The L-shaped tailored sofa and the two-seater Barcelona share honors in the almost bare living area with the family lap pool in the background.

I CAN no longer recall where and how I saw a good glimpse of this megamodern house, but the vivid images remain almost indelibly etched in my memory. What we present you is a minimalist nest being inhabited by a youthful couple we are quite fortunate to know. He is a former teen idol in local entertainment, while she is equally visible both in her earlier beauty-related print ads and, of late, the TV commercials she appears in.

Michael Lagman was once upon a time the object of desire of screaming colegialas when he was still filling up the entertainment scene under the name “Michael Locsin.” He is now happily married to the former Lux girl Charmaine Buendia Rivera, whom we still see every now and then in a Nesvita and other TV ads.

Standing proud amid an upscale enclave, the Lagmans’ high-tech looking manse is what one may call as the pride of the block they reside in. Save for a minor screaming red wall lording it over in the living hall, the entire Lagman place is splashed all over in virginal white.

In most minimalist interiors, the omnipresence of larger-than-life paintings can be considered as a given. But in all the public spaces of the house in question, not one can be found to assert its presence.

There were a few free-standing sculpture pieces in varied heights and sizes but even while they may be grouped together, they will not succeed in grabbing one’s attention from the masterful space planning employed by its architect while designing the minimalist house.

The superlofty ceiling suspended over the master salon or living room, if you must, is all of two stories high. All at once, guests entering the house’s main portal is brought into a unique atmosphere of sublime airiness. Add to this the minimalist presence of furniture and furnishings and, instantly, one is confronted with an ambiance, the exact reverse of rooms decorated by homeowners who take the mantra “more is more” as their gospel.

I have seen in pictures not a few home settings subscribing to minimalist persuasions or sensibilities. But they did not successfully prepare me to face up to this brand of minimalism. Since the hosts took sometime to welcome me and my fellow lensman, we had the opportunity to thoroughly survey the place for ideal vantage points where we could capture the nuances of this “new atmosphere.”

Moving from point to point while peeping through our camera’s viewfinder, we discovered the hidden virtues of the Lagman interiors.

As the pictures here show, a sizable L-shaped sofa is attended by a Lucite coffee table which faces a two-seater Barcelona settee by Mies van de Rohe. The setting is further counterpointed by the presence of a lounge chair inspired by Charles Eames. All the mentioned pieces rest on a predominantly red plaid carpet aptly defining this conversation area.

The corner of the main salon leading to the glass-enclosed dining room is guarded by a three-quarter ebony Yamaha grand piano. Three paces away stands the winding staircase that leads members of the Lagman family to their respective bedrooms situated on the two upper floors.

An unorthodox item of furniture reigns supreme inside the air-conditioned formal dining room. A large square table comfortably takes in three dining guests on each of its four sides. Charmaine confided that the table had to be brought into the room prior to the installation of the glass panels and the swinging door enclosing the room. Twelve tailored straight-back chairs attend the handsomely majestic dining table. An odd corner of this room is punctuated by contemporary sculpted figures depicting a man and a woman who are both so much in love, standing on a sleek Lucite pedestal.

We could have gone further with our excursion into the Lagman abode by checking out their bedrooms. At that point, we politely declined the generous invitation, since I felt that we have had enough for one day.

Urban Monologues: TAGAYTAY’S SAVING GRACE

TAGAYTAY has changed so much since I was a kid. When I would go on trips with my family or friends back in my youth, there were only a handful of things to look forward to—the cold weather, the horse-back trail in Picnic Grove, and a few specialty restaurants that served their famous bulalo. It was one of the few places close to Manila where people could go to relax.

Reeling: God Bless Na Lang Sa Imo, Yoyoy

HE was from Bohol. He came to Manila and became a jeepney driver. For some reason—economics, perhaps, or he was missing his family—he went back, this time to Cebu, and became a bus driver.

Romanian abortion film wins Cannes top prize

A HARROWING film about illegal abortion in Communist-era Romania beat 21 movies by well-known directors such as Quentin Tarantino, Ethan and Joel Coen, and Wong Kar-wai to win the Cannes Film Festival’s top prize Sunday.

Bare, Barer and Barest

I CAN no longer recall where and how I saw a good glimpse of this megamodern house, but the vivid images remain almost indelibly etched in my memory.

Willem Dafoe goes on ‘Mr. Bean’s Holiday’

ACTOR Willem Dafoe is an unexpected fellow traveler in Mr. Bean’s Holiday, a movie based on the much-loved character from Rowan Atkinson.