Designer Spotlight

Glenn Gissler Crafts a Serene New York Home for an Art-Loving Couple

Sometimes, a change of address is about wiping the slate clean and starting over with new furnishings and art. Other times, it’s more about bringing into a different setting things that you’ve long lived with and find meaningful, allowing them to be seen and experienced afresh.

The latter scenario is a pretty apt description of a recent interiors project that designer Glenn Gissler oversaw for repeat clients on New York City’s Upper West Side. The couple traded a prewar apartment Gissler had designed for them a decade or so earlier for a condo in a newly constructed building just a few blocks north, and while they didn’t travel far, the move brought them a world away in terms of vibe.

Portait of interior designer Glenn Gissler and his studio's senior designer, Craig Strulovitz, in the office
Glenn Gissler (left) recently collaborated with his studio’s senior designer, Craig Strulovitz (right), on the design of a new apartment on Manhattan’s Upper West Side for repeat clients (portrait by Gross & Daley). Top: A Jacob Hashimoto wall sculpture hangs behind the dining area’s custom walnut table and Eero Saarinen chairs. John Saladino table lamps top the built-in cabinet, and a branching chandelier by Lindsey Adelman hangs above. All photos by Alexandra Rowley unless otherwise noted

“The other residence was in an early-twentieth-century, old-school, sophisticated building,” says Gissler. “This apartment is more casual and modern, fresher, with much better light. It has these kind of Mary Poppins views of chimneys and roofs, overlooking a church on one side.”

It also came with five bedrooms, useful for accommodating friends and the families of the couple’s grown children, even with two of those rooms converted into his and hers offices and a third into a TV den with a sofa bed.

The entertaining space, which Gissler notes has an open, almost loft-like quality, consists of one expansive room comprising living and dining areas, with a kitchen separated by pocket doors that can be tucked away to create a freer flow. It’s a perfect setup for the couple, who are active in philanthropy and host fundraisers and other gatherings.

“Lighter, brighter, more contemporary” is how Craig Strulovitz, Gissler’s senior designer and collaborator on the project, sums up the clients’ priorities. While the apartment checked those boxes, the architectural detailing was quite plain, if not nonexistent, so the design team added and replaced moldings throughout. 

They also created a stepped-tray detail for the ceiling in the combined living and dining area. “That ceiling plane is large, so it helped to bring some scale to the space and make it feel more refined,” says Strulovitz. Or, as the husband puts it, “It just made the room a little bit more elegant and homier.”

Pair of Holly Hunt swivel chairs in front of an A. Rudin console, Hervé Van Der Straeten Tornade lamp and a Pablo Picasso portrait of Dora Maar in the living room of apartment on New York's Upper West Side designed by Glenn Gissler and Craig Strulovitz
Behind the living room’s pair of Holly Hunt swivel chairs, an A. Rudin console holds an Hervé Van Der Straeten Tornade lamp from Maison Gerard. A Pablo Picasso aquatint portrait of Dora Maar is mounted above the console, while collages by Conrad Marca-Relli hang on the wall to the left. The stoneware vase atop the console is by Turi Heisselberg Pedersen while the smaller ceramic vessel is by Bennett Bean.

Another big change from the previous apartment was in the color palette. In the client’s former home, a sprawling Persian carpet in the living room served as a jumping-off point for a scheme featuring jewel tones and hits of pronounced pattern. Here, it’s mostly neutral off-whites, grays and soft blues —“ethereal and chalky,” says Gissler, noting that “the clients were very clear that they wanted calm.” 

Fabrics and carpets are mostly monochromatic, with minimal accents of pattern. The designers varied materials and textures to create a sense of layered sumptuousness.

A Warren Platner cocktail table between a custom sofa and Artbrokerdesign floor lamp.in the living room of apartment on New York's Upper West Side designed by Glenn Gissler and Craig Strulovitz
A Warren Platner cocktail table rests between the living room’s custom sofa and a Rispal Giraffe floor lamp from Artbrokerdesign.

One of the very first items acquired for the apartment was the entrance gallery’s nubbly Scandinavian-inspired runner by Nasiri, featuring a geometric pattern with soft edges in grayish hues. Gissler calls it “a little bit fuzzy, like fog.”

