Designer Audrey Sterk dreams up an elegant getaway for a Nantucket home on former farmlands.

The interior inspiration is comfortable and modern with a nod to the rustic roots of the land.

Back in the 1850s, more than 100 farms dotted the island of Nantucket. These days, less than 20 farms remain, but the island’s agricultural history remains an important part of its heritage.

Each room showcases a careful, cohesive selection of modern art.

So, when designer Audrey Sterk was tasked with creating a breezy escape from a home situated on what were once pastures and farmland, she took cues from the historical landscape—and the personal history of the owners.

The idea was to take the homeowner’s existing home and turn it into an elegant place to recharge. The “inspiration was a comfortable, modern aesthetic with a nod to the rustic roots of the land,” Sterk says.

The palette of oak, charcoal, blues and creams provides a fluid transition between each room, as seen in the living room and dining room.

To achieve that, Sterk selected a palette of oak, charcoal, blues and creams; she says a scaled-back approach to the colorways is meant to provide a fluid transition between each room. This is evident in the main living area, where armchairs, benches and sofas range in color from dusty blue to cream.

The pendant light, designed by Bertjan Pot for Moooi, is a marker of the classic modern design throughout the home.

Above them, a black, netlike pendant light, designed by Bertjan Pot for Moooi, is a marker of the classic modern design throughout the home. “When it’s illuminated at night, the pattern is pretty special,” Sterk says of the stringy shadows the lamp casts throughout the room.Decor in the kitchen is from Pottery Barn, West Elm and Design Within Reach.

A smattering of impactful design decisions punch up the home’s breeziness, like the charcoal-colored Moroccan zellige tiles in the powder room. There, Sterk explains she leaned into the drama of the slightly imperfect tiles to make the space feel cozy and moody.The kitchen features custom cabinets from Empire Builders

A window beside the sink ups the ante, as sunlight streams in and grazes the texture of the tiles. “Th e surface ever so slightly undulates,” Sterk says. “And it casts this pretty dance of light across it.”

Small ceramic sculptures on the wall add whimsy and texture.

Smaller touches make a big impact too. Along the home’s main staircase, tiny ceramic sculptures add whimsical detail to an otherwise blank wall. Th e thinking was to not only give the wall texture, but to give a cadence to the journey up the stairs.

Each room has artwork such as oil paintings, photography and other mediums.

Sterk says she rejected the idea of having too much imagery in the open stairwell, as well as the rigidity that a series of rectangular picture frames would lend to the space. Instead, the sculptures are laid out in a more organic fl ow, much like the grasses surrounding the property.

Sunlight streams in the breezy bathroom.

What unites each room is a careful, cohesive selection of modern art, from the large-scale piece by Joanna Kane in the entryway to the more ethereal painting by Julija Mostykanova in the sitting room.

Charcoal-colored Moroccan zellige tiles in the powder room make the space feel cozy and moody.

The art became a way to merge the home’s rustic farmhouse elements with its more classic, modern design: “We really tried to capture the homeowners’ personalities,” Sterk explains.

Sterk took cues from Nantucket’s historical landscape when designing the home.

Oil paintings, photography, glasswork and other mediums are found in each room, much of it sourced from local artists and The Gallery at Four India Street in downtown Nantucket. Says Sterk, “We really try to interpret them—who they are, what their loves are—in the final expression of the interior.”

Much of the art was sourced from local artists and The Gallery at Four India Street in downtown Nantucket.

DESIGN DETAILS

TYPE:
Single-family home

LOCATION:
Nantucket

INTERIOR DESIGN:
Audrey Sterk Design
audreysterk.com

ARCHITECT
Emertius
emeritusltd.com

BUILDER
Empire Builders
@empire_builders_inc

STYLIST
Frances Bailey
francesbailey.com

RESOURCES

DESIGN WITHIN REACH
Lighting; dressers; kitchenware; sofas, couches and sectionals; accent tables
dwr.com

NANTUCKET HOUSEFITTERS
Curtains and blinds
housefitters.com

PALECEK
Sofas, couches and sectionals; accent tables
palecek.com

RESTORATION HARDWARE
Beds and dressers; sofas, couches and sectionals; accent tables
rh.com