NY Home | Chelsea Loft

Casa Vogue recently featured the stunning apartment of my friend and former colleague André Viana, an art dealer, and his partner André Mellone, an architect. Their loft, located in the heart of West Chelsea, is steps from the High Line and filled with an impeccable collection of furniture and art, including coveted pieces by Wade Guyton, Jacob Kassay, and Tauba Auerbach.

In their living room, two leather club chairs and a folding chair designed by Hans Wegner sit around two coffee tables, an aluminum piece from 1960s and a three-legged walnut table designed by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings.

André Mellone's beautiful design renderings carefully plan for each element of the home, which feels balanced, warm, and layered, due to antique elements nestled among the contemporary architectural lines of the apartment. Their superb space was created by uniting two adjacent units in the building, the combination of which was designed and overseen by Mellone. 

Three silver paintings by Jacob Kassay preside over a long marble and iron French bistro table, which is flanked by six antique Biedermeier dining chairs dating from 1840.

Continue reading for more amazing images of this home...

Penthouse in the Sky

A beautiful view of Diane von Fustenberg's live/work space in the Meatpacking District...

A building I've walked by hundreds of times (you can glimpse the geometric rooftop from the street, as well as from the High Line), and still find amazing. A true gem in the heart of Manhattan! See the interior here, from the new issue of Architectural Digest.

Image via Architectural Digest.

Dining Out | Perry St

Last night, Mr. V took me out for a delicious dinner at Perry St in the West Village. Located on the bottom floor of a Richard Meier designed apartment building, the restaurant has a sleek, contemporary design that well suits the architecture of the space. The food is similarly refined, its cuisine mirroring the restraint of the decor.

I ordered a ginger margarita and Mr. V had a Templeton Rye with an orange twist (later to be followed by a glass of Grüner Veltliner for me, and a second whiskey for Mr. V). Our first sampling of the food was the delicious amuse-bouche - potato soup with a truffle emulsion and Yukon chips - one of the best bites of the whole night! We had two appetizers, a tasty house-made burrata with fig tapenade and grilled sourdough, as well as sweet chili crab dumplings with cilantro and celeriac (pictured below). We both agreed that the dumplings were to die for...They really just melt in your mouth.

For our entrée, we ordered two fish dishes to share. The grilled cod with miso mushrooms was accompanied by roasted parsnips and yuzu, a great dish in which the fish was perfectly cooked. We also had the pan seared black sea bass with oyster mushrooms and basil sauce, which was well-seasoned and delicious, but I would give the slight edge to the cod, which was a bit more lush. For dessert, we had pumpkin tiramisu and two steaming cups of coffee. This was a fantastic evening - our best Valentine's ever, I do say! - and I'm so lucky to have had such a lovely meal in the company of the always fun and amazing Mr. V.

Image one via Eat Big Apple; Image two via City Buzz; Image three via Star Chefs; Image four via The Shrinkwrapper.

Black & Gold

My two favorite colors - at least in terms of clothing and accessories - are perfectly matched in this balanced and dramatic architectural design.

Raymond Hood drafted the design in 1922, and by 1924, the building, located on New York's West 40th Street, was complete. Built as the headquarters of American Radiator Company, it now stands as the Bryant Park Hotel. And, despite having been there, I never realized how beautiful it is until I saw this picture today. One of the amazing things about living in New York is that because there is so much around you, you often get the chance to see things in a new light...

Image via Veand. Read a history of the building here.

Rolling Lines

I've been a bit architecture obsessed lately, and this undulating addition is particularly enticing! Designed by Andy Martin Associates, this spectacular glass conservatory in west London has bright white walls, a glass barrel-vaulted ceiling, and three oversized sets of arched doors...

I can only imagine how wonderful it must be to see this beautiful exterior silhouette when coming home each day. I love how high the curved glass doors are - it's almost as if they reach upwards, delicately supporting the glass waves of the building....And the amount of light they let in is perfect. What a relaxing space!

Images via de zeen magazine.

A Lovely Monday

Today, Mr. V and I got the luck of spending an extra day together, as he had off work for Martin Luther King Day (normally, as I work Saturdays, we only get one day - Sundays - together). We decided to celebrate this rare occurrence with a date, and headed uptown to see All, Maurizio Cattelan's retrospective at the Guggenheim, which ends this week.

