Beau Rivage

The brief was to create a statement colour scheme which would stand out amongst the other beautiful Bondi buildings. The existing paintwork was in poor condition and needed a desperate upgrade. This building is adjacent to an iconic, and much photographed, turquoise art deco building, so the challenge was creating something different, yet just as spectacular.

The brief included interior and exterior colour schemes, both of which were to utilise the same colours. The building is a three storey apartment building with a decorative portico. There are two staircase entrances, one at the front and one at the rear, both of which have very different architectural features. The front staircase is an internal staircase and has a stucco finish below a chair rail, with decorative metal balustrading. The rear staircase is more basic, with simple balustrading and is open to the outside. Original milk boxes remain for the rear units which is a lovely art deco touch, together with patterned ceilings.

The committee wanted an iconic and elegant colour scheme for their building, referring to other existing Bondi buildings which had colour schemes that they liked as inspiration for this project. Due to its proximity to another well photographed and iconic turquoise building, it was decided not to include turquoise in the scheme.

Research on art deco style showed that pastel colours would be truer to its history. The committee decided on a beautiful pink and white scheme The main exterior wall colour is Resene Lumbersider low sheen waterborne in Resene Petite Orchid full strength with half strength Resene Petite Orchid as a highlight on the entrance portico decorative moulding. Resene Alabaster was used for all the exterior trim including side windows, garage doors, eaves and the front portico. For the interior, Resene Alabaster and Resene Petite Orchid Quarter were used in the front stairwell walls with Resene Petite Orchid full strength for the trim. For the rear stairwell, Resene Alabaster was used for the walls with Resene Petite Orchid for the trim including original milk boxes, balustrading, doors and architraves.

The biggest challenge was the front internal staircase. There is very little natural light and so it is extremely dark even during the day. It's now finished in a quarter strength of Resene Petite Orchid to make it lighter and more inviting, while using a darker contrast for the trim and handrails with full strength Resene Petite Orchid.

This project won the Resene Total Colour Residential Exterior Award. The judges said "this beachside location celebrates a local love of colour. With a neighbour dressed in colour, this project needed to have a colourful wardrobe of its own befitting its part in the colourful vintage duo. The colours carefully accentuate the architecture without overwhelming it. Happy, beachy and so full of sunshine."

Colour selection: Kat Everett
Winner: Resene Total Colour Residential Exterior Award
Project: Resene Total Colour Awards 2020