DESIGN:

Kitchen Drama

Words Micha van Dinther and Magnus Wittbjer

While most people’s domestic dreams revolve around walk-in closets or heated double garages with a grease pit, we’ve always drooled over the prospect of owning our very own larder. There is something quite enticing about the thought of having an extra room completely stuffed with provisions, yet this medieval invention is often pushed down the list of priorities in favour of other amenities.

            Along with several other, sometimes overlooked, traditional culinary spaces, practices and cooking techniques, the larder is included in the collaborative kitchen design of Swedish appliance manufacturer Electrolux Grand Cuisine and German kitchen brand Poggenpohl.

Named The Fourth Wall – a reference to the invisible boundary between the audience and the stage in a theatre – the concept centres around the idea of breaking down the barrier between the host and their guests in a space that merges cooking, entertaining and socialising. Aside from the larder, the kitchen also includes a butler’s pantry, a wine store, a pastry counter, a preparation bench and a dining area, all fully equipped with the latest gadgets and gizmos often found in professional kitchens.

Creative types at Electrolux predict blast chillers, vacuum sealers, combination ovens (merging the functionality of a convection oven and a steam cooker) and induction zones will all be part of everyone’s kitchen in five to ten years.

            Design-wise, The Fourth Wall also breaks some major barriers with its moody, dim and utterly sultry look – a far cry from the ubiquitous all-white Scandinavian kitchen trend.

And the best part of all? The intelligent glass walls that shift from transparency to opaque at the touch of a button. You will never have to see those dirty dishes again.