influence apparent throughout their swirled and sculptural homewares. They renovated the house, which started as a small bungalow, to create an airy and art-adorned abode, which “opens up to the landscape and out to the bush. We get such good sea breezes, so we never need air-conditioning, which we love because we wanted the house to be really sensitive to the environment.”
The living area is the focal point of the house, featuring large, rolling doors that open out onto the gum trees, offering glimpses of the ocean. “It’s a lovely place to sit after a busy day at the studio,” says Olsen. “It really feels like a sanctuary… to get a nice glass of wine, sit on the couch and reflect on the day is incredibly restorative. Nature does something to us that restores our sensitivities and our sense of calm.”
But, as tranquil as it is, this isn’t only a place to unwind. Keen collectors as well as makers of art and objects (creativity is in the genes – their daughter, Camille, is also an artist, as are Olsen’s parents), the couple has conceived a space that can be “a beautiful canvas for objects and paintings… It’s a great backdrop for us to explore and experience design.”
They favor a minimal framework of light, neutral palettes and simple lines: “It gives us the opportunity to fill it with objects,” says Olsen. “The house is a bit like a gallery; the walls are white – apart from the library and TV room – so you get to see a pure sense of color because there’s nothing interrupting [it].
“When I’m working on a collection, I tend to bring the pieces home and experiment to see how they sit in a space,” she continues. “I really want the objects to have that sense of humanity, that hand-felt touch, but also [to see] how they sit on a table and how they make you feel.”
The most eye-catching point of the space is one of Ormandy’s works – a huge, colorful painting hanging at one end of the room. “I think that really captures you as you walk in the door, it’s like, ‘Oh, wow!’” enthuses Olsen. “It’s a bit of a life force happening there.”
While many of the pieces that punctuate the room are a joyful kaleidoscope of vivid shades, Olsen’s use of color across the house reflects how she works with hue groupings in her own collections. “There’s a section where I work very much in neutral colors, so light, more muted, tonal shades. We tend to play with color blocks [and] build up different relationships. There’s a wonderful saying: ‘Color rushes to our centers, but tone touches the soul.’”
Four favorite elements of the room
My book collection
“I’ve always loved my art and poetry books: I love looking at them, I love stacking them, I love them being available. I’ve had my collection for a long time, but I’m constantly buying more. I have a whole library wall in one area of the house. They constantly get looked at and used. I need to find more space to put them!”
My Henry Bertoia ‘Diamond’ chair
“I got it about 20 years ago from a design store in Sydney. It’s actually very comfortable, even though it might not look it. It’s a lovely afternoon chair. I always thought it was a very interesting design. Bertoia was originally a sculptor and I’ve always loved his work. I love the form of the chair; it’s a very generous and voluptuous shape.”
My Dinosaur Designs collection
“It’s constantly evolving. When we started Dinosaur Designs, there wasn’t anyone you could call on to ask how to use resin. We worked out our own recipe and our own formula over many years, so the collection is very dear to me. Each piece is one of a kind. There are the core pieces that I’m still revolving and moving around, and then introducing new ones. I think it’s always important to remember your past. The whole passage of the work is important, and I like to reflect on that, but to also move forward at the same time.”
The view
“The view, from both our living room and bedroom, is very, very special. It’s just breathtakingly wonderful. To watch the clouds, the boats and the sky changing, the sun rise and set, it’s never the same. It’s constantly changing.”