After living in the house for several years, the couple decided it was time to make some major improvements. Fortunately, they had an expert in the family: Charbonneau’s Uncle Daryl is Minneapolis architect Daryl Hansen (www.architectur-rugs.com).
Charbonneau, a muralist and instructor at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, had collaborated with his uncle on art projects in the past and had commissioned one of Hansen’s distinctive custom rugs, in pastel hues inspired by ‘50s tiles Berven had collected. “The opportunity to work with Daryl was something I dreamed about,” Charbonneau said.
Hansen appreciated the vintage home’s quality construction and ‘50s aesthetic. “I’m more of a modernist, and that was the beginning of modernism and open floor plans,” he said.
The couple had a large lot, with plenty of space for a big rear addition, but decided against it. “I didn’t want a gigantic kitchen,” Berven said. “I wanted to work within the existing footprint.”
Fortunately, ranch-style houses lend themselves to creative reworking of space because their floor plans are more free-flowing, less compartmentalized than houses from earlier decades, said Hansen. He developed three different schemes for remodeling the house.
“I didn’t know how far they wanted to go,” he said. “They picked the most open of the three,” which included removing two interior walls. “That changed the relationship of everything.”
