Tom Givone's architectural designs prioritize the integration of modern and historical elements, exemplified in his projects. A minimalist guest bathroom showcases an 18th-century Italian marble sink, treated as a work of art, alongside a vintage walnut-trimmed bathtub modernized with a stainless steel casing.
In Pennsylvania, Givone worked on a project where the client had grown up across the street. He used this connection to the old home as inspiration for a modern addition. This addition features five curving columns made from a high-tech, anodized-aluminum siding, reflecting a deliberate nod to both the original home and the client's childhood memories.
Givone emphasizes that his innovation isn't for innovation's sake; rather, his designs stem from the specific characteristics of each home and its occupants. He strives to create harmonious blends, respecting existing elements while adding a contemporary twist. The Twist Farmhouse project perfectly illustrates this philosophy, with the modern addition offering stunning views of the client's childhood home. The incorporation of materials and forms, such as the clapboard siding and curving columns, shows a respectful interpretation of existing features in a modern context.
The juxtaposition of modernity and history carries into the minimalist guest bathroom, which features an 18th-century Italian marble sink. “The sink is beautiful in its own right, so I treated it like an object in a gallery and presented it as a work of art, even though it’s something that’s used all the time,” he says. Another vintage piece is the walnut-trimmed bathtub his uncle salvaged from a New York City tenement. Givone designed a piece of stainless steel to wrap around it, giving the exterior of the tub a modern finish.
Another project of Givone’s merges old and new in the exterior. “The unique thing here was that the owner grew up across the street. I started to play with the concept of a gravitational pull toward the old place,” Givone says of a Pennsylvania project called Twist Farmhouse. He did some rudimentary modeling, and architects helped the designer figure out the specifics for his daring plan to create a modern addition to the home.
His whimsical extension to the farmhouse is anchored by five curving columns fabricated by a Chicago company that builds roller coasters and clad in anodized-aluminum siding. “I researched it before deciding on that high-tech material—it’s beautiful and it can take the bent shape,” Givone says. The lines of the siding emphasize the sinuous shape of the building and complement the original home’s clapboard siding. “The old exterior siding was lovely, so I wanted to take that element and interpret it in a modern way,” he says.
“The old exterior siding was lovely, so I wanted to take that element and interpret it in a modern way.” —Tom Givone
The end result? The owner can see her childhood home from the upstairs windows of the twisted addition—a gratifying concept for Givone. While his projects often contain unexpected juxtapositions and novel elements, the designer never innovates just for innovation’s sake, he says. His imaginings always spring from a single source—the uniqueness of the home and its inhabitants.
See more of Tom Givone’s work here.
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