Indholdsfortegnelse for November 2020 i ELLE DECOR

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

THE CITY IS REAL

I STAYED. BECAUSE I DON’T FEEL SAFER OR HAPPIER anywhere else. Even during the darkest moments of the pandemic, when cities across the globe shut down, urban streets still offered some of the magic that draws millions to them. I know—I walked them daily. The facade of a closed Met still offered the hope of all that was inside. As we enter a new chapter of this global crisis, and as cities around the world manage both progress and unpredictability, we pay tribute to the spirit of the metropolis, the soul and character and beauty that have proven invincible. They are all evident in this issue and will also be on display in a two-day virtual event this fall at New York’s 92nd Street Y that ELLE DECOR is proud…

2 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

FOR THE LOVE OF CITIES

THIS PAST SPRING, AS people around the world fled cities for country houses and suburbs, a common refrain was that they were leaving because cities were no longer the bustling metropolises that had originally lured them. Who, given the choice, would stay in a packed urban center when untethered from the anchor of offices and schools? A lot of people, as it turned out—myself included. I live in New York City with my husband, and despite the general experience of being largely reduced to the cramped confines of my apartment, leaving didn’t make much sense to me. I liked New York even when I was mostly sitting inside my home, dreading trips to the grocery store. I liked talking to my neighbors and taking socially distanced walks with friends. Social…

3 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

Vitrine DREAMS

YOU WON’T FIND IT ON THE TOP 10 list of most San Diego travel guides, but the historic Spanish Village Art Center, a quirky collection of Spanish-style stucco houses in Balboa Park, is one of the city’s most colorful and locally beloved public spaces. When Paris-based architect Marie-Eve Bidard of Bidard & Raissi saw the center, it presented just the type of inspiration she could use for her latest project: the new Cartier shop that opened this September in San Diego’s Fashion Valley mall, a few miles north of the park. “While there are certain consistent elements in every Cartier boutique, each location also reflects its environment,” explains Bidard, who has designed stores for the brand in Copenhagen, Bangkok, and Fukuoka, Japan. “What’s magical about San Diego is the dynamism…

2 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

Comfort CUISINE

WHEN I WAS GROWING UP IN LYON, France, Thanksgiving wasn’t part of my childhood, but turkeys certainly were. Of all the birds my family raised—we also kept chickens, squab, ducks, and guinea hens—turkeys gave us the most trouble, always flying up into trees and roosting on the highest branches. Once we got them back down, we’d take them to the farmers’ market to sell. The French also like a whole roasted turkey, but it’s served at Christmastime, without a cranberry in sight. After many years living in New York, when I serve a turkey, it’s in the American style. But if my Thanksgiving table has all the traditional fixings, I still nod, here and there, to France. My stuffing starts with duck fat and is studded with Toulouse sausage and…

3 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

Flights of Fancy

THE UTILITARIAN STAIRCASE is rapidly becoming a moment of eye candy that’s all but required in the homes of the design cognoscenti—not just in grand suburban houses, but in city dwellings as well. “Trends come in waves, and right now staircases are absolutely the focus,” says Thomas Kligerman, a partner at architecture and interiors firm Ike Kligerman Barkley. “I would not call this a thread going through the world of design—it’s a cable. Everyone’s talking about it.” At their first meeting, Kligerman’s clients now regularly say a show-stopping staircase is essential; one, an art collector, asked for one “like a Brâncuşi,” Kligerman says. “Like anything good, he wants it sculptural and beautiful but not overwhelming. He doesn’t want it to steal the show, but it can’t be a simpering pile…

3 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

TROOP BEVERLY HILLS

ALTHOUGH MUCH OF LOS ANGELES dates back only as far as the early 20th century, the relatively young city holds an unlikely affinity for old-world charms. Michael S. Smith, the L.A. designer who redesigned the White House during the Obama administration, recently completed the interiors of a Beverly Hills home dating to 1932 that closely resembles a classic Mediterranean villa—terra-cotta roof tiles, stucco walls, and all. Inside, Smith’s approach embraces that likeness, as the arched entryway opens to a foyer evocative of a European courtyard; the floors are paved in reclaimed Spanish stone, and miniature antiquities, including a small obelisk carved from marble, sit atop an 18th-century northern Italian walnut console. As the skylight at the top of the central staircase illuminates the vase of freshly cut olive branches below,…

