est magazine is a global design resource curating the best in architecture, design, interiors and products. Uniting the creative talents of architects, designers, photographers, stylists, writers and tastemakers, est inspires exceptional living.
No matter where we are, we crave a fundamental connection to nature. This issue explores how architecture and design foster this relationship across diverse locations and scales. Speaking with architect Frederic Hooft from his modernist Belgian villa, it’s clear how much his garden shapes his daily life—particularly the Gleditsia Sunburst Triacanthos tree he looks out to. “Everybody said I was crazy spending so much on a tree, but I look at it daily.” Flack Studio welcomes us to the Victorian countryside, where the architecture and design studio has created a refuge “that’s all about the landscape,” while Melbourne architects ADDARC cultivate a sense of seclusion in an inner-city home through a distinct rammed earth form. In Legnano, Italy, outdoor space designer Derek Castiglioni reflects on a family legacy of garden…
Senne Van der Ven and Eefje De Coninck Photographers Senne Van der Ven and Eefje De Coninck are partners in life and work, based in Antwerp, Belgium. Choosing to blend analog and digital techniques, their work is characterised by a distinctive softness, creating visuals that elicit emotions and a sense of ethereal beauty. In this issue, their collaborative approach captures Belgian architect Frederic Hooft’s modernist villa as part of our Where Architects Live series. @sennevanderven @eefjedeconinck Jack Lovel Jack Lovel is an Australian architectural photographer specialising in residential projects. Through his lens, he sensitively captures the designer’s intent, providing an honest and authentic representation of their work. In addition to his commissioned projects, he is working on a project documenting modernist homes around New York. Lovel’s photography of Casa Pedregal…
LOCATION Sint-Martens-Latem, Belgium ARCHITECTURE Jean Van den Bogaerde DESIGN Frederic Hooft An architect reveals his longstanding fascination with a modernist Belgian villa and its garden, now his idyllic live-work space away from the city. Nearly two decades ago, architect Frederic Hooft was invited inside Villa Arca, a modernist home designed by Jean Van den Bogaerde in 1962, in Sint-Martens-Latem, Belgium. Born and raised in the area, Hooft had been fascinated by the home since he was a child. “I fell in love with the house,” he says. “I never really envisaged living in Sint-Martens-Latem, but I wanted to live in Villa Arca—I knew there was something special about it.” Purchasing Villa Arca was far from straightforward. Hooft first approached the owners when they were looking for a larger home and…
LOCATION Daung wurrung Country/Victoria, Australia INTERIOR DESIGN Flack Studio A layered and moody framework provides the backdrop to a vintage furniture collection, creating a bespoke refuge from city life. Set on a hill overlooking an olive grove and the Goulburn River in country Victoria, the views alone could have been enough to bring this country weekender to life. “If you tip it upside down and forget all of the loose furniture, it’s all about the landscape,” Flack Studio founder David Flack says. Built in the nineties, the single-story modernist home was spread across two simple structures, one with the master bedroom and main living spaces, and the other a guest house with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchenette and living space. “While the view was amazing, it was so clinical…
LOCATION Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, France DESIGN Hauvette & Madani Set across a four-hectare estate just a moment’s walk from the Mediterranean coastline, this sensory-driven retreat reimagines French luxury as a return to spirited authenticity. Les Bains Gardians, owned by French film director Jean-Pierre Marois, offers an escape to a place where nature, wellness, and spirit meet against the untamed backdrop of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. Located between the Mediterranean Sea and the Rhône River, the Parc Régional Naturel de Camargue is renowned for its untouched beauty, rich biodiversity and distinctive culture. Reimagined by French interior design studio Hauvette & Madani, the estate’s transformation honours its storied narrative while retaining the raw beauty of the Camargue. Since 2010, Paris-based duo Samantha Hauvette and Lucas Madani have been crafting high-end projects, using their signature design…
LOCATION Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and Bunurong Country/Melbourne, Australia ARCHITECTURE ADDARC BUILD LBA Construction Group LANDSCAPING Vogue Grange Through its distinct rammed earth form, an inner-city Melbourne home mediates a considered balance between presence and privacy, cultivating nurturing moments within. Located on a north-facing corner allotment with a design brief requiring conceptual and built-form balance, St Kilda Residence by ADDARC sits easily at the juncture of a primary road and a quiet cul-de-sac. Working closely with the homeowners who had lived in the adjoining property for more than forty years, the ADDARC design team sought to create a home that would comfortably allow for ‘ageing in place’—a space that would accommodate a peaceful lifestyle for two, punctuated often and joyfully by playful grandchildren, long Friday dinners, and a steady flow of…
