Inside A Dream Penthouse Overlooking Central Park | Unique Spaces | Architectural Digest

I think modernism is a reaction somehow to classic architecture. Modernism tries to see architecture to the bare minimums, to the function, to the structure. I think it is a conclusion of the way that architecture and that our ways of living have evolved. So having such an historical backdrop, which we can permeate with modernist design, I think it feels natural because our perception of aesthetics have evolved. I'm Krina Girescu-Rogard. I'm an architect. I'm an interior designer based in New York City. We are here in the penthouse of the St. Urban's historic New York landmark situated on Central Park West on the Upper West Side. It was one of the first luxury apartment buildings of New York. The building was built by the architect Robert Timothy Lyons in 1906. When you look from across the park, it's one of the most incredible architectural buildings that you can spot. It is characterized by its cupola and it brings over European architecture into the early turning of the century. The architecture of the building is Beaux-Arts in the Second Empire French and has a heavy influence from the Haussmann and his ways of urbanizing Paris. I was born and raised in Bucharest, Romania, then I moved to Milan where I studied architecture and then moved to Paris. I try to bring a bit of all the cultures into my practice. Some of the best projects are those that actually have a classic backdrop and where you manage to bring over a new contemporary, very modernist interior architecture and design element. This was the case of the penthouse of the St. Urban's where the bones of the apartment are definitely classical and inspired by Beaux-Arts architecture. And where the clients wanted to infuse, to live with relaxed European styles. So this is part of the philosophy of the project. Classic backdrop with modern, bold design elements. Basically everything here is custom. Every color was meticulously chosen. Every single shape has been well dimensioned in plan. I was always inspired by Carlos Carpa's work and I think it is incredible the way that he draws from geometry. I think the precision, the architectural lines that we find in Carlos Carpa's work are somehow present in this project. Starting with the circular shapes, layering of brutalist materials and less prestigious veneers. The study of light, many windows throughout the apartment. It's incredible to see the flow of light from outside on the park side to the living room and continuing to the outdoor terraces. There are a variety of windows and viewpoints throughout the apartment. Each of them different, each of them conceived in a different time. For example, the windows of the cupola and the windows facing Central Park were created at different moments from the facing of the outdoor garden. This is an important layering of different eras and different design elements passing from Beaux-Arts circular window to nearly industrial window in the terrace. This allows you to have the best views in town and in the meantime play with the structure that was pre-existing in the apartment. Lyons besides being an architect, he studied structure on Gothic churches and he loved how structure can become an aesthetic into the interiors of an apartment. Because we're in the penthouse, the space occupied by the mansard, you can actually see the structure in the interior of the apartment. It is incredible how the structure, it brings this industrial feeling to the penthouse. And I love the fact that you can see part of the roof structures through the windows. The copper of the mansard roof is actually popping in the views. The dining room is actually facing this floating garden that is located on the 12th floor of the Santa Urbans. And you can see the transparency that articulates between the spaces, the garden, the dining area and further in the living room. We try to keep this cohesiveness in between the spaces by connecting material. I think the sensation of calm that you feel is actually given by the fact that every nuance, every material, every texture has been carefully chosen to be combined with the rest. So the eye unconsciously sees and perceives this. The dining table is done in collaboration with artist Mr. Lee Skopkins. There's quite a variety of colors and textures and patterns here starting from the leopard stools to the resin, the mesh that we can see coming through the resin surface. Cashmere velvet, dotted kownhide and not to forget parchment lamp. There are some elements that actually break the speciality of this big open space. One of the two kitchen islands is one of these elements that actually facilitates the transition between the cooking, the kitchen area, the sit-down bar area and the living room. You can even see the visual connection that is created between the kitchen and the library in the Tourette's dome. This is the library. This is the Tourette's, above us you have the cupola and this space was designed as a scholar's library. For this environment we created and envisioned quite a few pieces of design starting from the table that is meant to center the circular environment by opposing its organic shape. The legs are done in plywood and fiberglass. The top is resin. You will notice our Brutalist chairs. The colors are bold and are made to be opposing to the Howard Miser Pea-straw chair. An equally interesting conceptual design. Howard himself plays with the definition of design. The structure is aleatory, it combines minimal building elements into actually an incredible piece of design. His work has a strong narrative. This is the house of George Chapin, the mastermind behind so many of AMC's movies and films. The clients make a big use of this space for writing, for reading and actually the pea-straw chair by Howard Miser. The frame actually indicates a cursive moment to me. It reminds me of the act of writing. Above us in the Tourette's you have a casual office space. It's where Josh sits and reads and gets his ideas. The St. Urbans, it was built to resemble a palace. It's actually like a vertical palace. So we take the European architectural style of a palace and we try to bring it vertical so that you can have better views. Of course the first thing that you can notice looking out of the windows is Central Park and you can observe the changing of the seasons throughout the year. This room has a very strong architectural presence. The boiseries, the way the windows are framed actually recreate this very powerful architectural moment. The height of the room as well is so important. This space that breezes and actually brings the architectural forms inside. I love the transparency that is created between the spaces. This circular shape that is reminiscent of the windows that actually allows light to go through the cupola from the office space to the library underneath. This space is situated on the second floor of the apartment while having views towards the Manhattan skyline and on the other side towards the living room below. This room was originally designed for Josh's daughter, Claire. She no longer lives in the space but this was carefully designed for her taste. Now it's used as a guest room and whenever Claire comes to visit. This is one of the many interesting reading moments throughout the house. I gradually felt that this room needed a vibrant element in opposition to the rest of the spaces which are mostly painted in calming whites. So I think this brings this coziness. I love the transition between a dark space like the corridor and this very bright, very vibrant Pompeian early red. The chandelier was also custom designed for the space. This is definitely one of my favorite parts of the apartment. I think the beginning of architecture is space planning. We always start from studying the flow, the circulations, the plan, how elements are spatially distributed, how light goes in, and then layering with textures, materials, colors. And of course the touch of my practice is bringing in these very bold conceptual design elements. The brief of the client was maximizing sitting areas, transforming this area into an ample relaxing moment. They wanted a layout that could allow them to entertain and to have family gatherings. We introduced a diagonal axis to the layout because we needed to increase the size of the sofa. You will notice as well the custom-built Joel Shafiro-inspired credenza. It is a piece that was intended to be placed diagonally. I love the simplicity of the shapes, the primordial forms, and also the superposition of different materials into the same element. It brings the geometry into a collectible design. The essence of collectible design is that it's meant to be produced in very limited series. It's often editions of five or like unique pieces. So it's not a mass-produced design. They're pieces that are done seasonally with a high craft equation to them and that are meant to be seen as nearly as art. I think modernism brings a new language to classical architecture but we will always have the classic backdrop of classicists in our city. This was the case of the penthouse of the St. Urbans where the bones of the apartment are definitely classical and inspired by Beaux-Arts architecture. This is part of the philosophy of the project, a classic backdrop with modern, bold design elements.