Riveted Range Guard Kitchen

The riveted range guard wall above the range takes on uncommon decorative power.

For a spacious kitchen in a newly constructed Spanish country home, architect Pablo Carvajal and designer Isabel Lopez-Quesada created a stunning riveted range guard behind a white Lancanche Sully with an electric (or perhaps induction) top.

Protecting the wall with fireproof material is essential since heat from the top of a powerful range can scorch. Cooking matter can cause splattering, staining and burning on an unprotected range wall. Usually, there are several approaches. The American “pro” or restaurant-style stainless steel liner — in the Antique Island Kitchen — unifies the range and the hood (sometimes with a shelf). An all-tile option — in the Original Old World Kitchen — integrates the range guard into the general backsplash — often with a tile “medallion” or other special pattern. In my own Yellow Eurosplash Kitchen I borrowed fully tiled walls from counter to ceiling from English Victorian kitchens. Additionally, there is a modern stone slab look — in the Calacatta Contemporary Kitchen — that continues the countertop material partially, or fully up the wall. Also noteworthy is a tile range guard style where square Moroccan zillij tiles are used for the range guard  only — otherwise walls remain painted and tile may be absent, or restricted to the sink area. This is a popular look in Belgian Country kitchens

But back to Spain. Here, the curved hood is considerably wider than the range and hung high. The stainless steel range guard is finished with rivets that create a decorative, industrial-look border around the sheet steel. That match riveted detailing on a more discreet stainless liner with a narrow riveted rim that finishes the bottom of the hood. The stainless steel slab also helps visually rectify the wall: on close scrutiny, the range appears to be off center. It wouldn’t have been noticeable but for the old-fashioned 4-inch black stone backsplash that rims the counter and draws the eye to its choppy contours.

In a more modern kitchen this approach to a range guard might be less distinctive. In this country kitchen with a reclaimed wood-plank floor, pine farm table and coffered ceiling it makes a striking statement. It should be noted that the absence of upper cabinets maximizes this use of the wall and leaves the kitchen with an especially open, airy appearance — as well as highlighting the hood.

(Source: House & Garden)

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