How to Add Art Deco Style to Any Room
For those who wish they could live in The Great Gatsby and can’t pass up a geometric pattern, Art Deco style can bring all the glamour of the Roaring ’20s to a 21st-century space. Art Deco, short for Arts Décoratifs, is characterized by rich colors, bold geometry, and decadent detail work. Having reached the height of its popularity in the 1920s, ’30s, and ’40s, the style still brings in glamour, luxury, and order with symmetrical designs in exuberant shapes. If you’re ready to add some Deco details to your space, take a peek at these homes from Rio de Janeiro to Paris that feature Art Deco furniture, wall coverings, and fixtures in all their glory. Whether you incorporate Art Deco from floor to ceiling as Barbra Streisand did in her Malibu guesthouse or just add a chair or side table into the mix, the style is sure to elevate your space.
Photo: Simon Upton1/19Focus on Streamlined Shapes
The living room of a New York City apartment, which was decorated by Penny Drue Baird of Dessins, serves as a gallery for works by, from left, Damien Hirst, William Klein, and Hiroshi Sugimoto. The angular armchairs are 1930s French, the barrel-back bergères are from Lee Calicchio, and the cowhide rug is by Stark Carpet.
Photo: François Halard2/19Go Wild with Animal Prints
In a Manhattan triplex designed by Stephen Sills, the Art Deco bed in the master bedroom is a vintage piece by Eugene Printz; it is dressed in Pratesi linens.
Photo: Ngoc Minh Ngo3/19Add Art Deco Accents
At the Rio de Janeiro home of the late designer Alberto Pinto, a Marcel Coard table hosts an ivory turtle, an Art Deco vase, and sculptural coco de mer seeds in the living room (which overlooks Brazil's Cagarras archipelago).
Photo: Joshua McHugh4/19Incorporate Geometric Shapes
In a Manhattan apartment revamped by Robert Couturier, the vestibule's French Art Deco console from Bernd Goeckler Antiques is grouped with a FontanaArte mirror from Galerie Van den Akker and a Cindy Sherman photograph.
Photo: Joshua McHugh5/19Go Glam with Lighting
In this Los Angeles home, the kitchen's dining area is outfitted with an Art Deco chandelier and a vintage table and chairs.
Photo: Simon Upton6/19Opt for Sleek Materials
A Donald Moffett painting overlooks chairs by Cappellini and a Hungarian Art Deco games table from Szalon in the living room of a London home by Rafael de Cárdenas; the vintage floor lamp is from Todd Merrill Antiques.
Photo: Björn Wallander7/19Bring in Sunbursts
An Art Deco–style rock-crystal chandelier by Alexandre Vossion crowns the smoking room of a Manhattan townhouse by William T. Georgis, where walls painted in a high-gloss Benjamin Moore black are the backdrop for a Marilyn Minter photograph and a neon work by Tracey Emin; the curtains are of a Larsen fabric, and the Carlo Mollino stools, covered in a J. Robert Scott faux suede, are from Salon 94.
Photo: Björn Wallander8/19Make a Statement with a Mirror
In the main bedroom suite of a Wisconsin home by Michael S. Smith, an Art Deco–style mirror from Gerald Bland is mounted above a vintage desk by Melchiorre Bega; the circa-1930 Maurice Jallot chair is from Gallery BAC.
Photo: Ricardo Labougle9/19Add Over-the-Top Glamour
Paneled in Art Deco mirror, the master bath of designer Linda Pinto’s Paris home features a midcentury chauffeuse and an antique Japanese lacquer side table.
Photo: Ricardo Labougle10/19Consider Marquetry-Adorned Furnishings or Walls
In the same home, an Art Deco–style armchair, custom made by Atelier Seigneur, sits in the master bedroom, which is sheathed in a marquetry wall covering by Maya Romanoff.
Photo: William Waldron11/19Mix Art Deco Pieces with Other Antiques
A Pratt & Lambert blue coats the walls of the once green dining room in a New York home decorated by Victoria Hagan Interiors; an expanse of mirror reflects the Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann table, French Art Deco chairs, and De Coene Frères buffet, which is from Karl Kemp Antiques.
Photo: William Waldron12/19Create a Contrast with Contemporary Art
At the Plaza Hotel, an artwork by Mark Grotjahn brightens the living room in a Manhattan pied-à-terre decorated by Susanna Maggard Interiors. The curtains are of a Lee Jofa silk, and the Art Deco pieces—a 1930s Dominique armchair (clad in a Sahco fabric) and a ’20s bench—are from Karl Kemp Antiques. The faux-pony-hair rug is by Stark.
Photo: William Waldron13/19Create an Artistic Deco Display
In the same home, as part of a gut renovation, VLArchitects principal Louis Lisboa created a large space to contain the living and dining areas, the latter of which features 1940s Baguès pendant lights, a French Art Deco wall plaque, and a ’40s-style Venetian mirror, all from Newel. Ralph Lauren Home candelabra top the circa-1800 French table from Bernd Goeckler Antiques; the chairs, custom made in the manner of Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann, are upholstered in a Lee Jofa mohair, and the midcentury Italian cabinet is faced with Murano glass.
Photo: Thomas Loof14/19Don't Be Afraid to Reupholster
In the family room of a Houston residence by Miles Redd, a Louis XV–style sofa is upholstered in a Larsen linen, and an Art Deco club chair acquired at Doyle New York is cushioned with the same Turkish velvet used for the throw pillows; the walls are dressed in a Holland & Sherry wool felt, and the sisal is by Patterson Flynn Martin.
Photo: Ricardo Labougle15/19Incorporate Natural Motifs
In a guest room of designer Lorenzo Castillo’s seaside villa in Spain, a large Art Deco tapestry surmounts twin beds clad in a Gastón y Daniela print; the étagère is from the 1960s, and the green velvet pillow fabric and Louis XIV bench upholstery are both by Aerin for Lee Jofa.
Photo: Oberto Gili16/19Choose Rich Woods
In the living room of designer David Kleinberg’s Hamptons home, twin French Art Deco zebrawood side tables are joined by Art Deco armchairs covered in a Rogers & Goffigon fabric; the upholstery throughout the house was done by Anthony Lawrence-Belfair, the throw is from Homenature, and the raffia rug is by La Manufacture Cogolin.
Photo: William Waldron17/19Find Furnishings with Strong Lines
At the Manhattan apartment of jewelry designer Kara Ross and her husband, real-estate developer Stephen Ross, the family room features Art Deco side chairs and an ebony table.
Photo: François Dischinger18/19Make an Architectural Impact
At a Miami home decorated by Frank de Biasi, an Anish Kapoor work hangs over the living room’s Art Deco fireplace. The chandelier is by Claude Lalanne, and the gilt-wood furniture and games table and chairs are by Wendell Castle.
Photo: John Vaughan19/19Add Art Deco Accessories
The guesthouse of Barbra Streisand’s Malibu, California, home is filled with Art Deco pieces. Her collection of Lalique objects includes Archers, a vase on the console table, and Jour et Nuit, a disque clock near the window. Roger de La Fresnaye's bronze Sculpture of a Woman is by the bookshelves.
