First Impressions

Making an Entrance.

The 70th annual Emmy awards were held recently and all eyes were on the red carpet. The dresses and the opening number always feature highly in such events because the opening sets the tone for the rest of the night.
The entrance of a home or office is no different. The walk from the street into the property should be as thrilling and clearly demarcated as the red carpet. How we enter the building- be it with awe at its size, playfulness at the path taken, or a sense of warmth as we walk inside- starts the journey ahead. Visitors should feel welcomed and customers enthralled, setting the tone for what is to come.
WOLF Architects design with a strong sense of injecting the vibe of each client or family into their built environment. A young home with children and frequent entertainers may be more inquisitive in its style, whilst an established home may present a grandiose style. All WOLF homes will be welcoming, enticing, elegant and bespoke.
The first home pictured has a garden path that is chequered and playful, taking visitors along the simple paving stones and over a bridge to the front door, encouraging a slower walk that allows for the building and garden to imprint on its visitors. The second property has symmetry to the door, a grandiose sense of entering through a portal into another world. The alternative world is hinted at by the textures and colours of the doorway with the peek of garden and greenery blurring the lines between indoors and out. The third home links the external with the internal. The rammed earth wall starts externally but then travels past and through the front door into the entrance, allowing a continuous texture when moving outside to inside.
Historically in Chinese architecture the doorway into a home will have a large frame of wood that one has to step over. The action of a large, wide step inadvertently leads a person to drop their head in respect for the home they are entering.
An entry is as integral to WOLF Architects designs as the opening chapter of a book. We avoid walking through the front door into a large living room as it allows for little privacy for the occupants. We avoid walking directly onto stairs as it leads the eye up to the more private areas of a home. We try and allow for a “catchment area” that causes the visitor to pause at the entrance before being invited further into the building. This may be for privacy reasons, to remove shoes, or simply a place to greet guests before moving onto the next chapter. A home should not simply reveal all of itself once inside, it should unfold like the story in a book.
Entrances are often overlooked and an after thought for many, with the focus falling on the “money” rooms like the kitchen and bathrooms. First impressions do count. At WOLF Architects we value that in our buildings and in our service.

Entrance via a chequered garden path and over a bridge.