Elsewhere in the hallway, a wall-mounted George Nakashima cabinet pairs with an antique Ethiopian carved chair, conveying an emphasis on craftsmanship and rich materiality, while mid-century abstract artworks by Al Held and James Brooks join a black-and-white collage by Gary Gissler, the designer’s brother, made with overlapping rectangles of linen, some with tiny fragments of typed text.

“My brother is a psychoanalyst as well as an artist, and it’s a highly maniacal work,” the designer says, referring to the intensely obsessive nature of its collaged composition.

Gissler guided the couple in the acquisition of many of the artworks in their collection, including a number of pieces that came from their previous apartment. Among these are a Pablo Picasso aquatint portrait of Dora Maar and a pair of Conrad Marca-Relli collages, in the living area, plus a Cy Twombly print of script-like swirls and a Jacob Hashimoto wall sculpture with intricately layered elements, in the dining area.

View through half open pocket doors into the kitchen of an apartment on New York's Upper West Side designed by Glenn Gissler and Craig Strulovitz
Pocket doors can be closed to separate the living and dining area from the kitchen — or opened to allow easy flow when entertaining. Holly Hunt sconces flank the doorway, while Cliff Young counter stools tuck under the kitchen island.

The Hashimoto was commissioned from the artist for the owners’ previous dining room; here, Gissler created a custom niche for it. “For me, it creates a feeling of continuity between the two places,” says the husband.

Similarly, the clients were deeply fond of the Lindsey Adelman branching light fixture with glass globes that was in their previous bedroom. For the new apartment, they acquired a similar one, but with smoky glass, to hang above the custom walnut dining table ringed by modernist Eero Saarinen chairs from Knoll.

The wife, in particular, has a love of ceramics, and bowls and vessels from mostly contemporary makers are arrayed on tables and cabinets and in bookshelves all through the interiors. Examples in the living room range from a shapely celadon-hued stoneware vase by Turi Heisselberg Pedersen to a richly decorated pot by Bennett Bean, both perched on a console next to the Picasso. 

Art, books, baskets nestled onto and under a custom Tucker Robbins live-edge wooden bench in a guest bedroom in an apartment on New York's Upper West Side designed by Glenn Gissler and Craig Strulovitz
The designers accented a guest bedroom with a custom Tucker Robbins bench.

The ceramics theme extends to the room’s lighting, which includes a vintage graphically patterned Kelby table lamp acquired from 1stDibs, as well as a custom ceiling fixture with rectilinear ceramic shades by Dumais Made. “We didn’t want anything that would add glare,” says Gissler. “It gives lovely light and helps to anchor that end of the room.”

Throughout the apartment, upholstered seating brought from the couple’s previous apartment was refreshed with new fabrics, complemented by bespoke tables and a sprinkling of vintage pieces. Standouts among the latter include the living room’s 1950s Rispal Giraffe floor lamp, with its svelte, playfully tapering U shape, and the den’s curvy cardboard Frank Gehry Wiggle Chair, an iconic design that the wife’s father, who did marketing and branding work, had a hand in naming. 

The wife grew up living around a lot of classic modern furniture, and the influence that had on her taste is evident in the choices for her private office and studio. This is where she works on charity initiatives and creates meticulous small-scale collages, seated in a Saarinen armchair at a Wim Rietveld table by Hay.

The room’s custom shelves are packed with vintage books and other source materials for her collages, as well as objects of personal significance. “In here, I can have a lot of stuff out, which might look like clutter to some people, but for me, it’s delightful,” she says.

Charles and Ray Eames lounge chair and ottoman, a Gerald Thurston floor lamp, and an Edward Burtynsky photograph in the husband's office in an apartment on New York's Upper West Side designed by Glenn Gissler and Craig Strulovitz
The designers placed a Charles and Ray Eames lounge chair and ottoman and a Gerald Thurston floor lamp in the husband’s office, where an Edward Burtynsky photograph hangs above a contemporary cabinet.

