A Sydney interior designer has been forbidden from decorating her own home because of a built-in wardrobe council likened to a Renoir painting.
Jennie Clarke wanted to knock down an interior wall in her heritage-listed 1947 modernist house in Roseville.
However, council knocked back the request because it would involve moving a built-in wardrobe, cupboards, seat and mirror, of heritage significance.
Council voted that Clarke, an interior designer, keep the furniture arguing that it is integral to the house.
The house, known as the Hillman House, was designed by modernist architect Henry Epstein, who collaborated with furniture maker Paul Kafka.
Councilor Lynne Saville likened it to a piece of art: "If you own a Renoir, do you change the colour of a dress or paint in a boat?"
However, Clarke argued the furniture is of inferior design and quality, with water damage and cigarette burns.
"It's just heart breaking," she told North Shore Times. "I would understand if it was a beautiful piece of furniture, but it's pedestrian. It's just a cheap piece covered with veneer."
