Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/162531
wall of geometrical Hardie-panel cutouts that surrounds a large courtyard, planted sparsely with Mexican sycamore shade trees. A pivoting gate opens to a covered loggia that runs along one side of this courtyard and leads to the main entrance of the house. Vertical fluorescent light fixtures with pastelcolored plastic covers affixed to the loggia's columns seem purposefully lifted, in an egalitarian gesture, from the budget Dan Flavin-esque installation at the Goode Company Taquería on Kirby. In the rear of the house, a set of sliding glass doors centered on the dining-room table opens out to a cruciform-shaped plunge pool. The interiors of the house balance delicately on the narrow divide between art and kitsch. They were designed in collaboration with the talented Garrett Hunter, a young Houston interior designer rapidly making a name for himself. Hunter's predilection for mixing modern art and furniture with carefully curated antiques as well as junk-store finds (both Hunter and Landrum are close to being hoarders) recalls the late great interior designer Herbert Wells, who came to Houston in the late 1940s and shocked genteel society with similar pairings. Hunter also shares Wells' courageous, some might say slightly frightening, use of color. The ceilings of the house and undersides of the exterior soffits are painted various shades of lavender, as are the kitchen cabinets. The cabinetry in the laundry room and ground-floor powder room is painted a glossy tangerine orange. Zuzette points out a happy accident that occurs when sunlight from an adjacent window in the laundry room reflects on the brightly colored paint and fills the room with a James Turrell-like glow. The backsplash and range hood in the kitchen are clad with mirrored glass, and the counters are made of a stone with a pronounced, oversized tortoiseshell pattern of veining. Lighting is not the standard recessed cans but rather ultra-cheap, exposed porcelain sockets with big globe-shaped hanging bulbs. Discreet track lights are also deployed to light specific artworks on the walls. From their former residence, a townhouse in the Rice Military area, the Cullinans brought only the heavily carved wood furniture that came from China, Nepal, India and Mexico. The modern upholstered In the breakfast room/kitchen, circa-1970s chrome-and-glass table from Reeves Antiques. Zinc wire chairs from CB2. Large-scale painting by New York artist Emily Noel Lambert; salon-style assemblage at right highlights several Latin artists. Antique Ming table from Balinskas Architectural Imports. Kitchen cabinets lacquered in Pratt & Lambert Moor. Mirrored-glass backsplash and vent range. Countertops are a Brazilian stone called Blue Turtle. Open shelves showcase Zuzette's collection of rustic porcelain. Floor is concrete sealed in its natural color. A dividing wall delineates the entrance gallery from the living room. Large-scale 17th-century Spanish painting from family collection. Vintage hook rug depicts an outer-space scene, from Carol Piper Rugs. The master bath is sheathed in white-glass walls with Turkish marble flooring. The 1960s ceiling installation, originally installed at Neiman Marcus in Dallas, is by Bjørn Wiinblad. Vintage North African rug. SEPTEMBER | PAGE 68 | 2013