4 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

THE MAXIMUM EFFECT

TWENTY-SEVEN YEARS AGO, SRILA CHATTERJEE AND Mahesh Mathai walked into an apartment in a 1904 Indian Colonial–style building in a historic area of Mumbai and knew within minutes that it was exactly where they were supposed to be. The space, in a building once called the Castle for its turret, had been shoddily carved up into four separate flats. But Mathai, a filmmaker, and Chatterjee, a film producer turned interior designer who owns the lifestyle site Baro Market, were undeterred. They tore down extraneous walls, opening the space up, and fixed floors damaged by a leaky roof. Ten years later, they added an outdoor terrace. The home’s exuberant decor has similarly grown organically as they have amassed pieces from near (pottery tiles from Jaipur, antiques from Mumbai’s Thieves Market)…

3 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

Fantastic Voyage

Natural hide, the material of choice for Kyle Bunting, founder of his eponymous rug company, lends itself well to complicated compositions. The skin’s inherent textures add a sense of movement to an already animated motif. It was an easy choice, then, for Bunting to collaborate with Eun Sun Chun, cofounder of the New York City–based design and architecture firm 212box, on this layered piece. “One of the compelling things about Chun’s work is how she integrates our stitchless seaming into the design so easily,” he says. Having grown up in South Korea, Chun infuses a distinct combination of local and global inspirations into her work. For this rug, she was inspired by childhood summers with her grandmother in Seoul. “The patterns and colors remind me of the traditional opal- and…

1 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

IN MEMORIAM JULIA REED

There is one piece missing in this issue. Our tribute to cities around the world was scheduled to include the newly decorated New Orleans home of beloved ELLE DECOR contributor Julia Reed, who died at 59 on August 28 after a long battle with cancer. No one told a story like Julia, and no one hosted a party like her either. And we know ELLE DECOR readers always felt invited to one of her unforgettable cocktail parties whenever Julia wrote for the magazine. I first met her when I was Michael Boodro’s assistant at Vogue. Michael was Julia’s editor, and so I became her assistant too. She was everything I wanted magazine people—all people—to be. I still have her Rolodex card with all her phone numbers and can hear her…

1 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

NEWS FROM THE WORLD OF DESIGN

The new Steven Holl–designed Nancy and Rich Kinder Building at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, is set to open November 21. Walking the tunnel of chromatic light by the late artist Carlos Cruz-Diez will be worth the price of admission. In January, the Black Artists + Designers Guild will unveil Obsidian, a virtual showhouse in Oakland, California, and a celebration of Black family identity. At Christie’s, the long-awaited Jayne Wrightsman auction took place on October 14. Lots from the late philanthropist’s collection included an Odalisque painting by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres.…

1 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

Sempre Milano!

“The blue accent colors really set it apart. You can play off the shape with artwork.”RAYMAN BOOZER 1 VIA FUCINI 5 BENCH BY VITO NESTA RAYMAN BOOZER: A postmodern moment. Great seating for social distancing in a hotel lobby. It is its own room. CHRISTINE GACHOT: This would be so charming in a child’s room. 53” w. X 20” d. X 71” h.; $7,314. adorno.design 2 FLIRT TABLE BY MINOTTI CG: I love a good drinks table. This would be ideal in one of my SoHo loft projects. RB: This metallic piece is simple and practical. Perfect for a cocktail in small spaces. 15” w. X 12” d. X 21” h.; $3,825. minottiny.com 3 RULLA ROCKER BY MARIO MILANA RB: It’s giving me Josef Hoffmann vibes as well as S.C.…

3 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

Build a Better Bedroom

With so many daily distractions, downshifting into sleep mode seems tougher than ever. If your bedroom isn’t set up to soothe, it’s hard to get the quality rest you crave. But, thanks to a few design-driven choices, you can get more shut-eye. “An ideal bedroom provides an environment for rest, positivity, and relaxation,” says interior designer Natalie Kraiem. From going all-in on a Stearns & Foster mattress to ditching the screens, here are four easy ways to make your space more serene. THE REST IS EASY Follow these simple principles to prep your room for maximum zzz’s. 1. INVEST IN A QUALITY MATTRESS When it comes to getting a good night’s sleep, “the mattress is the most important element,” says Kraiem. “My key recommendation is to source one from a…

1 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

Next-Level Ideas

Keita Turner “I’m in love with the intertwined spiral staircases wrapping Hiroshi Nakamura’s Ribbon Chapel in Hiroshima, Japan.” Pierre Yovanovitch “In Capri, Italy, Casa Malaparte is radical with its roof stairs. It shows a fascinating contrast between nature and the built environment.” Annabelle Selldorf “The staircase at Museo del Pueblo Gallego in Santiago de Compostela, Spain, is beautiful, with its intertwined double runs and delicate construction.”…