Cattelan's show consists of 128 works, all suspended in the rotunda of the museum. With nothing on the walls, this creative hanging skirts the installation issues that continually plague this curved museum...

While I was a bit skeptical about the gimmicky nature of this exhibition (and I totally agree with Roberta's review), I have to say that it was quite fun! It was nice to look at art in a different fashion, as well as to see the objects from all angles. That being said, it really is all about the spectacle of the installation, which in this case I think benefits Cattelan, whose practice has very uneven moments.

We also took some time to enjoy the quieter moments of the museum. The walls and stools that are normally filled stood empty, as the visitors clung to the banisters, craning their necks to see each and every part of the many works on display...

After this fun visit, we headed down to "Curry Hill" and had a fantastic dinner at Tamba. It was so nice to spend this extra time with Mr. V, the sweetest man and best partner I could imagine.

I'm so grateful for today.

All images taken by me with my iPhone.

Adding New to the Old

Yesterday, I took a quick work trip to Boston to celebrate the opening of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum's new wing, designed by Renzo Piano. While the Gardner is largely known for their significant historical art collection (and the infamous theft of several masterpieces in 1990), the museum also has a strong residency program that fosters the work of many contemporary artists. The new wing is beautiful, and holds a dramatic glass-walled gallery, as well as a large concert hall.

The original museum, just steps away, consists of a 15th century Venetian-style manor that surrounds a lush courtyard filled with tropical plants and 1st century marble sculptures. It's enclosed from the elements, and feels impossibly perfect and relaxing...A far cry from the frigid Boston weather howling outside.

Inside the palace, rooms hold paintings by masters such as Botticelli, Degas, Manet, Raphael, Rubens, Singer Sargent, Titian, Velázquez and Whistler, all of which are displayed alongside antique furniture and decorative objects. Exploring the museum is a bit like wandering an eccentric house, with each turn and hallway revealing more architectural and artistic treasures...

A few favorites from inside the hallowed walls:

Rembrant's Self-Portrait from 1629 | an exquisite silver ostrich tucked in a cabinet of treasures | a collection of white lace | massive stone fireplaces dotted throughout the rooms | a stained glass window from Soissons cathedral, 1205 | a small silver 19th century Indian box | the sweet sound of the gurgling fountain in the courtyard | Matisse's Terrace at Saint Tropez, 1904 | the light that passed through nooks and crannies in the dark wood walls, spilling over the floor and illuminating the relics inside |

I can't wait to go back.

Image one of the new wing via here. All other images taken by me with my iPhone.

The City Version

Yesterday, I wrote about my dream of living in a house outside the city with huge black windows. Well, today I thought I would share two amazing homes in the city that can offer the same amazing light and space.

These first two images are from an East Village home designed by Annabelle Selldorf (interestingly, she is the architect behind many of the most prominent art galleries, including Acquavella, David Zwirner, Gladstone, Hauser & Wirth, as well as the Neue Galerie). I adore the high ceilings and bright exposure in both rooms!

The second two images are from an unfurnished Upper East Side townhouse currently on the market for $15 million. Aren't the two kitchens surprisingly similar in layout and design? I prefer the warmth of the butcher's block island top and arched windows in the Selldorf design...But I would sure take either!

All images via CocoCozy here and here.

Paint It Black

I love our Manhattan apartment, but I always dream about having a home filled with amenities that are far too scarce in New York. From the practical (a yard, a laundry room, two bedrooms, two bathrooms...), to the luxurious, like a sun-soaked kitchen and living room. If I were designing a house, it would surely include the biggest windows possible to fill the space with natural light. In particular, I would love to have these black frame windows, which add the most amazing sophistication and architectural detail to the rooms around them.

Thinly framed large window panels look especially good in black. They complement both old and new homes, and set the most pleasing tone for the space. For me, this is interior perfection!

Image one via Studio William Hefner; Image two via La Dolce Vita; Image three via Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles; Image four via Mike Hammersmith; Image five via House Beautiful; Image six via Effigy of Life; Image seven via Elle Decor.