San Francisco Modern Victorian
Our goal with this 120-year-old San Francisco Victorian was to elevate the outdated interior and reintroduce the charming details of the original era—albeit with a modern lens. Traditional elements like wall paneling, dentil crown molding, and custom oak cabinetry nod to the home’s Victorian roots, while surrealist art, avant-garde collectibles, and stacks of design books provide an unexpected juxtaposition. In addition to remodeling the interior and exterior, Spearman Spaces reclaimed 600 square feet of garage space to add a mudroom, laundry room, and a home gym outfitted with an elliptical, Tonal, and free weights.
DESIGN ELEMENTS
This project explores the theory of contextual contrast — a design approach rooted in historic preservation but commonly seen in contemporary gallery curation and adaptive reuse architecture. Rather than recreating a period-perfect Victorian interior, we focused on reestablishing the architectural language of late 19th-century San Francisco homes — detailed millwork, dentil crown molding, and paneled wall systems — and then intentionally layered in 20th- and 21st-century visual culture. This tension between historic structure and modern expression is a throughline seen across design history, from postmodern reactions to strict historicism to contemporary European interiors that pair heritage architecture with surrealist or avant-garde art. To achieve a similar effect, focus on combining traditional architectural envelopes with intellectually driven styling: art with conceptual weight, sculptural objects with unconventional scale, and collected design books or cultural artifacts that signal curiosity and authorship rather than decoration. The goal is not replication of a Victorian interior, but rather a living space that acknowledges architectural history while participating in the present cultural moment.
