Inside Designer Duo The Novogratz’s Artful NYC Haven Where Contemporary and Vintage Design Coalesce

Celebrated designer duo The Novogratz has turned a dilapidated mansion in New York City’s West Village into a haven of art and design where contemporary and vintage flirt in timeless fashion

Just steps away from New York City’s Washington Square Park lies a Beaux-Arts classic brownstone home with a very distinct history dating back to 1826. Once the abode of former Rockette and actress, Celeste Martin, the Greenwich Village home used to be a prosperous centre for artists and glamourous events, attracting the city’s most lavish and stylish. Decades on, the five-storey, seven-bedroom townhouse lay dilapidated and abandoned before undergoing a massive renovation by husband-and-wife design duo, Robert and Cortney Novogratz of the eponymous and famed firm, The Novogratz.

After spending more than 20 years renovating homes from across the US western coast, the team discovered this New York ruin, so debilitated that it had to be, quite literally, rebuilt from the ground up, on the verge of collapse.

“The goal of the renovation was to bring an old, beautiful, and historic building back to life, give it a future while still retaining it,” explains Cortney, designer and one half of The Novogratz. “Taking it down to the studs, we did as much as we could to preserve the spirit of the original property.”

As part of this renovation, all the millwork in the house was custom-built, with the floors and windows fully replaced to bring in the light and city views. An elevator was installed, while the previous dirt pit became a gorgeous garden created by Cortney, featuring plantings on the roof deck to help turn the two-storey roof into a green oasis with 360-degree views of the Empire State Building located further uptown.

“Our favourite room and the most distinct aspect of the home is the grand ballroom,” Cortney reveals. Located on the fifth floor, it features 24-foot ceilings and a huge arched window overlooking Waverly Place. “You can just imagine all the grand parties and events that were once thrown here.”

In the same room, the couple added a bright yellow mantel, a baby grand piano, and a vintage sofa that they reupholstered in pink fabric – their way of paying tribute to the original facade of the home, in hopes of trapping the same creative spirit within the room.

“We love to juxtapose vintage furnishings with contemporary art,” Robert adds. “And we aren’t afraid of colour! From the Gucci wallpaper to the Micro Factory orange chair by Tom Dixon at the dining table, the yellow fireplace in the ballroom and the purple upholstered vintage Gio Ponti chairs, we love pieces that have personality.”

While the building exterior was painted a warm ochre, its interior walls received a luxe plaster treatment that would revive the soul of the long vacant spaces. The property also features a media room, a spacious kitchen that opens onto the garden, a dining room and a sitting room – in addition to the seven bedrooms and bathrooms that populate the home. The furnishings have been sourced and collected from around the world by The Novogratz, boasting vintage finds from the team’s favourite stores including Cure Thrift, Gio Ponti chairs, daring light fixtures, top materials mixed with new pieces, and plenty of Novogratz products and designs as part of the finished home.

Down to the details, the kitchen now has a sleek La Cornue range, while Gucci wallcoverings are peppered throughout the house and a luxurious mantel from 1stDibs has found its home in the master bedroom.

Displayed throughout and becoming the heart of the home, is an enviable collection of art and other rare finds that add character to the storied building. While Erwin Olaf ’s Hope is the couple’s self-confessed favourite artwork to wake up to, illustrations by Anne Siems come in a close second. Pop art is hung on every wall including Damien Hirst’s whimsical skateboards for Supreme in the children’s bedroom. A photograph of Kobe Bryant by Martin Schoeller stands starkly in the sitting area and represents the team’s affirmation to self-portraiture with an equally striking Vik Muniz piece draped within the walls of the home.

“We love Vik Muniz, and we have a special affinity for his work because he is from Brazil – we visit Brazil often because of our house there, and the country is very close to our hearts,” Robert enthuses.

The Novogratz took on this ambitious project through multiple challenges, including a pandemic, supply-chain issues and a host of landmark rules to navigate. But in the end, the project was able to restore more than just the original spirt and old-world charm of the home, as according to Cortney, “The house has transformed the energy of the whole neighbourhood.”

Photography by William Waldron & Costas Picadas

From Harper’s Bazaar Arabia’s October 2023 issue.