106 Via Cordova

The room

This kitchen is not large. That is the first thing to understand about photographing it. The run of counter is short, the ceiling steps up under a skylight, and the whole space is finished in white subway tile and white cabinetry, which means almost everything in frame reflects light back at you.

The anchor is a black and brass La Cornue range. In a room this pale it is the only piece of real visual weight, so most of the compositions either put it dead center or use it to hold down one end of a wider frame. The Waterworks fixtures do something similar at the sink, where unlacquered brass sits against a Carrara marble apron front.

The light

The skylight is the reason this room works. It drops soft overhead light onto the marble, which then bounces into the cabinet faces and fills the shadows. That is genuinely rare in a galley kitchen, and it meant far less supplemental lighting than a space this size normally needs.

The tradeoff is contrast. With that much white and that much bounce, the range and hood can flatten out. Several frames were exposed for the black enamel first and the room second, then balanced back so the brass reads warm without the whites going grey.

Notes

Interior design is by Gwynn Rosenthal. The property is represented by Laurie Kilcullen and is currently available in Newport Beach for lease or purchase.