{"id":342985,"date":"2024-11-18T13:54:54","date_gmt":"2024-11-18T18:54:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/blog-api\/?p=342985"},"modified":"2024-11-18T13:54:54","modified_gmt":"2024-11-18T18:54:54","slug":"meet-michael-k-chen-the-new-york-architect-with-an-eye-for-detail","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/meet-michael-k-chen-the-new-york-architect-with-an-eye-for-detail\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet Michael K. Chen, the New York Architect with an Eye for Detail"},"content":{"rendered":"

Material innovation, quality craftsmanship and pops of color are at the heart of interiors designed by Chen\u2019s firm MKCA, writes Alex Bozikovic<\/span><\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/i>The kitchen of MKCA\u2019s Nomad Loft in New York. Photograph: Brooke Holm<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Michael K. Chen designs in full color. The New York architect\u2019s houses and flats are splashed with grapefruit-hued plaster walls, avocado kitchens and cerulean ceilings. For Chen and his practice, Michael K. Chen Architecture (MKCA), color\u2014as well as texture and the marks of handcraft\u2014are parts of life, and therefore they belong in a home. \u201cWe are lovers of color, and we are unapologetic about it,\u201d Chen says. \u201cIn many cases, our clients know this about us, and they seek it out.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Two impulses are central to the work of MKCA: a visual sensibility that departs from less-is-more asceticism in favor of variety and heterogeneity, and a genuine engagement with the fine details of domestic life. The interdisciplinary practice specializes in homes, ranging from Manhattan interior remodels to newly built houses on rural sites.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Michael K. Chen in MKCA\u2019s Carnegie Hill project. Photograph: Max Burkhalter\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

In one recent Manhattan apartment, dubbed Nomad Loft after its neighborhood, MKCA transformed a 200-square-meter zone of old industrial space for a couple with a taste for technicolor. A curving, limewashed partition in grapefruit orange frames the entry door and a coat closet; towards the center of the building, hunter-green linoleum and a heavily marbled onyx slab bring gravity to the kitchen. In Clinton Hill, a remodel of a rundown 1895 house in Brooklyn, Chen\u2019s team drew inspiration from the vivid colors they found on its crumbling plaster. The finished product is characterized by monochromatic blocks: a terracotta pink in the living room, a pale blue stair, and a pantry in oxblood red. On the parlor floor, 2,800 tiles in 17 custom colors transition from black, white and blue to green and pink in the kitchen.<\/span><\/p>\n

Specifying custom tiles is not unusual for MKCA. \u201cWe are very focused on craft,\u201d he says. \u201cWe think hard about detail, about processes of making, and we look for novelty and innovation.\u201d This often involves collaboration with other designers. In its Carnegie Hill Apartment, MKCA engaged the sculptor Christopher Kurtz to create a four-meter-long aluminum and cherrywood dining table. A custom chandelier by Brooklyn\u2019s Ladies & Gentlemen Studio hangs from the ceiling, curving metal plates dangling like an Alexander Calder sculpture. Thanks to custom hardware by the architects, the light can swing toward the center of the room. \u201cThere\u2019s a beautiful choreography in that room,\u201d Chen says. \u201cIt\u2019s not just about the architecture. There are so many other voices and authors, all working together.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The central corridor of the Carnegie Hill apartment. Photograph: Max Burkhalter<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

In the apartment\u2019s central corridor, a steady rhythm of cerused white-oak panels marches along with classical pomp. This conceals mechanical systems and hidden doors, but is also decorative. The terrazzo floors, meanwhile, are inset with thin curving brass spacers that follow routes of travel and the swing of doors, transforming these patterns of everyday life into an evocative lattice of curving lines. Even the floor of a corridor can be a design project and a venue for beauty.<\/span><\/p>\n

Elsewhere in the home, the principal bathroom features another Chen signature: highly figured natural stone, used sparingly. The pink Byzantine onyx of the custom vanity is marbled with veins of gray granite. It is used as a feature rather than all over, a recognition that natural stone often comes with a long trail of environmental impacts. On a nearly complete new project, a country home north of New York called Watershed House, MKCA has engaged with a local family-run quarry to deliver green serpentine marble for the interior and the facade. In so doing, the firm has spurred a local business that can deliver from a few miles away rather than from further afield, avoiding the extensive carbon cost that international transportation entails.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Zones of color in the Clinton Hill project. Photograph: Alan Tansey<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Likewise, Chen\u2019s design practice is working with a local hardwood species, black locust, which is rarely used in architectural applications. It is very stable and solid, making it an ideal material to use in interiors, but since the tree is invasive in the New York region, it is being cut down and its wood sometimes discarded. Chen sees great value in transforming this cast-off local material into an ingredient of a beautiful home.<\/span><\/p>\n

