In the heart of bustling Manhattan, a grand 4000-square-foot high-rise apartment transcends urban living, radiating an intimate, family-like ambiance.
Transforming Minimalist High-Rise into a Warm, Character-Filled Home: Hendricks Churchill's Carnegie Hill Apartment
Hendricks Churchill, an architectural firm known for their modern spaces that balance comfort and character, has recently showcased their design approach in a Carnegie Hill high-rise apartment in Manhattan. This 4,000-square-foot residence, designed in 2019, was originally a minimalist space that lacked warmth and character. The designers, however, transformed it into a warm, inviting home filled with soul and depth.
The apartment's design incorporates a dramatic, moody feeling that complements the more minimal architecture of the space, while exercising a certain Shaker restraint. The designers applied a light touch to a few thoughtful floor plan modifications, such as dressing room build-outs and mechanical system alterations, to create a more functional layout.
The apartment's high ceilings, reaching fourteen feet, provide a spacious and airy feel. The designers utilized this space by layering textures and introducing warmth, creating a more inviting and layered feel that moves beyond minimalism's typical austerity. The Austrian white oak flooring adds a warm, natural element to the space.
The apartment features an eclectic blend of furniture styles, including mid-century modern pieces, bespoke furniture, and fine period antiques. This mix creates a unique and personal atmosphere, with each piece contributing to the overall design. Unexpected touches, like a statement gold range hood in the kitchen, bring a luxurious element to an otherwise restrained palette.
The interiors team was tasked with transforming a minimal, monochromatic high-rise apartment into a warm, colorful home. The clients desired a sense of soul and depth in the space, especially with expansive views across the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir. The apartment's interior design creates soulful rooms filled with warmth and comfort that harmoniously blend color and pattern.
Tactile layers of rugs and textiles are used to complement pieces with aged patina, adding texture and visual interest to the space. The apartment's design balances prewar-inspired details with modern finishes, creating a timeless and elegant look.
Hendricks Churchill's design approach is further detailed in their book, Distinctly American: Houses and Interiors, which will be available for pre-order on September 9, 2025. The book showcases ten defining projects of the design studio, offering a new vision of modern American domesticity. The projects range from a farmhouse in Litchfield County, Connecticut, to a sky-high family home in Manhattan, like the Carnegie Hill Apartment.
Subscribing to Hendricks Churchill's website newsletters provides trend forecasts, smart style ideas, and curated shopping inspiration for interiors. For those interested in transforming their own spaces, the Carnegie Hill Apartment serves as a prime example of how to create a warm, character-filled home out of a minimalist high-rise apartment.
The apartment is located in an iconic new tower in the Carnegie Hill section of Manhattan, making it one of the tallest residential buildings in the Upper East Side. The Carnegie Hill Apartment, one of the projects featured in the book, is a modern home for a family of five. The custom plaster wainscoting, high ceilings, and thoughtful design choices make it a unique and inviting space.
[1] Hendricks Churchill, (2025). Distinctly American: Houses and Interiors. [Book]. [2] Hendricks Churchill, (n.d.). Newsletters. [Website]. [3] Hendricks Churchill, (2025). Carnegie Hill Apartment. [Project].
- Hendricks Churchill, known for modern spaces that blend comfort and character, transformed a minimalist high-rise apartment into a warm, character-filled home in 2019.
- The designers layered textures and introduced warmth in the 4,000-square-foot residence to move beyond minimalism's austerity, using Austrian white oak flooring as a warm, natural element.
- The eclectic blend of furniture styles in the apartment, including mid-century modern pieces, bespoke furniture, and fine period antiques, creates a unique and personal atmosphere.
- The Carnegie Hill Apartment's interior design balances prewar-inspired details with modern finishes, creating a timeless and elegant look that harmoniously blends color and pattern.
- Tactile layers of rugs and textiles are used to complement pieces with aged patina, adding texture and visual interest to the space.
- Hendricks Churchill's book, Distinctly American: Houses and Interiors, offers a new vision of modern American domesticity, showcasing ten defining projects of the design studio.
- The Carnegie Hill Apartment, one of the projects featured in the book, is a prime example of how to create a warm, character-filled home out of a minimalist high-rise apartment.
