And Zen there were Archie and Anna Castillo
December 29, 2001 | 12:00am
As we leave 2001, design-wise let’s focus on a simple house devoid of useless clutter and enveloped in Zen-like sensibilities. May its divine simplicity remind our readers that in this decade, everyone should work at deconstructing their surroundings so life would be less complicated. If we can convince ourselves that truly less is more, then we will be simplifying our very existence.
These thoughts came to me as I set foot into the domicile of Archie and Anna Castillo, a young couple who are enjoying life to the fullest while still not blessed with children. Anna Rocha Castillo is an architect who’s fast becoming popular with young couples interested in modern design. She happily drops names of clients belonging to Manila’s who’s who list. Her husband, Archie Castillo, is a musical director of note.
From the outside, the Castillo house looks totally nondescript. But inside, there’s a rare ambience. The original house has been around for sometime. The house has seen better days, but with a little architectural magic and the softening of some hard edges in the hands of this lady architect, the house acquires a new look.
Some very powerful decorating tools Anna employed are the myriad of architectural plans and drawings her famous architect grandfather, Julio V. Rocha, left behind. Anna had them framed minimally and then handsomely grouped them on walls. The treatment is quite unique and fresh.
The choice of furniture pieces and their placement in the different areas can be classified as very unorthodox. It’s obvious that Anna follows no rules. She juxtaposes things in the same way that an abstract painter splatters paints on his canvas. Just like in the long-running Bernhardt ads, Anna likes to use objects and pieces in multiples. In Zen-like fashion, these objects come in shapes and dimensions that exude a very contemporary air.
Making the name Sakura a byword in Japanese products, Anna goes to Japan on buying trips. This explains her cultivated taste and sensibility that gravitates towards the spare and pared-down. Add to that her many trips to Bangkok where she got some items of great shape and texture, which she mixed together in her house.
On the day we photographed her, she was surprised to find that aside from her futuristic Christmas tree, I was expecting her to do a table setting. "No sweat," she sweetly uttered and in a jiffy. She came up with a very elegant and Christmasy sushi dinner setting using nothing but some candles in icycle pattern. A mini gold Christmas ball tied to a chopstick, attached to a cloth napkin, says it all.
Color is hardly present in the Castillo abode. If ever there are colors, they’re barely noticeable since they come in earth tones, which naturally blend with the wooden furniture. This approach to subtle coloration can again be attributed to Anna’s cultivated predilection for the Japanese sense of color and texture.
Architects stick to the rule of function over form and in this area, Anna Castillo is no exception. Hubby Archie often entertains guests from the local music industry. There is no such place in the house labeled as living room, what with the every-so-often rehearsals and pow-wows with people like Ogie Alcasid, Rachel Alejandro, Richard Gomez, et al. His Yamaha grand piano lords it over at the center of the main hall. It is surrounded by every imaginable piece of furniture so guests are comfortably seated during such sessions, which often last till the wee morning hours.
Two zones in any home that should be given paramount consideration are the bedroom and the bathroom. The young couple gave premium importance to these areas. Their bedroom is spacious and airy. It has a wall devoted to sound and video equipment the two listen to while enjoying the comfort of their tatami-covered bed. On the other hand, the roomy bathroom is lined with sparkling pristine white tiles.
Masterpieces of some architects most often become the nightmares of interior designers. Anna is definitely not a victim in this aspect since she is her own architect and interior designer.
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