A Sophisticated Manhattan Home Embraces Its Sweeping Vistas

Bennett Leifer’s clients anticipated an effortless design project. After all, the full-floor Manhattan apartment they’d acquired was recently constructed, requiring only furnishings and finishing touches. But at their first concept meeting, the designer put forth a bold proposition. “Listen,” he told them, “you are either going to fire me or think I’m a genius.” Fortunately, they thought the latter following Leifer’s proposition to maximize the interiors and 360-degree vistas through a transformative renovation.

Their residence, soaring high in the sky, is intended as a retreat. “The initial direction was to keep it light and easy,” the designer recalls. “The bullet points were: Honor the view, make it comfortable, unique and experiential, and ensure it feels finished.” Yet the home’s angular shape and flow hampered the full potential for these opportunities. Leifer foresaw a way to convert the four-bedroom residence into a spacious two-bedroom with public and private areas, smooth transitions and eye-catching sight lines—inside and outside—at every chance.

The vision, a sophisticated setting with artistic touches, came easily. “My process is like a Rubik’s cube in my head,” the designer says, explaining his macro viewpoint. Executing and enhancing it, though, required architect Annie Coombs and general contractor Konrad Jankowski. Crucially, the team transformed the primary bathroom into an architectural feat starring a central circular shower facing floor-to-ceiling panoramas from left to right. “You’re so high up that there are no other towers,” Coombs points out, “so you can bathe with a view.” In lieu of shower doors, curved glass walls fan from a column clad in Tadelakt, a waterproof plaster common in Morocco. “It’s very soft to the touch and has a beautiful patina,” the architect observes. While countering the abundant light reflection throughout the space, its deep tone complements the white, light gray and dark gray floor tiles that echo the shape of the shower. “The bathroom was a playful moment,” she says, “and I loved that the clients wanted to play.”

This spirited confidence drove decisions to foster strong visual interest throughout the project. “The overall plan for this apartment was: When you’re looking at a window, I don’t want to block it,” Leifer explains. “When you’re looking away from a window, I still want you to see something beautiful.” Renovation work helped accomplish this, including blowing out a wall between the foyer hall and primary suite that then granted east-to-west sights from the entry. “You can see the Hudson and East rivers, which is pretty special,” Coombs emphasizes. From there, the team adjusted the thresholds in the vast living room, where material selections were key. “The goal was to have them be neutral but not boring,” the designer says. “We wanted to bring a lot of impact—but understated.” Bronze casings reflect light as chocolate-brown stained-oak walls drink it in. Besides the view, the room’s focal point is an artisan bar paneled in a glistening églomisé mural. “This was out of the clients’ comfort zone,” Leifer admits, “and it became one of their favorites.”

The bar grounds a seating area defined by low furnishings in cozy materials that, like their architectural counterpoints, respond to the setting. “Nothing absorbs light better than silk-velvets,” the designer muses, “and bouclés feel like clouds.” Ivory and gray form a cohesive palette that carries into the dining area at the opposite end of the room. Yet the color story grows bolder in spaces like the guest bedroom, enveloped in rich emerald. “We wanted to make it feel like this fun, otherworldly environment,” Leifer says. A photograph featuring an astronaut drives this point home and demonstrates how the designer used artwork for moments of levity. But in the silver-walled primary bedroom, creative textures offer artistic flair, like the panels of iridescent feathers above the bed. “They bring so much interest that it alleviates the need for art,” Leifer notes. “And the wallcovering blends into a cloudy sky while still being beautiful on its own.” Like its adjoining bathroom, this space received an extensive face-lift: The team raised the ceilings, reworked the entry and reoriented the headboard wall so the bed faces the East River.

Reminiscent of an observatory lounge glowing in the nighttime sky, the finished product exudes chic, sexy appeal for classic New York entertaining—all for the residents themselves. “They wanted it to feel better than any restaurant or bar,” Leifer says. “It’s a destination for them.”