Inside 'Law & Order' Star Christopher Meloni’s Serene NYC Home ｜ Open Door ｜ Architectural Digest)

Oh, hey, A.D. How are you? Christopher Maloney here, just doing a little light reading. Come on in. Let me show you around. This is our crib here in New York City. Here we have the living area, and we were going for something that had a little bit of flow to it. We also wanted an openness to the outdoors. So we have a kind of connection to it. So these used to be windows that only went up to about here. And we knocked them all out. This is really kind of the entertainment area. And, you know, you can just spread out and enjoy either the intimate conversation or the conversation over there with the backdrop and the view. And everyone gets to share in the fireplace. Custom coffee table. My wife had it made. This is Beth Carter. And I just found this so profound. I did this a little bit of Diane Arbus, those old school carny pictures. But also, I thought it was kind of an homage to superheroes. Creepy, interesting, whimsical. I like it. There are a few right angles in the building. We worked with our architect, Alexander Hughes, and we kind of went with that. And we just felt like we were going to smooth everything out. Over here is the bar area where no one should keep their bike. But they do. Want some wine? And this is the dining room where my wife sets up the Parcheesi game so she can cheat before we play. Hey, where did we get this table, babe? This is Tucker Robbins. He finds already felled trees in South America and brings them back. Doesn't cut anything down. We love natural materials, marbles. Every room has a different marble. There's a lot of natural woods, stones, tiles. It brings an organic feel to the very modern space. So let's be clear, the genius, the brains behind this entire operation, everything you see in here is my wife, Sherman. And she's always the brains behind the operation when it's anything style or anything that needs to get done. Actually, I just act. I've often heard the phrase that, oh, it pulls the whole room together. Well, we were supposed to put tiles here. Yeah, we were going to duplicate those tiles. But yeah, we're supposed to duplicate those tiles that are out there and put them here. But we couldn't reach the tile guy because he was on his boat in the middle of the Mediterranean. We were tired of tired of waiting. So you came up with the great idea of the fluted maple, right? Walnut. Walnut. Yeah. And on top of it, this pulls the whole thing together. These are crystals that are magnetized. I also use it as a way to align my chakras. And I know it's happening because this lights up after a while. And you sit here. I feel better. Come on down. So when we first got this space, that floor is what was for sale, and we almost didn't buy it. And we told the guy, look, it's just not enough room. And he said, well, I have two apartments downstairs. Why didn't tell us? I don't know. But anyway, we decided to get it all together. But we had to connect them because this wasn't here, obviously. So we drilled a hole and we hired a welder, Gabrielle Shelton, to fabricate this fantastic staircase. It's one of my favorite pieces in the whole house. This twist, the spine of the staircase is fine. Fantastic. So come on. Second floor. All right. So. Chase, are you hiding back there? Oh, yeah, I was trying to. So this is our daughter's room or her wing. And we did that intentionally to kind of entice her to hang out with us for just a little bit longer before she goes. It's the same daughter who came up with the great idea about having a demo party. We had to gut the entire apartment, both floors. My daughter came up with a great idea that, you know, because space is kind of rare and difficult to find in New York, especially kind of open. And she just want to have a party with a few friends over. Turned into a rave with spray paint cans and guys hanging over my balconies. I still love her. I happen to be a rug freak. I can't travel anywhere without spending money on carpets. So this one and this one out here, we met in Morocco. Each area of the world always has their own special way and vision and motifs. And I'm just enamored with with all of them, wherever they may come from. See this right here? Handmade by a young artist named Christopher Maloney. 