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Here at Wattyl, we live and dream colour. The most emotional of the design elements, colour has the power to lift our moods and express our personalities. It can fill us with energy or bring tranquillity. Colour has so many possibilities but to most it seems like a complete mystery, and well frankly, we feel that’s a missed opportunity.
We want everyone to dream in colour so we thought we’d ask some industry experts to provide insights and expertise and share their colour dreams.
Scott Weston is founder of Scott Weston Architecture Design, an innovative Sydney-based design practice recognised for its directional award-winning architectural, interior & graphic design projects.
Scott’s ability to borrow from the past and re-invent in a modern context is his forte, so is a theatrical flair for rich and dramatic architectural concepts based on a rigorous set of design rules.
Do you have a go to colour palette?
I cannot give away all my trade secrets however, there is an antique Japanese pattern and colour concertina book that I purchased in Hong Kong many years ago. It has original embossed swatches in the most beautiful and inspirational colours and patterns that I use to stimulate my imagination.
Do you follow trends?
Never have, never will. Following trends, it’s not part of our design aesthetic. We tend to create a set of design principles for each project and during the evolution of the design the materials and finishes start to appear as a palette. A lot of our design solutions are custom tailored to our Client and it’s about researching and finding the appropriate finishes that are tailored to that unique project, it’s not about appropriating a certain style or trend
What is your favourite colour and why?
I have custom designed all the paint colours in my home ‘Villa Carmelina’, a grand Victorian Italianate terrace in the heart of bustling Sydney. My favourite is ‘Studio Mauve’, a grey lilac wall colour that greets you upon arrival in the hallway, continuing up the staircase and completely enveloping you as you reach the first-floor landing, which is crowned by a heavenly glass skylight. It is a subtle grey lilac that’s not sugary-sweet and looks sophisticated in both direct and indirect natural light, the perfect backdrop to display our artwork collection.
What is your most unusual/interesting experience that provided you with colour inspiration?
Growing up in Papua New Guinea during my formative years had a significant impact on how I embrace not just colour but pattern, texture and decoration in my professional life. Growing up in Port Moresby at a local school rather than in the bubble of an expat community, I was surrounded by the indigenous communities where tribes used paint, feathers and bones as body adornment. Functional items were crafted by hand and decoration was integral to their way of life. These qualities were intrinsic in shaping how I still believe everyone should live, rather than in a house with white walls.
Are you brave with colour?
I’m not brave with colour. I believe I have a deep connection with using colour as an architectural device, to create an interior aesthetic. I see colour as part of the DNA of design that is integral to the tailored architectural solution, I create for each and every Client.
How do you ‘sell‘ colour to your clients?
It’s not a hard sell, especially when it is introduced as part of the journey of discovery in realising a Client’s dream. Colour is woven into all our projects and during the initial design stages it can appear immediately as an obvious element. But there are other times when colour is slowly revealed depending on the evolution of the project. Colour is determined by the direction we head with the Client, external factors on project site, location, opportunities and solutions we feel are specific to them and what we would like to explore.
Which is your favourite project (that includes colour) and why?
When it came to creating my own home, ‘Villa Carmelina’, I was given the ultimate canvas to express that philosophy of customising colour schemes, materials and finishes that tell a story of my life as a collector. My home is the culmination of all that I have learned in the past quarter of a century of professional practice.
