// 834 FIFTH AVENUE MANHATTAN new york united states www.brownharrisstevens.com
New York state of mind A palatial Fifth Avenue duplex with Rockefeller connections affords a surprising level of privacy, as well as unsurpassed views of Central Park // ph o t o g r aph y b y f r anc e s c o l a g n e s e w o r d s b y Em i l e e T o m b s
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// w i th i n th e s e w a l l s This is the largest existing original apartment on Fifth Avenue, and of all its 20 rooms, the 720-squarefoot main living room is the most impressive: it has two fireplaces and windows that afford unchallenged views of Central Park. According to owner Susan Gutfreund, the low windows are the secret to the great views and ample light.
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ou may think that living on one of Manhattan’s most exclusive streets, in an apartment with windows looking over Central Park, life might be somewhat public. Yet tenants past and present at 834 Fifth Avenue enjoyed an impressive level of anonymity, thanks to its establishment as a cooperative. Designed by Sicilian-born Rosario Candela, one of New York’s best-loved architects, the limestoneclad 16-story building built in 1931 was considered his crowning achievement. Candela moved to New York in the 1920s, not speaking a word of English; within five years, he’d graduated from Columbia University, honed his skills as a draftsman, and
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started to design buildings that would go on to become the city’s best examples of Art Deco architecture. His work set the standard for interior spatial design that many others would follow, and today, according to architectural historian Christopher Gray, “to own a 10- to 20-room apartment in a Candela-designed building is to accede to architectural as well as social cynosure.” Here, in this magnificent front-corner two-story apartment, the interiors are by the late Henri Samuel, who, as well as being the designer of choice for owner Susan Gutfreund, the Rothschilds, and couturier Valentino, restored the Empire rooms at the Palace of Versailles.
Intimate surroundings: Legendary French decorator Henri Samuel, a favorite in high-society homes, was inspired by a range of styles in his work, as seen in the Winter Garden room (above), which nods to 18th-century European chinoiserie.
“The Gutfreunds were introduced to Samuel by the philanthropist and fine arts collector Jayne Wrightsman,” says Richard Ziegelasch of Brown Harris Stevens Residential Sales, LLC, an affiliate of Christie’s International Real Estate. “Doors from Samuel’s private collection adorn the entryway, and his insistence on classic style throughout was upheld everywhere except the Winter Garden room, which was modeled on chinoiserie palace designs of 18thcentury Europe, with canvas panels from Belgium and trompe l’oeil by Atelier Mériguet-Carrère.” Like many of Candela’s apartments, this front corner duplex is expansive; the 20 rooms have soaring ceilings with original moldings, and are
spread over two floors, covering a total of 12,000 square feet. There’s a master bedroom bookended with a dressing room and privately accessed sitting room, three further bedrooms, a large kitchen and adjoining butler’s pantry, two libraries, and a marble and steel staircase that draws inspiration from French châteaux, imported to decorate the gallery that leads to the upper floor. All this comes comes fully serviced, and finished with hardwood floors and a 1,500-bottle wine cellar.
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Designed in 1931 by Rosario Candela, this 16-story limestone-clad building was his crowning achievement.
Pièce de résistance: A native of Sicily, the architect Rosario Candela arrived in New York in the 1920s and was soon embraced by high society. His work became the standard by which interior spatial design was to be judged.
// where in th e w o r l d Once known as the Silk Stocking District, the Upper East Side is one of the most desirable neighborhoods in New York, and Fifth Avenue is its most exclusive street. Within walking distance are myriad designer boutiques and architectural wonders, not to mention some of the city’s most celebrated museums. Two helipads are located just 20 minutes away, near Hudson Yards, making vacations in the Hamptons a breeze.
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