Humbert & Poyet Transform 53 West 53 With an Artful Model Residence

The vertiginous supertall zigzagging above the Museum of Modern Art at 53 West 53rd Street reads more like a Gotham landmark than the heritage settings that have become standard fare for Humbert & Poyet, the Monegasque studio whose sophisticated interiors channel French decorative arts to convey an easygoing glamour. Emil Humbert and Christophe Poyet were designing a hotel in Singapore for Pontiac Land Group, the skyscraper’s owner, when the idea of a model residence surfaced matter-of-factly during a meeting. “They felt our residential work could really elevate the story of the building,” Humbert recalls, noting his immediate affinity for the supertall once he learned that architect Jean Nouvel and designer Thierry Despont both left their French savoir-faire stamp throughout the property. Impressed, the duo signed on. 

Perched sky-high across the entire 69th floor, the 5,772-square-foot residence unfurls within a perimeter of floor-to-ceiling glazing punctuated by the tower’s prominent diagrid. Uninterrupted views stretch across Central Park, the Hudson and East Rivers, and downtown along Park Avenue. “For a European, this kind of Manhattan apartment is almost like a film set,” Humbert says, describing the commission as a “dream” that also posed scintillating creative challenges. “We’re used to working in historic buildings, so this level of glass and exposure pushed us to reinvent our approach.” The task at hand became about orchestrating a lavish interior with enough visual punch to hold its own alongside Nouvel’s architectural derring-do—and present an artful vision for cosmopolitan living befitting the worldly clientele courted by 53 West 53rd.

Working within the framework of a model residence, Humbert & Poyet approached the project with the mindset of film directors, devising a scenography fit for a collector protagonist. Rather than treating the residence as an open plateau, the auteurs conjured a progression of resplendent atmospheres chockablock with exquisite artisanal creations. The cocoon-like entry hall, for one, is sheathed in a dazzling fresco-like finish by Atelier de la Torre in moody blue striations, achieved through a scraped painting technique that draws the eye toward the living areas and breathtaking views beyond. “It creates a moment of compression before the apartment opens up,” Humbert says. “That contrast defines the arrival and prepares you for what follows.”

The effect is breathtaking. The spacious living and dining areas share an open plan—the exposed diagrid allows for column-free interiors—with custom low-slung sofas orienting the seating area around a pair of crackled bronze cocktail tables by Erwan Boullud that catch light throughout the day. “He made the same table for my house last year, but much bigger,” Humbert notes. The material echoes nearby in custom bronze screens by French foundry Fodor and in pedestal side tables by La Vie in Bronze. “Craftsmanship is everywhere in this project,” Humbert continues—even in the most unexpected moments, such as the primary bedroom’s headboard, composed of two plaster panels featuring droplet effects and finished subtly in gold.

Elsewhere, the diagrid afforded Humbert & Poyet the chance to ingeniously carve out moments of intimacy and introduce assertive gestures. In the primary bedroom, a thick beam bisecting the window became an organizing device, defining a secluded lounge in one corner and a desk-cum-dressing table oriented toward the view in another. The unconventional structure also heightens the drama of the dining area. A statuesque black lacquered table designed with Philippe Hurel exclusively for the apartment commands the eye, its gently tapering legs combining bronze medal brass and stone-effect concrete. Surrounding it are the studio’s own Josef Hoffmann–indebted Hug chairs for Maison Pouenat, also rendered in black lacquer.

“We like to assemble interiors as if they were collected over time,” Humbert explains of how the duo gathered contemporary works, custom pieces, and vintage finds in a vivid tableau. “Even without a specific client, we imagined someone who travels and acquires pieces over the years.” Several objects, including a rare Murano vase from the 1930s and a marble bust of Apollo, came from the studio’s private collection. Artwork was selected under the guidance of Creative Art Partners, which curated an array of contemporary pieces that allow prospective buyers to envision how their own collections might live inside the apartment. In one corridor, a painting by Mark Connolly introduces a vivid forest populated by one of his signature mythical creatures. “I wish I could take it home with me,” Humbert jokes. “But I love all the pieces.”

The layered composition points to the ease with which Humbert & Poyet’s sensibility translates across contexts—even at most daunting altitudes. “What we did,” Humbert puts it simply, “was bring our own language and respond to the place.” They make it look effortless.