Onice Smeralda Kitchen in West London

residential
Written By Marco Fazio

A Collaboration with Rundell Associates

 

This bespoke kitchen, recently completed in a private residence in West London, harmoniously blends natural stone precision with contemporary architectural detailing. Designed by Rundell Associates and fabricated by stoneCIRCLE, the project features full cladding in Onice Smeralda onyx and brushed brass, resulting in a clean, cohesive visual effect.

 
Onice Smeralda kitchen island by stoneCIRCLE - photo Marco Joe Fazio Creatives
 

The Material: Onice Smeralda

Sourced for its distinctive pale green hue and subtle veining, Onice Smeralda provides a refined alternative to more traditional marbles. Its semi-translucent surface responds beautifully to natural and artificial lighting, making it suitable for high-end residential interiors where material character is paramount.

The slabs were bookmatched to ensure vein matching across both vertical and horizontal planes to provide the very best appearance the slabs could achieve.

 

The Kitchen Island: Function Disguised in Form

The central island, designed by Rundell Associates, is the kitchen's focal point. It boasts a fluid, asymmetrical shape crafted from a single slab of Onice Smeralda, featuring a carefully integrated stainless steel sink concealed beneath a removable matching cover. When closed, the island presents an uninterrupted surface of stone.

This necessitated precision CNC shaping and meticulous planning to ensure that the removable section matched the surrounding onyx in dimension and veining.

 
Onice Smeralda kitchen island worktop by stoneCIRCLE - photo Marco Joe Fazio Creatives
 

Technical Notes and Execution

To meet the design intent and achieve the required tolerances, stoneCIRCLE applied:

  • 3D digital modelling to map out the complex geometry of the island

  • CNC cutting for accurate shaping of both the island and cover

  • Hand-finishing to refine the edge details and achieve a uniform surface finish

  • Flush integration of the stainless steel sink within the stone structure

Our team carried out the on-site installation, ensuring consistency between fabrication and final fitting — especially important in a project where every surface transition is visible.

 

Project Details

  • Location: West London

  • Use: Private residential kitchen

  • Design: Rundell Associates

  • Stone: Onice Smeralda

  • Finish: Honed

  • Scope: Full cladding of kitchen units and central island, stone sink cover integration, door architraves

  • Photography: Marco Joe Fazio Creatives

Marco Fazio

Marco Joe Fazio is CCO and director of photography at space+style™ by marco joe fazio Ltd, working in fashion, hospitality, food & drink, architecture and design.

Born and raised in Tuscany, Italy, Marco learned the rudiments of photography and the magic of the darkroom in his early school years. Thereafter, he worked in architecture, interior, and lighting design for two decades. During those years, Marco founded an award-winning architectural studio and managed a multidisciplinary design team, working mainly for fashion industry clients.

Since moving to London in 2008, Marco has been recognised as a Chartered Architect of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) while pursuing his dream of connecting the worlds of architecture, design, and fashion from the photographer's perspective.

After years of passionate dedication, hard work and professional achievements, he was awarded the Fellowship certification (FBIPP) by the British Institute of Professional Photography and won the Peter Grugeon Award for the Best Fellowship of the Year in 2016. Subsequently, he has been admitted as a member of the highly regarded Association of Photographers (AOP). 

Having achieved a stronghold in coordinated image and photography for the design and fashion world, Marco has taken his expertise into the hospitality market; luxury and boutique hotels, fine dining restaurants, and the drinks and beverage industry are all reaping benefits from his services.

Today, Marco is leading his agency in assignments in the hospitality, fashion, and design industries.

Creative photography, cinematography, coordinated images and brand marketing form the core of his services.

Thanks to more than a decade in the music industry, Marco has expendable knowledge in composition and sound engineering. That knowledge is a valuable asset in creating licensed soundtracks and magnetic sound designs for commercial productions.

Marco's passion and another branch of his business are mentoring and nurturing new visual arts talents. In 2016, he launched "telling [fashion] stories" – photography & set design workshops – and more recently, he has become a lecturer for the School of Art and Creative Industries at London South Bank University (LSBU).

The crossover between genres and industries is a peculiar and essential factor in his work, contributing to thinking outside the box and achieving a unique style rich in symbolism and content.

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