I swooned when I came across this Art Deco-inspired apartment designed by Richard Gillette in a 1979 issue of GQ. At the time Gillette was primarily known as a painter; he had graduated from SVA with a BFA in Fine Arts in 1972. Throughout the Seventies, he often worked painting backdrops for fashion photographers—Deborah Turbeville, Arthur Elgort, etc.—and began to expand into whole interiors towards the end of the decade. Richard’s brother is (Francis) Rick Gillette, who was a major Vogue hair and makeup artist—in addition to working together often, they lived together. This apartment was, I believe, shared by the brothers (half the articles I found called it Richard’s, the other half Rick’s).
Using a palette of “grays edging toward black, muted greens, yellow-beiges and just a hint of gold,” Richard hand-painted almost every surface; from the foyer to the bedrooms, along the hallways, closet doors, and ceilings. As Richard told the NY Times in 1977, “It’s a reaction against the stark white of the city apartment. I wanted to open up the rooms, to give them movement and dimension.” Viewed as a reclamation of the past, it was featured in GQ alongside an article on postmodernist architect Michael Graves; both were seen to be undertaking a “rich reordering of art history.” Philip Smith wrote in the introduction to the two pieces, “The past is no longer regarded as something to be obliterated but, instead, as a rich and supportive source for future directions.” This midtown apartment—so individual, so glamorous—became Richard’s calling card for new clients and was featured extensively in the press.
Within a few years, the brothers separated and individually created highly stylized, highly personal spaces—Richard a loft in Tribeca and Rick a loft in the Financial District (see photos here). Known for elegance and the use of his still hand-painted surfaces, Richard's forty-year career in interior design has bought him great acclaim. A book on Richard’s spaces was published by Rizzoli in 2011, The Art of the Interior.
A few years ago, I did a long interview with Rick—you can learn all about his own path here. Rick’s homes were also photographed and featured in shelter magazines worldwide, leading him to start a new career in interior design in 2000. In 2013 he opened a gallery, FRG Objects & Design / Art, in the town of Hudson in upstate New York. The gallery combines fine art, lighting, and furniture in a light-filled 3000 sq. foot space, all perfectly curated by Rick. Richard also lives in Hudson—continuing to design highly elegant spaces.
As the photos and text from GQ and Progressive Architecture provide different information and viewpoints, I’ve included both below. As someone who loves Art Deco—and particularly the way Art Deco was reimagined in the 1970s—this home is a dream.
GQ, November 1979. Text by Peter Carlsen, photos by David Glomb.
Richard Gillette essentially considers himself a painter. His interiors are seldom structurally modified; instead, changes occur on the surface. Worlds of illusion, along with rich patterns and sophisticated references to the history of art, are the basis of his design vocabulary.
Heroic-sized murals on the dining room walls are painted on Belgian linen (says Gillette, "I like the effect of stone it suggests") and were inspired by the stylization of Leni Riefenstahl's 1936 film "Olympia." The table is one of the artist's designs, as well, and the entire apartment approaches that ancient ideal, the total work of art. It's certainly the realization of a singularly complete, unique vision. Gillette's work revels in the unexpected via the offsetting of diverse eras. If the net effect is surreal, that's precisely his intention. "Surrealism is one of my strongest influences," he notes.
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