From the street, the modest facade of this former farmhouse offers few clues to what lies beyond. But step inside, and the house design opens out dramatically to reveal a lush, unexpectedly expansive garden – an almost cinematic reveal, given the home’s location in the very heart of Biarritz.
'We back onto huge, 82-foot-high plane trees, which create the illusion that the garden extends indefinitely,' says Patrick Gilles, who purchased the property in 2017 with his wife, Dorothée Boissier, and their two children, now 18 and 16. 'It was that element of surprise – this astonishing pocket of green right in the city – that seduced us.'
Entryway: The photograph of champion surfer Laird Hamilton, shot in Maui, nods to the surfing heritage of Biarritz. Photograph by Patrick Cariou. Eclo wall sconces in hemp rope, Christian Astuguevieille. Léto bench in brass and leather, Gilles & Boissier
Though the family is based in Paris, where Patrick and Dorothée helm their acclaimed design studio, Gilles & Boissier, they have maintained a foothold in Biarritz for a number of years.
'I first came here as a young teenager, when I got the surfing bug,' Patrick recalls. 'I kept returning throughout my student years.'
Dining Room: Steel-framed glazed doors create a strong visual link between the room and the garden. Poisson pendant light, Christian Astuguevieille. Maïa table with marble top, Gilles & Boissier. Cushions in Dorothée, Gilles & Boissier for Pierre Frey
Later, the couple were commissioned to design a project in the area, and he found himself rediscovering the city with fresh eyes. 'We both fell under its spell,' he recollects.
Their home’s spare yet lyrical interiors – a pitch-perfect balance of rusticity and refinement – give little hint to the building’s humble origins, when sheep occupied the ground floor and the upper level offered the most basic accommodations.
'The sea air had wreaked havoc on the structure so it needed everything done to it,' recalls Dorothée. 'In the end we stripped it back to the foundations and retained only the four external walls.'
Dining Area: Reclaimed timber inserts highlight the structure of the double ceiling beams, adding texture and presence. Eclo wall sconce in black hemp rope, Christian Astuguevieille. Atlas pedestal table; Circé chair and Candide ottoman, all Gilles & Boissier
The reimagined ground floor is now a generous open-plan space flowing between the living and dining areas. In the latter, the focal point is a bespoke cedar banquette running the full length of the rear wall.
'It gives us so much flexibility,' Patrick explains. 'It provides seating for the dining table, but we also have a smaller table that turns it into a work area; you can even lie down on it.'
Handcrafted from brushed cedar, the piece exemplifies the couple’s love for tactile materials. 'We adore cedar – it smells wonderful, it has so much life to it, and no two pieces are the same,' Patrick says, gesturing to the knots and grains that animate the wall behind.
Living Room: A wall of blackened cedar adds quiet drama while concealing the double doors to the kitchen. For added flexibility, the couple introduced a pair of chaise-style sofas. Embellie sofas in light cedar; Centaure linen sofa; Eurydice pedestal table and coffee table, all Gilles & Boissier. Eclo wall sconces in hemp rope, Christian Astuguevieille
In contrast, the living area is anchored by a wall of blackened cedar, which frames the passage from the entrance while discreetly concealing a pair of doors leading to the kitchen.
This interplay of light and dark timbers is a recurring motif throughout the house, lending the spaces a sense of rhythm, depth and quiet drama.
'Contrasts were very important,' agrees Dorothée. 'For example, I love that we paired rustic cedar with cushions in a glazed chintz; it’s quite a rarefied fabric to combine with the masculine timber.'
Elsewhere, the clean lines of the furniture are offset by more elaborate forms: sculptural artworks and found objects, many of them sourced at the Puces de Saint-Ouen in Paris.
Some pieces speak to longstanding creative relationships, including Christian Astuguevieille’s distinctive designs, which include tactile wall lights wrapped in natural or black rope. Others are even more personal: artworks by Patrick’s great-uncle, the artist Joseph Monin, and raku-fired ceramics by his mother, Claudia Gilles.
Kitchen: Slubbed linen curtains echo the window treatments found throughout the home, adding depth and texture to the space. Ceramic stool and 1930s wooden pedestal table, vintage finds; try Vinterior for similar
Amid the restraint, they introduce a note of poetry – 'un peu perturbateur', just a little disruptive, as Dorothée describes it.
The pared-back palette of materials helps to tell the story of the building and its setting, most strikingly in the kitchen, where cedar cabinetry is paired with a local Basque Country stone, its bush-hammered surface subtly connecting the interior to the surrounding landscape.
Bedroom: Oak flooring continues into the bedrooms, softened here by a bespoke rug, its design inspired by the nearby beach. Aurore marble table lamp, Gilles & Boissier. The Great Cloth photograph by John Stewart. Mitako stool, Christian Astuguevieille
Upstairs, in the couple’s bedroom, a custom-made rug – thick, sculptural and evocative of sand – offers a nod to the nearby beach.
The original beams, retained throughout, lend a gentle cadence to the spaces. 'We mostly painted them white, although in the dining area, we added reclaimed oak inserts to introduce a touch more texture,' Patrick explains.
Bathroom: A washstand in Carrara marble and smoked brushed oak adds a note of refined simplicity. Adeluce wall lights; Nausica mirrors in smoked brushed oak, all Gilles & Boissier. Les Ondes taps, Gilles & Boissier for THG Paris. Drawing, François Houtin. Baskets, CFOC
While the couple enjoy welcoming guests, this is, above all, a private retreat. Even with their hectic schedule (the studio recently completed The Lana Dorchester in Dubai and is currently working on several hotels, including the Mandarin Oriental in Rome) Biarritz remains a constant.
'We come as often as we can,' says Dorothée. 'We make a point of experiencing the garden in every season.'
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