A penthouse with panoramic views brings the outside in by referencing the iconic shapes of San Francisco’s skyline and the Bay’s topography, while staying true to the building’s history as an Art Deco masterpiece.
This high-rise built in 1927 is an exemplar of Art Deco style. It was important to the client that we be sensitive to this history while remaining forward-thinking. The living and dining rooms are cast in the blues, blacks, and silvers of the era, but set off by bright and unusual yellows. Our client loves to socialize, so we designed a sofa that allows guests to look at each other without blocking the views from the fifteenth floor. The shape of the area rug, in black with light trim, is a nod to the chevrons on the Chrysler Building.
Otherwise, we kept the design ideas local, and the inside works as a map of the cityscape outside. The pyramidal base of the dinner table is patterned on the Trans-American Building just outside the window. A Ted McCann painting, inspired by JB Blunk’s home in Inverness, looks like San Francisco’s city grid or a skyscraper lit up at night; while Sarah Thibault’s painting of flowers, bought fromPt. 2 Gallery in Oakland, takes cues from a psilocybin trip. For the living room, we chose a daybed designed by Anne-Mette Jensen and Morten Ernst for Erik Jorgensen because of its topographic resemblance to the bay. Elsewhere are artworks and furnishing from artists all around the Bay Area: Bruce Mitchell, NJ Roseti, Tina Frey, and Nick Makanna.
