Of kith and kin

STORIES ARE THE THING. At least, to Architect Popi Laudico they are. While most homes have their own fair share of tales to tell, in Popi’s fascinating aerie in a glistening, recently developed high-rise, every single wall and crevice is rapt with narrative, character, and spirit. Items of great personal value to Popi fill the rooms; The riotous guest bathroom is filled with all sorts of gifts and tchotchkes; the dining-slash-mahjong area is covered in rare balayong floors where guest can walk barefoot.

“It’s all so precious to me,” Popi tells us, gesturing to her surroundings. “These things, they all have stories. Everything came from somewhere, from someone. I know all the artist. I know all the people who made them. It’s like I’m with my friends.” The architect’s few years of carefull collecting have paid off. “I design for a living, so three years ago when I first bought this place I already knew what I was going to with it. I already had all this stuff,” she says, “ I had been collecting over years and years and years.”

That isn’t to say that the space follows a strict plan. On the contrary, there is spontaneity to its composition, a sense of things being tossed together with tremendous ease. The entryway, adorned with art by Popi’s mother, artist Yola Johnson, leads to Popi’s personal yoga room and further unfolds into the airy living area, which is filled with an eclectic mix of tones and textures. Here, space flow seamlessly into one another, with kitchen, living, and dining areas melding into a generous, cohesive space, all of it looking out into the vast city below.

Popi’s bedroom is just as open and filled with character. While a large custom bed made of solid kamagong and narra anchors the space, one’s eye is drawn to the surrounding details, such as an antique vanity and the en suite bathroom separated just so by a cleverly placed custom-built shelving unit made of reclaimed wood. It is all these details that make up the unique narrative of Popi’s home. The space is not defined by massive designs or grand ideas. Rather, it is a quite but confident telling of its owner’s story and spirit.

What do you see outside your window right now? Soft greens and hard grays.

What’s the first thing you do when you get home? I probably shouldn’t tell you.

Describe the atmosphere in your apartment. My sense of cozy.

Your favorite things things there? Natural light and air, art and pottery from my friends, my cowhide rug.

What about your home inspires you the most? I am not inspired by my home. Rather, I am renewed by it.

You are around homes all the time. What is the most rewarding part of your work? When someone who doesn’t know design can feel how special a place is, as opposed to someone who understands it. People can say, ‘Oh, this is Italian, this is from here, that’s from there.’ I’d rather get feedback from people who are not designers, who are not even remotely inclined toward design. If they can appreciate it, then my job is done.