Designer Laura Gonzalez Puts a French Twist on an Upper East Side Townhouse
Vanity defines the architectural style of Manhattan’s Upper East Side. Within the confines of east 59th street and east 79th (though these borders are heavily disputed), buildings boast ornamented styles of the neo-Italian Renaissance, neo-Georgian, neo-Federal, and Art Deco eras. For Laura Gonazalez’s first solo-exhibition in New York City, titled New York Splendor, the French interior designer romanticizes the aforementioned, while adding a maximalist twist of her own.
For the designer, the Upper East Side is the best neighborhood to fully showcase her work because it represents New York architecture at its best: tall without being overbearing.“Even though the buildings are very high, you never feel too distressed by them,” Gonzalez tells Town and Country. “The façades are polished and the result blends in the green and natural environment surrounding them, which is very important to me.”
In partnership with the Invisible Collection, a curated online shopping design and art platform that carries world-renowned designers such as Pierre Augustin Rose and Charles Zana, Gonzalez’s affinity for more takes over the Invisible Collection's classic Upper East Side townhouse showroom on east 64th street which may be seen from now until the end of February.
“Her style is completely different from classic French designers, and perhaps she’s the first to dare to do maximalism in this way,” Isabelle Dubern-Mallevays, co-founder of the Invisible Collection, tells Town and Country. “We are happy that Laura brought something new and fresh to our townhouse in New York City; something different from the more minimalist styles that we are known for.”
Following an ascension of the townhouse’s grand staircase, one is immediately welcomed into an intimate foyer. For this exhibition, Gonzalez has transformed it into a dining room. In a true maximalist fashion, the main precious lacquer tabletop is morphed into the shape of grouped lily pads. To further create the illusion of a pond, the green Mawu chairs at the table boast an intricate gold embroidered linear design on their backs and, together, the designs on the chairs create a wave. All the while, a shimmering lily pad chandelier illuminates the room from above.
In the room next to the makeshift dining room, Gonzalez further flexes her skill in creating spaces where the eye wanders. In fact, the eye seems to wander forever. Does one look at the Casa sofa made in a Sanganeri-inspired print? How about the rug below? What about the Madras armchair that’s tucked in the corner under the orange chandelier made out of handblown glassware? Wherever your interest lands, the French renditions of classic 16th century chinoiserie wallpaper will surely dominate your sight.
“We had so much fun working on this project as it really was the encounter between two worlds,” Gonzalez says. “We wanted to preserve and highlight New York’s unique townhouse architecture which you can identify from the minute you enter and the stairs leading you up to the dining room.”
This uptown makeover closes out a dynamite year for Gonzalez. Her taste now illustrates the interiors of the legendary St. James Chateau-Hotel in Paris; further enhances the glamorous Cartier Flagship store in Paris; and even reinvents New York City’s Cartier Mansion. "I had a drink with Laura in Paris and in 15 minutes we decided to do a show together," Dubern-Mallevays says. "She insisted on being in New York for Christmas."
If New York’s Upper East side was in need of something more interesting to look at, Gonzalez certainly gave it to them.
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