Not every designer cares as deeply about the material supply chain as they do about the right choice of light fixture. Chen does, and he says this ethos is shared by his studio. \u201cWe think about the technical dimension of architecture and the intricacies of an interior simultaneously.\u201d To Chen\u2019s mind, a home should respect the priorities of the people who live there, not only in an aesthetic sense but in an ethical one. The Watershed House\u2019s clients care about the environmental impact of their home, Chen says, and this opens the door to a mindful architecture, a strong conversation, and ultimately a more meaningful place. \u201cIf they\u2019re building a home, they want that home to reflect their values,\u201d Chen says. \u201cAnd that is something that we care deeply about as well.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Check out <\/span><\/i>luxury homes on offer in New York<\/span><\/i><\/a>. The full version of this piece was published in the Fall 2024 issue of Reside magazine<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Material innovation, quality craftsmanship and pops of color are at the heart of interiors designed by Chen\u2019s firm MKCA, writes Alex Bozikovic The kitchen of MKCA\u2019s Nomad Loft in New York. Photograph: Brooke Holm Michael K. Chen designs in full color. The New York architect\u2019s houses and flats are splashed with grapefruit-hued plaster walls, avocado […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64295786,"featured_media":342986,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1393],"tags":[1472],"class_list":["post-342985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-art-and-culture","tag-new-york"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pf4gbL-1re1","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":387,"url":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/significant-sales-2024-highlights\/","url_meta":{"origin":342985,"position":0},"title":"Significant Sales: 2024 Highlights","author":"Procurement Admin","date":"January 6, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"From a US$74.25M sale in Palm Beach Florida, to a \u00a315.5M sale in London, England, here are ten of the top sales represented by the Sotheby\u2019s International Realty global network in 2024. Palm Beach, Florida Todd Peter, Frances Peter | Sotheby's International Realty \u2013 Palm Beach Brokerage, US$74.25M View Properties\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Market Insights"","block_context":{"text":"Market Insights","link":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/category\/market-insights\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Bahamas1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Bahamas1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Bahamas1.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Bahamas1.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Bahamas1.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Bahamas1.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":433,"url":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/how-architect-suchi-reddy-creates-happy-homes\/","url_meta":{"origin":342985,"position":1},"title":"How Architect Suchi Reddy Creates Happy Homes","author":"Procurement Admin","date":"March 24, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Her designs are based on feelings and science, with a mission to foster well-being, says Elizabeth Fazzare Modernist lines and textured furnishings in a Greenwich Village home in New York. Photograph: William Jess Laird Suchi Reddy is a multi-hyphenate in every sense. In the past year, the architect, designer, artist\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Home and Design"","block_context":{"text":"Home and Design","link":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/category\/home-and-design\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Header-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Header-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Header-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Header-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Header-1.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Header-1.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":426,"url":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/designing-a-climate-resilient-home\/","url_meta":{"origin":342985,"position":2},"title":"Designing a Climate-Resilient Home","author":"Procurement Admin","date":"March 13, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Today\u2019s luxury properties can have low environmental impact without sacrificing elevated aesthetics, says Elizabeth Fazzare Lisbon, Portugal | Portugal Sotheby\u2019s International Realty To weather the future\u2019s proverbial storm, it\u2019s clear that construction requires a pivot to climate-resilient design: in short, architecture and landscaping that anticipate the effects of climate change\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Home and Design"","block_context":{"text":"Home and Design","link":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/category\/home-and-design\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/header-3.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/header-3.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/header-3.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/header-3.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/header-3.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/header-3.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":432,"url":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/luxury-real-estate-headlines-third-week-in-march-2025\/","url_meta":{"origin":342985,"position":3},"title":"Luxury Real Estate Headlines, Third Week in March, 2025","author":"Procurement Admin","date":"March 21, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Homes in the News Napa, California | Sotheby's International Realty \u2013 St. Helena Brokerage House of the Week: A Rammed Earth Home in California Wine Country \u2013 The Wall Street Journal This Napa Valley home is built using sustainable rammed earth construction. A stunning rammed earth home in Napa Valley,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Brand News"","block_context":{"text":"Brand News","link":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/category\/brand-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/napa-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/napa-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/napa-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/napa-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/napa-1.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/napa-1.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":341660,"url":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/new-and-notable-sales-over-10-million-may-2024\/","url_meta":{"origin":342985,"position":4},"title":"New and Notable Sales over $10 Million: May 2024","author":"SIR Admin","date":"May 13, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"From a one-of-a-kind estate in Herceg Novi, Montenegro, to a waterfront tour-de-force in Gardone Riviera, Italy, these are this month\u2019s five featured notable properties for sale over US$10 Million. Gardone Riviera, Italy Italy Sotheby's International Realty Situated on a hilltop with a captivating vista of Lake Garda and a stone's\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Market Insights"","block_context":{"text":"Market Insights","link":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/category\/market-insights\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/static-sir-corp-blog-production.gtsstatic.net\/blog-api\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/montenegro2-1024x683.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/static-sir-corp-blog-production.gtsstatic.net\/blog-api\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/montenegro2-1024x683.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/static-sir-corp-blog-production.gtsstatic.net\/blog-api\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/montenegro2-1024x683.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":398,"url":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/the-rise-of-home-libraries-in-a-screen-saturated-era\/","url_meta":{"origin":342985,"position":5},"title":"The Rise of Home Libraries in a Screen-Saturated Era","author":"Procurement Admin","date":"January 23, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Having a space for books is the ultimate stamp of personality that enriches your living environment, writes Riya Patel A relaxing library retreat in a London home designed by Pirajean Lees. Photo: Michael Sinclair No matter how many bookshelves a home may have, there\u2019s something special about a dedicated library.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Home and Design"","block_context":{"text":"Home and Design","link":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/category\/home-and-design\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/header-5.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/header-5.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/header-5.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/header-5.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/header-5.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/header-5.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342985","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64295786"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=342985"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342985\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=342985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=342985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=342985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}