1 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

DREAMING IN ITALIAN

LAST SPRING, EMILIANO SALCI, THE CREATIVE FORCE behind the Milan-based design and architecture firm Dimorestudio, was left temporarily stranded. He had just sold the apartment he owned with Britt Moran, his partner in Dimorestudio, having amicably agreed to live separately for the first time since they got together in the mid-1990s. Just as the pandemic was hitting Milan, Salci moved and found himself immersed in a gut renovation. “It felt strange striving to get my flat finished at that moment,” he says. All he could do was dive headfirst—and hands on—into what he describes as the most personal of all his projects: the creation, under duress, of his new home—a place where he could weather the storm. Stepping into Salci’s apartment is like entering a cinematic interior that fuses together…

4 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

THE SPANISH AFFAIR

AMONG AVA GARDNER’S MANY LOVE AFFAIRS, ONE OF her most enduring was her embrace of Spain—a place she found irresistible for its “earthiness” and “whimsy” (not to mention its handsome toreadors). In the mid-1950s, the Hollywood legend purchased an apartment in Madrid’s El Viso neighborhood. Set in a discreet four-story building, the duplex had grand proportions, including a nearly 2,000-square-foot rooftop terrace where she was known to play jazz and flamenco until the wee hours of the morning, irking her downstairs neighbor, exiled Argentine ruler Juan Perón. To renovate such a storied property would be any designer’s dream, but for Isabel López-Quesada, it was more than that: It was a necessity. The apartment had been in her husband’s family for half a century, ever since Gardner herself sold it to…

4 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

CINCINNATI RISING

I’M FROM CINCINNATI, WHICH HAS ALWAYS BEEN one of those cities to which people reply, “Nope, never been.” Those who have been never fail to mention the chili, which is something we’re best known for. But the city has much more to offer beyond the meat and beans. It is also considered the final stop on the Underground Railroad and has inspired countless works of literature, such as Toni Morrison’s iconic novel Beloved. It’s where the late Pritzker Prize–winning architect Zaha Hadid designed her first building in America and where the legendary African American poet Nikki Giovanni grew up. Rarely are these things mentioned. But the day I found out that the suspension bridge designed by John A. Roebling, which connects Cincinnati with Covington, Kentucky, was actually the prototype for…

2 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

The New Metropolis

FRENCH NOVELIST AND SERIAL PROVOCATEUR MICHEL Houellebecq told a radio audience in May what he believed the world would be like in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. “It will be the same,” the writer declared. “Just a bit worse.” While Houellebecq’s pessimism shouldn’t be taken as gospel, it does serve as a useful tonic to some of the wilder-eyed prognostications about the post-COVID future that have emerged over the last few months. From houses to cities to workplaces, big changes are said to be afoot; repeatedly, critics and designers have drawn comparisons to the 1920s, when the devastating Spanish flu helped give rise to the modernist revolution in architecture, its spare, sunlit aesthetic promising a built environment for a healthier tomorrow. Especially paired with the other simultaneous crises of…

4 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

DINNER THEATER

IT IS AMERICA’S JEWELER, BUT TIFFANY & CO. WAS born and bred in New York City. And it has seen its hometown through almost two centuries’ worth of ups and downs. Founded in 1837 as a stationery and fancy-goods store, Tiffany operated several locations until 1940, when Cross & Cross designed its Fifth Avenue flagship. One of the first major projects in Midtown Manhattan following the Great Depression, the Art Moderne building—with its limestone, granite, and marble facade, its entry framed in an etched wheat-leaf pattern, and its enormous stainless steel doors—is often cited as a catalyst for the area’s postwar recovery. The beauty and modernity of the store’s design lifted the spirits of the city. And so many years later, Tiffany—with a new tabletop and jewelry collection and a…

1 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

Alfredo Paredes

If most graduate degrees take six years or less to complete, then designer Alfredo Paredes, who compares the three decades he spent at Ralph Lauren to “being in school,” could dedicate an entire wall to his diplomas. As chief creative officer for the company, he oversaw the global retail environments, the home collections, and even the design of the beloved Polo Bar in New York City. In December 2019, Paredes went out on his own, founding an eponymous studio. “At Ralph Lauren, the store windows were always set-designed. The challenge was, How do you get an idea across in such a small space?” says Paredes, a first-generation Cuban American who grew up in Miami. “You have to hone the concepts, and that has been very beneficial when it comes to…

