Most people would rip out an orange Formica kitchen, but the artist Gillian Hyland decided to put one in when she renovated her two-bedroom 1930s flat in London. “I’m really into colour,” she says, “but the builders thought I was mad. It’s the first apartment I’ve owned – I was tired of living in white boxes.” All the internal walls were knocked down; the kitchen now forms part of an open-plan living space. “I wanted to make the kitchen pretty enough to be part of the living room,” says Hyland, 36. She found an orange cooker, from Rangemaster, to match the cabinets, and offset it all with bright teal-blue walls and black walnut counters. “I looked at a lot of mid-century kitchens online for inspiration,” she says. “Formica is brilliant: it’s hard-wearing, wipeable and comes in a million colours.” All the appliances are hidden away in the kitchen island.

The walls of Gillian Hyland’s living room are painted in Canton, by littlegreene.com

The teal walls carry through into the open-plan living area. Fishscale-patterned floor tiles in blue and white (Fired Earth’s Cabaret tiles) sweep from the kitchen into the hallway and the bathroom beyond. “I miscalculated the amount I’d need to cover three rooms, so they ended up costing me more than I’d like to recall, but they’re worth it,” says Hyland. Wood panelling, painted blue, makes the dining area feel more characterful. A concealed door hides a utility area: “I’ve always loved secret doors and did research on Pinterest to get it right.”

In the living area, vintage mid-century furniture sits alongside kitsch finds and contemporary lighting, including brass and opaline glass fittings by Michael Anastassiades. “A lot of high-street stuff has a characterful, vintage edge. My furniture needs to have soul.”

Having worked in magazines and TV as a stylist and set designer in her native Ireland before moving to London 11 years ago, Hyland is well practised in the art of conjuring dramatic sets. Her home is filled with her own artworks – large-scale, Hopper-esque photographs that have the air of classic film stills. “They are big shoots: I’ll plan them, find the locations, source the props and wardrobe, do the casting and take the pictures.”

She took the same approach to revamping the flat, designing the new layout and project-managing the six-month build herself. The result feels rather out of time, like one of Hyland’s photographs. “It’s such a personal project – giving someone else control just didn’t feel right.”

The New Creative Home, by Talib Choudhry, with photographs by Ingrid Rasmussen, is published by Thames & Hudson, £19.95.



The fishscale floor tiles continue in the bathroom. Photograph: Ingrid Rasmussen/Thames & Hudson

House rules

Pet interiors hate All-white interiors.

Design hero The architect Paul Revere Williams, who designed Frank Sinatra’s mid-century house.

What would we never see in your home? Plastic flowers or a fake plant.

What are your house rules? I don’t own a television, and have no plans to buy one.

What are you saving for? I have my eye on a velvet green sofa, which I’m very excited about.

One thing you’d change about your home I would love to have a garden: there is something calming about sitting there, away from the city chaos.

What needs fixing? The oak flooring marks very easily, so I need to sand and seal it.