In 1903, Gilded Age starchitect Stanford White of McKim, Mead & White completed a Manhattan mansion for the newspaper publisher and politician Joseph Pulitzer and his family. While the entire townhouse was spectacular, particular attention was paid to the parlor, and its high ceilings were embellished with decorative plasterwork depicting putti, tambourines, fruit, acanthus leaves, and urns.
A century later, Jean Liu, then 22, was at home in Dallas perusing the online classified property ads. “I am a serial real estate voyeur,” she says. She had recently earned a master’s degree in theology from Harvard and always dreamed of moving to New York City full-time to be with her friends. It wasn’t to happen. Liu was needed at home to pitch in with her father’s lighting and ceiling-fan business, Litex Industries, which he founded in 1980 after moving to the United States from Taiwan.
The marble mantel and mirror are original, the bust is vintage, and the antique candlesticks are French.
Nevertheless, in the classifieds she spotted a listing for a studio near Central Park on the Upper East Side. The ornate parlor that White had designed for the Pulitzers was now an 800-square-foot flat—possibly the world’s most glamorous one-room home. “I saw it on a Thursday and by Saturday I was flying to New York to view it,” says Liu.
When she arrived, there were several other interested parties and an intimidating co-op board to impress. But her sights were set on this period piece—and her bid was accepted. She quickly read everything she could on its history, learning that the Italianate architecture was inspired by palazzos in Venice. “This building was a departure for White,” she says. “Pulitzer didn’t like all the heavy ornamentation he typically employed, so White pared back the decoration for him.”
Get a Close-Up of This Historic Studio Apartment
“This apartment is my own private retreat. It’s an escape.” —Jean Liu
By 2007, she was able to take a less hands-on role in the family firm; she now serves on its board of directors. That year she established her ELLE DECOR A-List firm, Jean Liu Design, specializing in high-end residential and commercial interior design. Last year, with her company growing—and a plum project in New York City—she found it was time to put her own stamp on her Manhattan home. “It needed a fluff and buff,” she says. “It hadn’t been touched in 20 years.”
In the serene renovation, accomplished with the help of architect and neighbor Stephen Potters, the parlor’s ornate architecture quietly dazzles. It serves as the background for a home with a lighthearted femininity, balanced with a smattering of antiques and contemporary artworks by such artists as Elizabeth Jaeger, Dai Ban, and Cheyenne Julien. Liu retained a few select pieces from the original design scheme by McInroe, including the 19th-century mohair-covered daybed where she sleeps.
The single-room residence is still a room of her own; when she travels to New York, she leaves her husband of17 years, Erik Hansen, and their 12-year-old daughter, Cricket, back in Dallas with the family’s two cockapoos. “We normally go everywhere together but this apartment is my own private retreat,” she notes. “It’s an escape.”
To maximize the space, Liu carved it into zones. A seating area consists of a curved sofa and cork cocktail table from Egg Collective, while the dining section has a marble Cassina table surrounded by vintage Børge Mogensen dining chairs. “I furnished it selfishly,” she says, “with things that aren’t kid-friendly, pet-friendly, or husband-appreciated, like pale pink mohair drapery.”
The single-room resi
The single-room residence is still a room of her own; when she travels to New York, she leaves her husband of17 years, Erik Hansen, and their 12-year-old daughter, Cricket, back in Dallas with the family’s two cockapoos. “We normally go everywhere together but this apartment is my own private retreat,” she notes. “It’s an escape.”
To maximize the space, Liu carved it into zones. A seating area consists of a curved sofa and cork cocktail table from Egg Collective, while the dining section has a marble Cassina table surrounded by vintage Børge Mogensen dining chairs. “I furnished it selfishly,” she says, “with things that aren’t kid-friendly, pet-friendly, or husband-appreciated, like pale pink mohair drapery.”
dence is still a room of her own; when she travels to New York, she leaves her husband of17 years, Erik Hansen, and their 12-year-old daughter, Cricket, back in Dallas with the family’s two cockapoos. “We normally go everywhere together but this apartment is my own private retreat,” she notes. “It’s an escape.”
To maximize the space, Liu carved it into zones. A seating area consists of a curved sofa and cork cocktail table from Egg Collective, while the dining section has a marble Cassina table surrounded by vintage Børge Mogensen dining chairs. “I furnished it selfishly,” she says, “with things that aren’t kid-friendly, pet-friendly, or husband-appreciated, like pale pink mohair drapery.”
The kitchen’s cabinets are painted in Elephant’s Breath by Farrow & Ball. The Malayer runner is vintage, the Eliko Rugs are by David Ariel, and the ceramic vase is by Devon Liedtke.
The new star of the studio is a set of embroidered wall panels by de Gournay depicting floating mountains. “I put together things I love without worrying about whether they work together,” she says. “Now that I’m in my 40s, I have the confidence I didn’t have when I was younger.”
Even after all these years, she still relies on her New York City trips to recharge. And nothing gives her that energy more than the pied-à-terre she has loved since she was just out of school. “My relationship with New York has always been one of awe and inspiration,” Liu says. “Twenty years later, this apartment still gives me that feeling.”
