Workshop/APD

Workshop/APD founding principals Andrew Kotchen (right) and Matt Berman (left) and principal architect Tom Zoli pride themselves on their multidisciplinary New York studio’s not having a signature style. For them, the look of every project is determined by the client’s needs and preferences and the site’s circumstances. This duplex apartment on Central Park West was a gut renovation for a highly sophisticated and adventurous couple with three teenage children, who wanted a home expressive of their close-knit clan. That’s why the family room is designed to be so warm, embracing and playful. The big blue, cushy sectional, a custom design, invites sprawling and lounging, while the coffee table and ottomans, both by Workshop/APD, encourage relaxed snacking and games. Adding to the sense of fun are Frank Gehry’s cardboard Wiggle chair, a 1stDibs find, and Pierre Paulin’s Alpha club chair. Bethany Collins’s Information Wanted, an installation of 42 framed crimson sheets imprinted with text fragments, makes a bold counterpoint to the palette of ochers and blues. But the most meaningful text in the room may be the ribbon of words carved into the base of the white-oak millwork (some of which can be read to the left of the Gehry chair), which describe and inspire the family.