The husband, who is largely retired, has his own custom-tailored space, outfitted with a 1950s Ib KofodLarsen desk and bookcases sprinkled with work- and golf-related mementos — “things that mean something to me and nobody else,” he says. A leather-upholstered Charles and Ray Eames Lounge chair next to a vintage Gerald Thurston tripod floor lamp offers a comfortable spot for reading or simply relaxing.

“One of the things that I like about this setup is we each have our own space that we can fill to the brim with stuff that we somehow like to be around,” he says. “But then, the common areas are very clean and simple.”

Gissler concurs, describing the overall approach as “edited, where the rooms are furnished just enough, with enough artwork and delight to satisfy the eye, but there’s also space for repose and calm.”

Cliff Young nightstands and Danny Kaplan Studio table lamps flanking a Lawson-Fenning upholstered bed. in the primary suite of an apartment on New York's Upper West Side designed by Glenn Gissler and Craig Strulovitz
Cliff Young nightstands topped by Danny Kaplan Studio table lamps flank the primary suite’s Lawson-Fenning bed. The ceiling fixture is by Ingo Maurer. The artworks above the headboard are by Brice Marden, and the one on the adjacent wall is by David Shapiro.

In the couple’s serene bedroom, there’s a subtle interplay between the shapes of the Ingo Mauer triple-tiered Japanese paper pendant light, the Brice Marden prints with calligraphic swirls above the bed and the statuesque ceramic beside lamps by Danny Kaplan Studio. “It’s understated,” says Gissler, “and yet there’s a formal sophistication.”

Hanging on one of the bedroom’s walls is an idiosyncratic artwork, a mandala-like constellation of shapes and markings. It was created by David Shapiro, a close family friend whose pieces have been a part of the clients’ lives for many years now. As with many of the artworks and objects they own, they couldn’t imagine not having it around. “In addition to being aesthetically appealing, a lot of our art has a very personal feeling,” says the wife. “It’s like living with friends.”

Glenn Gissler’s Quick Picks

Guillerme et Chambron for Votre Maison Elmyre Lounge Chairs, ca. 1960, offered by Pavilion Antiques
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Guillerme et Chambron for Votre Maison Elmyre Lounge Chairs, ca. 1960, offered by Pavilion Antiques

 “Not your basic slipper chair! The expressed framework and the back of these chairs are sensational and look great from all angles.”

Mansour rug, 2010s, offered by Mansour
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Mansour rug, 2010s, offered by Mansour

 “We find that flat-weave area rugs can be a more casual approach to floor coverings. The soft color palette of this geometric flat-weave, based on vintage Swedish precedents, gives it a fresh look.”

Diego Mardegan Sconce, New, offered by Galerie Glustin
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Diego Mardegan Sconce, New, offered by Galerie Glustin

 “The large scale and striking graphic point of view of these wall sconces make them much more than just light fixtures. Hanging them in a room would help set a distinct visual tone while also providing illumination.”

Mira Nakashima Credenza, New, offered by Original in Berlin
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Mira Nakashima Credenza, New, offered by Original in Berlin

 “There is so much to love about this fantastic Nakashima cabinet — the scale and proportion, the remarkable base, the clean graphic architecture of the doors and the live-edge top.”

Eberth Zürich Floor Lamp, 1950s, offered by Alexandra Alge Möbelagentur
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Eberth Zürich Floor Lamp, 1950s, offered by Alexandra Alge Möbelagentur

Great lighting is something we are always looking for. Lamps provide opportunities for visual delight, and the lean sculptural lines of this one really deliver.”  

T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings for Widdicomb Armchair, 1955, offered by Avery & Dash Collections
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T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings for Widdicomb Armchair, 1955, offered by Avery & Dash Collections

 “Robsjohn-Gibbings is always a favorite. His works can be wonderful expressions of ancient furniture, as in this mid-twentieth-century armchair with classical influences. The unique base of the piece makes for a graphic structure that turns the chair into something special.”

Josef Hoffmann for Moser Vase, 1915–20, offered by Highland Park Modern
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Josef Hoffmann for Moser Vase, 1915–20, offered by Highland Park Modern

 “I became smitten with Hoffmann when I first learned of his work, decades ago. This lead-crystal Moser vase would look great with or without flowers in it.”

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