Matt Duffer’s Manhattan Pied-à-Terre: 15-Foot Brutalist Sofa, Chocolate Walls

The article chronicles how a 2,300-square-foot 1929 Manhattan pied-à-terre—originally a classic six that had never been renovated—was reimagined into a bold, functional family home.

With a commitment to honoring the building’s 1920s bones, the owners enlisted Gramercy Design’s Kyle O’Donnell to rethink every surface. The result is a cohesive yet playful interior that fuses vintage drama with modern practicality.

Project Overview and Constraints

The apartment sits in a historic New York City fabric where architectural restraint and structural realities shape design decisions.

A partially remaining drop ceiling in the living room became a guiding constraint, prompting a dramatic transformation into a recessed oval dome crowned by a sculptural plaster chandelier.

The goal was to maintain the authenticity of the 1920s shell while delivering a sustainable, family-friendly environment.

To support everyday life for a busy couple and their daughters, the design team selected durable, statement-making pieces and custom features that could weather daily use while elevating the home’s character.

The plan emphasizes flow between entertaining spaces and private sanctuaries, with a nuanced palette and tactile materials that speak to both nostalgia and contemporary living.

The Creative Team and Vision

Matt Duffer and Sarah Hindsgaul, backed by Kyle O’Donnell of Gramercy Design, collaborated to overhaul every surface.

O’Donnell’s prior work on David Harbour’s loft impressed the couple with a design language that respects the building’s bones while infusing forward-looking comforts.

The project embraces bold, fantastical choices—an intentional blend of vintage pieces and custom commissions to create a family home with a strong sense of place.

Living, Dining, and Kitchen: The Core Triad

A central design strategy was to reconfigure the floor plan into a European-influenced layout that supports daily family life and entertaining.

The living room anchors the space with an oval dome above a sculptural chandelier, transforming a structural constraint into a sculptural feature.

The dining and kitchen areas follow with detailing that nods to Hindsgaul’s Scandinavian roots and the building’s era.

Key Rooms and Features

• Living room: a 15-foot rust-mohair Brutalist sofa by Dune, arranged to face three directions, built for daily use and family gatherings.
• Dining room: a two-week hand-painted botanical mural by Dean Barger, paired with vintage Marcel Breuer chairs, a custom marble table, and a converted closet-turned-wet bar papered in patinated-copper-look Fabricut wallpaper.
• Kitchen: reconfigured with a European-style layout and Delft-style Viking-ship tiles from Douglas Watson Studio, offering a playful nod to Hindsgaul’s upbringing.
• Primary bedroom: lacquered in Benjamin Moore’s Chocolate Candy Brown, featuring a red leatherette vanity and sheer Loro Piana curtains for drama with calmness.
• Primary bathroom: expanded to include verdigris and polished copper finishes, a circular “La Cage” shower enclosure from Catchpole & Rye, and custom-shaped tiles made in Mexico requiring shop drawings.
• Girls’ bedroom: a playful, bespoke space with a Roi du Lac mural, an upholstered bunk bed with trundle, and mauve-and-purple Italian tiles that tie the palette together.

Materiality, Craft, and Color Language

The project leans into tactile materials and crafted surfaces as a language of luxury and resilience.

Verdigris copper, patinated wallpaper, and hand-painted murals blend maritime and Brutalist cues with refined elegance.

Custom-fabricated elements, like the tile geometry from Mexico and the joinery of the wet bar, are designed to endure family life while maintaining architectural detail.

Outcome: A Modern Home with 1920s Soul

In the end, the duo and the design team achieve a home that is both dramatic and approachable.

The apartment respects the original architectural bones. It also embraces a futurist confidence.

Bold pieces, bespoke commissions, and playful color come together to create a functional family home in the heart of Manhattan.

 
Here is the source article for this story: Stranger Things Co-Creator Matt Duffer’s Manhattan Pied-à-Terre Features a 15-Foot Brutalist Sofa and Chocolate Walls