28 DIGS.NET | 3.25.2022
P R O F I L E | V E N I C E H O U S E
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of King's favorite pieces — by Silas Seandel seems to be a crab
crawling out of the water. "The downstairs powder and wine
rooms find you somehow submerged in underwater caves. I
wanted the upstairs [to give the impression] you are retreating
up the hills to treehouses and birds' nests, or a softly carpeted
perch in the clouds."
For King, the beachfront aesthetic of this coastal retreat is
inherent in the DNA of the reimagined relationships between the
structures and the landscaping that evolved over the years of
work on the project.
"The house is located in the best residential area of Venice with
easy walking distance to Abbot Kinney and the beach," notes
agent Jennifer Hughes from Bulldog Realtors. "Sometimes the
stars align and you actually can have it all!"
Fabricated by design firm Sicis in Ravenna, Italy, before being
shipped to Venice and installed, the 30-foot-long custom blue-tile
mosaic mural of a breaking wave over the pool reflects different
qualities of light depending on the time of day or weather.
"Everything flowed from that inspiration," confesses King. "The
color palette and textures for the foundational exterior landscap-
ing are primarily sand and tropical woods and water. Sometimes
stone floors can be hard and cold, but this limestone has a
softness to it [similar to] wet sand under your feet, cooling in
the summer."
The main house comprises an open floor plan on the ground
floor with a gourmet kitchen — adorned with black Caesarstone
countertops, Henrybuilt walnut cabinetry, Bosch appliances, a
bar-style island and a butler's pantry — that doubles as a social
space, as well as multiple entertaining areas. Located upstairs,
the primary suite features French doors that open up to a private
balcony. The guest house consists of a ground-floor pool house
with a spacious living room plus an en suite studio with an outdoor
space on the upper level.
Agent Suzanne Costello from Bulldog Realtors describes the
property, 805 Marco, as "a rare combination of everything."
King took great care of the decor with the rugs downstairs that
look like tide pools and sandcastles while the light fixtures
remind him of shells, sea rocks and jellyfish. "The curvature
and scalloping of some of the soft furniture feels aquatic," he
says. For example, the midcentury brutalist coffee table — one
