A Love of Nature Inspires This Bathroom Redesign

A hand-painted mural captures attention, balanced by simple, clean lines

Connor wanted the mural to be an artsy representation of magnolias. “We had the flowers be out of scale and rather large,” she says. The mural is sealed to protect it against water damage and is an eye-catching backdrop for the stone composite bathtub. “It is deep and long — perfect for a good soak,” Connor says.

Ancient lore tells us that magnolias symbolize ethereal purity. No wonder they feel particularly appropriate in the design of a bathroom — in this case, in the 1920s Princeton home of Barak and Alexandra Bar-Cohen.

The magnolia motif commands attention in a mural hand-painted on silverleaf by artist Silvère Boureau, born in France and now living in Pennsylvania. “He was so calm amidst the buzz of construction,” says designer Shannon Connor, who the Bar-Cohens chose to update their home. “He put on his radio — to a French music station — and took off his shoes. It was very meditative.”

Connor, principal of Princeton-based Shannon Connor Interiors, says the Bar-Cohens wanted everything in the room to be meaningful. For starters, Alexandra Bar-Cohen admits she is all about water. “If there’s a lake, I need to be in it. And I love to take baths ­— I feel it’s how we stay balanced. The bathroom is almost like a sacred space to me.”

When Connor and Bar-Cohen were considering bathtubs, the latter noticed a mural in one photo, and that sparked her imagination. Initially, she thought about a mural depicting the birch trees surrounding the home where she spent her childhood summers — and where the family still vacations — on Lake George in the Adirondacks. That didn’t translate well into a mural so she refocused on the blossoms of a magnolia tree outside her kids’ school. “They bloom and then the blossoms are quickly gone,” she says. “The mural captures that ethereal moment when they’re in bloom.”

The homeowners asked the designer to create a peaceful, serene place to escape while bathing. Rather than a lot of bold colors like other rooms in the home, designer Shannon Connor created interest with mixed metallics and textures.

More crucial to the mural is the moon. At Lake George, the moon casts a rippling reflection on the water. “My mother called that the fairy path,” she says. “The artist captured the essence of the fairy path by blurring the moon for a reflective quality. The mural helps me appreciate those memories.”

Connor kept the rest of the design clean lined but not sterile. “We have a luxe gold finish on the faucets and hardware, and the mural is on silverleaf.” The floor is glass mosaic tile with dark grout. “I wanted a pattern but not a direction, so circles worked well.” Golden birds perch on the vanity mirrors.

Connor recessed towel warmers and shelves so they don’t intrude into the space and added skylights framed in the same wood as the custom vanity: ash with a black cerused finish, brushed brass trim detail and a Carrera Macchia Vecchia marble top. Perpendicular to the vanity, built-in medicine cabinets hide behind doors tiled to match the walls for a streamlined effect.

Bar-Cohen says her home now has many elements that make her happy, “but the bathroom is definitely my favorite.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: This story was published in the August/September 2024 issue of Design NJ under the headline “Bath in Bloom.”
For another bathroom with a floral theme, see “Design in Bloom.”