Sunday, July 18, 2010

By BARBARA BOWERS Special to The Citizen PHOTOS BY ROB O'NEAL The Citizen

When Robin Robinson bought her condominium at 1800 Atlantic in 2002, she immediately began documenting the fine art in the lobbies, halls and on the exterior of the buildings.

"The building I live in was developed by Larry Marks and built in 1982," said Robinson of the A building, which is the west wing of the U-shaped structure that faces Atlantic Avenue. "I photographed and labeled all of the art, which includes some early Roberta Marks' pieces and Luciano Franchi de Alfaro's possible interpretation of Fantasy Fest on the exterior faÃßade.

"His 'Shattered Light' painting is art specifically designed for this lobby," she said, "and the concrete walls were hand-raked by someone to create an irregular surface texture."

Robinson said an unexpected benefit to such a rough surface is that no one touches it, therefore, it stays clean. The expansive art collection, though, was another benefit to homeowners: It's worth tens of thousands of dollars, adding value to a property Robinson already thought was worth the investment before she even did the research in art history.

After an elevator ride to the top floor, the walk to her unit includes a long hallway, where the Atlantic Ocean's blue-on-blue water is framed by a huge window wall.

The blues at the end of this "hallway to heaven" gives way to Robinson's all-white interior. White tile floors throughout the two-bedroom/two-bathroom condo, white walls and white leather sofas in the living room are reflected in the wealth of mirrors.

"The end wall was mirrored when I bought here, but my late partner, Steve Breslau, and I extended the mirror onto the adjoining wall so we could see the ocean from the kitchen," said Robinson, a former syndicated newspaper columnist and Chicago drama teacher. "You can probably tell I like the interior design effect of mirrors reflecting everywhere."

There is the mirror behind the built-in bar shelves, where Robinson keeps a conch shell she recently learned to blow.

A wall mirror that partitions the kitchen from the dining room reflects a long, glasstop table, which actually has glass end-leaves that pull up and out to expand its seating capacity. The dining-room chairs that accompany it are unusual for two reasons -- they are black, but more importantly, they are bungee chair reproductions of a 1930s beaux arts design.

Since shifting from antiques to contemporary interior design in the 1960s, Robinson offers her dinner guests a unique, spring-in-your-seats entertainment.

The "check-yourself-out-before-you-go-out" mirror is on the entry hall wall, and four sliding-mirror doors adorn closets at the entry to the master suite.

In this household, a guest must be very cautious about possibly walking into walls. But the trade-off is a bright interior that feels far more spacious than its 1,100 square feet.

Of course, the three sets of glass sliding doors that open to the balcony enhance the airiness.

The balcony's roughly 550 square feet run the length of the condo, with an entry each from the living room, guest room and master suite. Almost as important as the ocean view is a new hammock that hangs just outside the master bedroom's doors to the balcony, and creates a "summer bedroom."

"I recently went to the Amazon with Pat Rogers and some of the [Key West] Garden Club members," said Robinson, who writes the club's weekly gardening article for The Citizen. "I slept in a hammock on the top deck of the boat and just had to have one for my place, where the easterly winds make a summer even like this one comfortable."

Robinson said before she bought her condo in building A, in 2001 she rented in 1800 Atlantic's parallel B building. From that experience, she knew she wanted a unit away from Bertha Street's B building balconies that were too hot in the summer.

The zigzag of the balconies in the big, U-shaped complex offers each unit privacy, plus adds architectural interest to the overall design.

Indoors, Robinson angles a sofa in her living room to reinforce the zigs and zags of the balcony, and an irregular angle of the living room wall.

Across from this wall, newly installed spotlights focus on a hip roof constructed over the wall between her living room and guest room/office. Indeed, each of the condominiums on the top floor boasts its own hip roof, and "I write under this pyramid roof vortex of energy," she said. "This is important to me, and it was expensive to build."

Robinson hasn't labeled her own private art collection yet, but the value added is noticeable in a Bev Horlick sculpture on the balcony, or in the dining room's focal point -- "Miles Smiles" -- a photograph taken by Breslau, who was a jazz photographer.

But the unexpected piece in the living room is Robinson's own contribution.

"It's probably the rim of an outdoor table I found on the beach after Hurricane Wilma," she said.

The circle owns that long wall, contrasts nicely with the zigzags, and reflects yet another dimension of this writer and drama coach.

Barbara Bowers is a writer and member of the Key West Historic Architectural Review Commission. To suggest a home feature, send an e-mail to Barbara@bbowers.com. Homes listed for sale will not be considered.