When Tanya Grigoroglou founded RAW Editions, a London-based gallery that focuses on post-war and contemporary prints, she imagined sharing her collection in a warm, intimate environment. “As a dealer, I always envisioned that I was going to take this out of the white gallery walls and the very intimidating experience of buying art,” she says. “I wanted something more personable and more transparent.”
Tanya realized her dream when she and her husband, Rupert Worrall, who is now also her business partner, purchased a Victorian terraced house that could function as both a family home and a by-appointment showroom. They worked with another creative couple, Amalia Skoufoglou and Jody O’Sullivan of O’Sullivan Skoufoglou Architects, to reimagine the old home for raising children and displaying artwork simultaneously. The result is equal parts color and self-control: “There is a restraint, but there are also a lot of bold elements,” says Amalia.
Let’s take a tour.
Photography by Ståle Eriksen, except where noted.
Above: Tanya and Rupert frequently host clients in the ground-level living room, where a striking custom fireplace is made of rust-colored recycled terrazzo from Granby Workshop. “I really wanted to use them because they are an artist collective in Liverpool,” Tanya says. “They are kind of revolutionary, bringing together art and architecture, and I wanted my entertaining space to be a nod to that.”
Above: The other side of the room, with its built-in Douglas fir desk, serves as the couple’s office. Wall-to-wall burgundy shutters allow them to block out the busy street or let in the natural light.
Above: The shutters, open. “That window is probably the most public aperture of the house,” Amalia says. “But since it’s Tanya and Rupert’s headquarters, we didn’t want to have something domestic like a curtain or a blind.”
Above: Whitewashed oak floors provide a gallery feel, while “biscuity pink” walls support the framed prints. “I knew it would be a background that doesn’t overpower the art,” Tanya says of the hue, which matches RAW’s branding. “It brings everything together.” Plus, the painted dado rail honors the age of the home. Photograph by Tanya Grigoroglou.
Above: Downstairs, the kitchen floors combine speckled granite and sage green concrete tiles. The blue-and-red dining table and swagged pendant are both by Muller Van Severen. Series 7 Chairs by Arne Jacobsen offer ergonomic, mid-century seating.
Above: In the kitchen, birch plywood cabinetry is stained with linseed oil so that the grain is visible beneath the pale blue, spring green, and ivory coats. The colorful cupboards are paired with graphic Calacatta Rosso marble countertops. “One slab was all we could afford,” says Amalia. “So instead of having a seamless moment, we had to do a 90-degree turn at one of the joints. That’s why it looks like it’s two pieces. But we think in the overall bricolage of materials, it goes.” Photograph by Tanya Grigoroglou.
Above: A tomato red Vola tap pops against the stone.
Above: The triangular oriel window was inspired by the house’s former butterfly roof. “It was essentially an inverted V,” says Amalia. “It’s a feature in Victorian London that is being slowly eradicated because people want more space, but we wanted to keep that as a shape in memory.” Photograph by Tanya Grigoroglou.
Above: The bedrooms are situated on the first and second levels. “Even though they’re the most private, they are probably the most playful in terms of color,” Amalia says, adding that clients do come up every so often.
Above: Jody suggested orienting the primary bedroom towards the street—and Tanya jumped at the opportunity. “Although it’s fantastic to have a garden view, the reality of our house is that the morning light comes from the street,” she says. “It was very hard to resist waking up to the sun.”
Above: The en suite is tiled in blush and terracotta squares from TopCer, with grout of the opposite color between them. A Kast concrete basin sink is elevated on a metal pedestal.
Above: A rotating selection of artwork rests on wooden shelves by Mentsen. “You don’t have to penetrate the walls every time,” says Amalia. Photograph by Tanya Grigoroglou.
Above: The twins’ room leans into tropical vibes. Photograph by Tanya Grigoroglou.
Above: Outside, the patio is composed of the same type of granite as the kitchen floors, but with a textured finish suited for the outdoors. Concrete stairs make the steep garden accessible for Tanya, Rupert, and their daughters. “I wanted it to be safe and fun for the girls without excavating too much for budget reasons,” she says. “That stepping up was a brilliant solution.” Photograph by Tanya Grigoroglou.
Above: Landscape architecture practice GRDN planted climate-resilient flora that peaks late in the season, so the family can enjoy the yard when they return from summers spent in Tanya’s native Greece. “We’re finding fun ways for the girls to engage with the garden,” she says. “There are boulders that they climb onto and jump from one to the next. There’s a little sandpit and a patch for them to grow their own vegetables.”
