Bunny Williams crafts a room centered on a masterpiece by Mark Rothko.

Bunny Williams Crafts a Living Room Around a Mark Rothko Abstraction

The design doyenne brings the past and present together in a room centered on a masterpiece by the famed painter

Bunny Williams. Photo: Sari Goodfriend

The more time one spends in a space conceived by Bunny Williams, the more one discovers, as the designer’s interiors gradually reveal their complex layers of colors and patterns, references and periods. For this soigné living room, she turned to an abstract by Mark Rothko for inspiration. “There’s something about looking at his canvases again and again that is both soothing and complicated,” she says. In her new book, Bunny Williams: Life in the Garden (Rizzoli), she shares another source of inspiration, the grounds of her Connecticut home, and how she brings those natural elements indoors.

Untitled (1949) by Mark Rothko. Photo: COURTESY OF THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART

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Bunny Williams Crafts a Living Room Around a Mark Rothko Masterpiece

A version of this article first appeared in print in our 2024 Spring Issue under the headline “Eternal Beauty.” Subscribe to the magazine.

Cover: Bunny Williams crafts a room centered on a masterpiece by Mark Rothko.

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