When Alex Proba, founder of StudioPROBA, decided to plant roots in Oregon with her longtime partner, Ian Coyle, she insisted on living somewhere deep in the trees. As fate would have it, the couple managed to secure a three-story house in Forest Park, one of Portland’s most enchanting wildlife sanctuaries. The 2,650-square-foot property, known as the Skybox, features 17-foot-tall windows with views of the surrounding foliage.
Although Ms. Proba’s multidisciplinary work is known for being loud and vibrant, the design of her house shows surprising restraint. Aside from murals covering the walls of the primary bedroom and bathroom, the rooms are muted and minimal, with splashes of pink, orange and chartreuse against dark-tinted woods and stones. But after the birth of her daughter, Emi, in 2025, Ms. Proba, 40, decided to transform her office into a playroom where no color is out of bounds.
The visual transformation has been a slow work in progress, but very few things have needed to be completely swapped out — a hand-knotted rug that Ms. Proba designed serves as a built-in toy, as 11-month-old Emi crawls around, grabbing everything in sight. Drawing on the windows with dry erase markers is strongly encouraged. Most recently, the designer added furniture from House of Roro so Emi has a seat at her own table.
“It’s a room in transition until she can make it hers, but everything is supposed to be open in it,” Ms Proba said. “We’re trying to make a fun space for her to be able to do whatever and not being too precious about the rug or the objects. She can draw when she wants to draw, and if there’s paint that spills that’s fine too.” Here are some of the elements that bring the playroom to life.
