Of Hearth And Home

The fireplace is already a focal point, but it can be art, too.

- Rebecca Kirkman

FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS—and until as recently as the late 1800s—the fireplace was all about function: cooking, warmth, even light. Now, in most homes, it’s more about form—a mantel that lives on as a warm and welcoming vestige of yesteryear. But it has more potential than that, says Mark Melonas.

He should know—the owner and designer at Baltimore’s Luke Works, Melonas has created several custom concrete fireplace surrounds—“surrounds” being the design and construction elements around the fireplace opening.

“People often miss an opportunity for design with fireplaces,” says Melonas.

The style and design of a fireplace— from the sleek, modern lines of a linear gas insert to the rustic statement of a mantel made from reclaimed wood—dictate the feel not just of the fireplace, but of the whole room. We found a few examples of homeowners making the most of their fireplaces, envisioning each one more as a blank canvas than just a hole in the wall.

A CUSTOM ART PIECE

William Hamilton and Paula Jackson hired James Battaglia of Sandtown Millworks to create the reclaimed wood mantel for the fireplace in their historic Bolton Hill row home. The drywall around the fireplace was bare and smoke-stained, so the couple reached out to artist and designer Amber Nelson to create a tile surround.

After visiting the home, Nelson decided a hand-glazed tile would fit the transitional feel of a modern home in a historic neighborhood. The warm brown and gold colors she chose contrast, yet also coordinate, with the room’s existing colors, while craftsman-style tiles manufactured by Michigan-based Motawi Tileworks fit with the rustic mantel and help to “marry the past and the present” in the space, she says.