A fortuitous “Help! What do I do?” became the catalyst for a profound transformation in the nearly 4,900-square-foot SoHo loft of American fashion designer and philanthropist Kay Unger, orchestrated in collaboration with AD100 Hall of Fame interior designer Jamie Drake. The unexpected disaster of a burst pipe, leading to extensive flooding that damaged floors and walls, was reframed by the friends and fellow Parsons School of Design alums as an opportunity for reinvention and a pivotal perspective shift.
A Collaborative Vision Emerges
“Kay is one of the most optimistic people I have ever met,” observes Drake. “She can look at the blackest hole and see light inside of it.” This shared optimism allowed them to identify a significant silver lining in the calamity. “When Kay said, ‘disaster,’ I saw opportunity,” Drake continues. “Kay had lived in this apartment since 2004, and there were parts of it that were ready to be redone that she wouldn’t have otherwise addressed. At the center of the apartment was the kitchen—we completely reconfigured and reimagined it.”
A Symphony of Color and Sustainability
The newly configured dual-zone heart of the home, featuring a striking lipstick-red custom range hood in the open-plan kitchen and a discreetly concealed workspace, immediately signals Unger’s newly discovered interior aesthetic: a bold embrace of color. While her fashion collections have always exuded vibrancy, her living spaces had previously remained neutral. Drake, conversely, is renowned for his masterful use of color. “I said, ‘We come at it from different sides, but I’d love to work together, show people that we, who have different tastes, can come up with something fabulous,’” Unger recalls, entrusting Drake’s design sensibility. “And Jamie really added color in a way I’d never experienced and would never live without again.”
The design thoughtfully incorporates sustainable practices, aligning with the ethos of Parsons’ Healthy Materials Lab. The kitchen cabinetry features formaldehyde-free PureBond plywood, and an Edward Fields rug is crafted from leather scraps. Repurposed rolled corrugated cardboard tables, originally from the 10th anniversary Healthy Materials Lab gala, add unique character. A mesmerizing light installation, composed of thousands of recycled plastic bottles, further underscores the commitment to environmental consciousness. Notably, half of the apartment’s furniture was salvaged from the flood damage, with some pieces luxuriously reupholstered and others skillfully stripped and restained.
Drake’s masterful integration of color is exemplified in the primary bedroom, where a pale cameo pink adorns the walls, inspired by a sentimental, albeit flood-damaged, Persian heirloom rug and a significant Robert Rauschenberg artwork. “It’s like an embrace, a gentle kiss,” Drake describes the effect. Unger, initially hesitant, fully embraced the hue, finding it universally admired, with the Benjamin Moore Pink Damask ecocolor being a frequent inquiry.
Reimagining Art and Personal Space
“She has marvelous things to work with, which worked into our commitment to be green and sustainable,” Drake notes, highlighting Unger’s art collection, partly inherited and partly acquired. A key aspect of their collaborative process involved re-envisioning the placement of these treasured pieces. “We moved things around,” he explains, detailing the relocation of Andy Warhol’s artworks from the primary suite to the foyer hallway, and the reconfiguration of Mary Corse ceramics from a square arrangement into a linear installation. “I think it’s a wonderful thing to do with things you own and treasure,” Drake reflects. “It’s how to reinvigorate your own personal interaction with them, by putting them in new installations. It literally changes your perspective.”
Unger expresses her newfound appreciation for this approach: “You don’t have to be locked into art; it can become part of you.” She draws a parallel to how people style her clothing, adapting it to their own identities. “So many people feel like, ‘Oh, I have to do everything exactly the way the artist wants,’ but if you own it, making it yours is OK. And I’ve experienced that really beautifully with Jamie.”
Business Style Takeaway: This residence exemplifies how a crisis can catalyze a sophisticated reevaluation of personal space, blending bold aesthetic choices with sustainable practices. The transformation underscores the power of design collaboration in elevating a luxury home into a dynamic environment that reflects both personal evolution and a conscious lifestyle.
Based on materials from : www.architecturaldigest.com