50 years ago, I loved Elvis Costello and my daughter has kept the tradition alive. When my wife and I first traveled to Bali, we noticed all the beautiful carvings that they do in their world renowned for their ability to carve wood. And so we got these yogis, but we had them shipped to us and through a friend and they thought it was a yogi emergency. So they sent it overnight express. So the yogis cost $50 a piece and the shipping cost $1,600. Before we go to my office, Carpe Noctum. Seize the night. Our son at the bottom of the door. Go ahead, scan. My wife is a young ballerina. My wife is a young beauty. You know them, you know them, you know him. This is one of my prized possessions when SVU got spoofed by Mad Magazine. In fact, I wrote Mort Drucker and he wrote me back. He was 94 years old. I told him how I'd grown up on him and he was such an inspiration to me. And this is where the magic happens. This is where many acting decisions are made. Right here is where I wrote my one and only law and order organized crime episode. Most of the time, I just look at comics. You know, it's funny about the baseball bats. I have about 15 of them lying around and I have no idea why, except I know how it started when my daughter was first born. One of the background players on the show, Law and Order Special Victims Unit gave me a baseball bat as a birth present for my daughter because he said, Oh, you're going to need it when she gets older. True story. I'm a view freak. That's why I like it here, because I get to see the classic West Village that will remain unchanged for the most part. And behind it is the ever sprawling, ever changing metropolis that will grow like the weed that it is. And that's OK, too. You know, you know, you sign up for. This is happy. It's a neon sign of one of my co-stars from the show, Happy, that I did. And this kind of stuff right here with the branches of the trees, you know, that's our way of connecting to the natural, the elements, the stones, the woods that we've used. You know, we live in a concrete jungle, but you need nature. So this is the other side of the downstairs. My wife painted these portraits of our kids. My wife painted that of our son. So out of the blue, David Wayne, who was the director, co-writer of Wet Hot American Summer, calls me up and says, there's this art exhibit where people displayed everything Wet Hot American Summer. And so I got on it and I went online and I got this. I think it's really cool. That's my character, Gene. This is my wife's art studio. You know, all of her things that she's worked on or working on. And she does the work. But I come in here and I just enjoy seeing her work come to fruition. This is what I do. I'm the sculptor in the family. I haven't found my niche yet, but I'm getting it. This is the boxer. This guy just got, he's throwing a hook, but he's already been knocked out. So the guy hit him first. So that's what I'm going for here. So we'll see. We'll see. So I'll let you know how it turns out. And this is my happy space. This is my stress reliever. And this is where I pump the iron and all that stuff. Get the sweat on and yeah, try and get in shape. This is my favorite machine for getting the workout in and out quick. But, you know, this is the one that you go to build a little bit of strength. You can do your squats and your deadlifts. And then, you know, I like the dumbbells. I like it all. I need a kettlebell or two or three or four. But the Peloton I also use. Love that. I think these were placed here. I don't know. I think it's a little hokum, but come on into the primary. I think it's the only room like this. You get a 270 on the views. You got the Hudson, you got the South, and then you got Manhattan behind you. That was a picture that we took on our trip to Africa. My wife had this made. She designed it herself. This rug is one of the larger commissioned rugs. It's about 100 years old from the Hopi Nation. I got it out of Santa Fe a long time ago. I think my wife got this because of, obviously, all wood. So, you know, that again, we're staying in the organic feel of things. And then, you know, these irregular shapes, you know, the bubble effect to go with. There are no right lines to things that is swaying around. Now, this room where you can go to bed at night and you have 270 degree view, but you feel very hunkered down and secure. And, you know, the shades go down and you're done. Here we have the kitchen. We have brass inlay into this very long counter. We've got the stools back here, so we'll set it up there. We'll eat at the dining room table. What is that imperial blue, I think, with the inlay? And this goes into the media room because, again, we're looking for constant flow as opposed to it's just one room and just another room. We're trying to get everything kind of lofty. Is that a... Yeah, just open. Yeah. And our reading room. I'm the great pretender at guitar. Anytime you want to hear Blackbird from the Beatles, I'm happy to pick it up and not play it for you. Don't be afraid. I've never been more proud of a bathroom than I am of this and the marble and how it was framed in there. Come here. We like to watch. And the most important part of this whole operation, the espresso room. Let's just stare at it. You want an espresso? This is the best part of the place, but especially at night, it's the only part of the place. So we redid the whole thing. Obviously, the terrace was here, but we put down new pavers. And as I was saying about the motif of nature, all the flowers in the tiles, we like it. It just gives you a hint of nature. And then beyond it, Manhattan. It runs the length of the apartment. New York, baby. Digest. Glantastic.