2 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

Café Society

I TRY NOT TO LIMIT MYSELF TO ANY ONE style,” says the French designer Florence Lopez, standing in the middle of her first public project, Mon Square, a striking new restaurant on the Left Bank of Paris. “What matters the most in any interior is its personality—it should have a real sense of place, one that is not quite like any other.” Mon Square is situated in a corner of Paris that is almost achingly beautiful. It is in the heart of the Faubourg Saint-Germain, directly across from the Sainte-Clotilde Basilica, a 19th-century neo-Gothic structure in pale limestone with twin spires. Across the street from the church is a small park, Square Samuel Rousseau, with an oval green lawn and towering chestnuts and plane trees, bordered by a black wrought-iron…

4 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

Peak Performance

1 Opera Pendant An abstract twist on Gino Sarfatti’s Sputnik light, this blown-glass fixture by Kelly Behun is the ultimate accent piece. 31” w. X 26.5” h., $2,590. hvlgroup.com 2 Gazelle Carpet A rich blue animal print in plush wool makes the act of descending a staircase all the more glamorous. To the trade. starkcarpet.com 3 Pelle Sconce This origami-style brass piece by Kelly Wearstler adds charm and a little cheekiness to your daily climb. $719. circalighting.com 4 Louis XV Newel Finial For a classic finishing touch, top off the banister with this finial, based on a design from 1857. $1,741. peguerin.com 5 Brighton Pavilion Wallpaper The wallpaper maketh the staircase, and this 12-foot-high chinoiserie pattern is a perfect choice. To the trade. fschumacher.com…

1 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

A VIEW OF MANHATTAN

THERE ARE SEVERAL WAYS TO MAKE A DECORATOR go crazy. Pinterest is a good one. Bringing your children to every meeting could be another. But one of the most diabolical methods, right at the top, is asking a designer to do his or her best work all over again. Not because one isn’t glad to have the job, mind you, but because creatively there is almost no bigger challenge than reimagining a space to which you’ve already given your best shot. This is the story of one time when that challenge (ahem, opportunity) did go really, really well—one that involves Tom Scheerer and one of his most loyal clients, refereed by the architect Gil P. Schafer. If you follow Scheerer’s work, you may recognize this apartment, in one of the…

6 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

HOMECOMING

OUTSIDE OF THE PITTSBURGH area, Squirrel Hill is better known as Mr. Rogers’s neighborhood. The beloved children’s-television personality lived on leafy, broad Beechwood Boulevard. For architecture buffs, however, the neighborhood’s chief interest lies farther west on a private street running through a forested oasis in Pittsburgh’s East End. The road conceals a wealth of adventurous and architecturally significant homes, from Andrew Mellon’s redbrick Tudor mansion (landscaped by the Olmsted Brothers) to modernist houses by Walter Gropius and Richard Meier to a postmodern folly by Robert Venturi. For a prosperous young family seeking to reconnect with their deep Pittsburgh roots after years spent away from the city, this street felt like the perfect landing pad. Yet the five-bedroom Tudor Revival house they bought on the southern end of the street in…

6 min

ELLE DECOR|November 2020

RESOURCES

Items pictured but not listed are from private collections. TRUTH IN DECORATING PAGES 42–44: Rayman Boozer, apartment48.com. Christine Gachot, gachotstudios.com. DANIEL’S KITCHENS Daniel Boulud, danielboulud.com. PAGES 48–49: Tablecloth: Sferra, sferra.com. Dutch oven: Williams Sonoma, williams-sonoma.com. RSVP Interior design: Florence Lopez, florencelopez.com. PAGES 52–53: Ceramics: Bela Silva, belasilva.com. TROOP BEVERLY HILLS Interior design: Michael S. Smith, michaelsmithinc.com. PAGES 62–63: Cabinet fabric: Jasper, michaelsmithinc.com. Lantern: Jamb, jamb.co.uk. Sofa fabric: Pierre Frey, pierrefrey.com. Cocktail table: Jasper. Chaise longues: Prestigio, prestigiocustom.com. PAGES 64–65: Bed fabric: Namay Samay, namaysamay.com. Bed linens: Matouk, matouk.com. Sofa fabric: Harbinger, harbingerla.com. Wall and ceiling fabric: Cowtan & Tout, cowtan.com. Chairs fabric: Namay Samay. Sconces: Rose Uniacke, roseuniacke.com. Bed curtains and canopy fabric: Lee Jofa, kravet.com. Curtains fabric: Pierre Frey. DREAMING IN ITALIAN Interior design: Emiliano Salci, dimorestudio.eu. PAGES 66–67: Cocktail…

3 min