Cosmopolitan Character

Joel Kelly design infuses a master bathroom with moody elegance in this 2019 Bath of the Year award winner

Written by Lori Johnston Photography by Emily Followill

July 2019

Marble deserves attention and delights your eyes in the bathroom of this new Piedmont Heights home. A focal wall with striking stone in charcoal, gray, black and white hides an inset tub, continuing uninterrupted to the shower. “We were able to use that to create a lot of visual interest,” says designer Joel Kelly. The glass shower wall becomes the only clue that one might bathe in the room.

The homeowners, who moved to Atlanta from Chicago, desired an urban feel that would be more congruous with the rest of the house, which has darker interiors. Sculpture and art, much of which was passed down from family to the homeowners, enhances the room’s artistic edge.

The Walker Zanger marble is continued on the countertops, where a pair of inset walnut vanities by Block & Chisel act more like elegant consoles thanks to their rich, layered appeal. “You’re going to continue to see bathrooms being designed as if they are rooms, like any other room,” says Kelly, owner of Joel Kelly Design and co-owner of Wyeth Ray Interiors. In lieu of a window treatment, shutters were added above the tub to blend into the stone.

Kelly balances the marble with a horsehair Phillip Jeffries wallcovering that offers warmth, texture and sound absorption for the homeowners, who are physicians with varying sleep schedules. The long linear lines in the Circa Lighting sconces complement the horizontal design of the wallcovering, while hide rugs on the travertine floors and a sculptural root stool by Chista enhance the masculinity aesthetic.

“Each client has their own story to write when it comes to what their home is supposed to be or look like,” Kelly says. “Our job is to make that more interesting, more fulfilled.”

INTERIOR ARCHITECT Joel Kelly Design, (404) 221-0422; joelkelly.com INTERIOR DESIGN Wyeth Ray Interiors, (404) 591-2324; wyethray.com ARCHITECT Castro Design Studio, (404) 514-7247; castrodesignstudio.com MARBLE, FLOORING AND COUNTERTOPS Walker Zanger WALLCOVERING Phillip Jeffries VANITIES Block & Chisel PLUMBING FIXTURES AND BATH ACCESSORIES Waterworks SHOWER GLASS Newell Precision Glass CHAIR Formations through Jerry Pair MIRRORS Soho Myriad SCONCES Circa Lighting STOOL Chista