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Inside a Watergate Complex Aerie With a Fresh Take on 1970s Glamour

Architect-designer Nicholas Potts drew inspiration from the past yet ditched convention to render a Washington, DC, home unlike any other
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“I was hoping for a 1970s-retro comeback that wasn’t derivative, cartoony, or shallow,” says the owner of a gut-renovated high-floor unit in DC’s landmark Watergate complex. That nuanced design brief is ultimately what led her to architect and designer Nicholas Potts, whose interiors often celebrate an abundance of warm wood, metal, and stone. His innovative approach to harnessing angles, curves, and light was an added plus in a late-1960s modern-monument-style building with low ceilings, a convex façade, and sunset views of the Potomac River. Achieving the desired result, though, required more than a touch of geometric magic.

“She saw it as an opportunity to commission a work of art that lived up to what the best of the Watergate could be,” explains Potts of the “young and vibrant” client and her pied-à-terre, which, during an earlier combination, had “been butchered with 1980s-style crown moldings and crystal chandeliers of the wrong kind.” In addition to stripping away remnants of the earlier renovation, AD PRO Directory member Potts, who lives locally with his museum-curator husband, characteristically resisted convention, reconfiguring the layout to suit the single homeowner’s lifestyle while artfully improving aesthetics and flow. (With a deft assist from project contractor BOWA, even the main entrance was moved to maximize drama and views.) “We took it down to nothing and rebuilt every space from scratch,” he says of the 3,000-square-foot project. A commodious living-dining-kitchen area was a key element for entertaining and, without children at home, the primary suite, on the opposite end, could assume equally spacious proportions.

A view of the Watergate Complex’s distinctive monument-style façade. Constructed in the late 1960s, the complex, which also includes a hotel and office building, has been home to a host of legendary Washingtonians and was the site of one rather infamous political scandal.

In the spirit of the building itself, designed by architect Luigi Moretti, classical rules of interior architecture and design were largely ignored. However, primary sources of historical inspiration were plentiful, and included the Vienna Secession movement, Art Deco, and Italian architect Piero Portaluppi, whose Villa Necchi Campiglio, at least in spirit, can be felt throughout. Instead of long, dead-end hallways and flat walls, rounded vestibules and floor designs delineate spaces, as with an onyx screen that hides the kitchen from the foyer without obstructing the river view. And while the walls in many rooms are covered in the same custom, bookmatched Okuome crotch veneers, the floors are varied and provide a veritable room map: mahogany diamond herringbone in the dining and living areas, vein-cut travertine in the entry and various baths, Lilac Reale roundels running through the dwelling’s core, all edged with a band of Verde Antigua marble—a nod to the Watergate’s own lobbies. The lighting, heightening a sense of perpetual golden hour, is a mix of vintage specimens by the likes of Gaetano Sciolari and newer fixtures created with and by Allied Maker, Blue Green Works, and Roll & Hill.

In the curved entry hall, which was relocated during construction to maximize the impact of entry, is adorned with a custom Allied Maker ceiling fixture, Blue Green Works sconces, a chair by Campagna for Roll & Hill, and an anagama kiln–fired vessel by Noah Hughey-Commers. Adding the burnished-plaster bands above the veneers was a way of tricking the eye to raise otherwise unavoidably low ceilings.

In the vestibule leading to the primary suite, Blue Green Works sconces illuminate the bookmatched Okuome crotch-veneer walls, seen throughout the home. “The cabinetmaker [Ferris Custom Cabinetry] used a warehouse and laid out every panel,” says Potts of the painstaking bookmatching process, which was also overseen by project contractors from BOWA. “They did a lot of homework lining up rather crazy-shaped panels—we’ve got curves, we’ve got wide, we’ve got narrow pieces.” Just beyond, a circa-1970s Leola ceiling fixture by Gaetano Sciolari illuminates a sculpture by Krysten Cunningham, entitled Black Hypercube, from 2007.

Art: Krysten Cunningham

Similarly, the furnishings and artwork blend disparate periods and materials, creating a luxurious mix that, says Potts, is “inspired by the ’70s but certainly not a replication of it.” Whenever possible, the designer commissioned independent craftspeople to realize pieces that live up to their bespoke, museum-like surroundings: a concave Tom Bensari credenza, a chubby travertine dining table by Arthur Vallin, intricate metal door knobs by P.E. Guerin, millwork—including in the Prada boutique–inspired closet—by Ferris Custom Cabinetry. “I see my role in this profession as keeping artisans alive and keeping people making things,” Potts says of the surfeit of time-intensive appointments. Old-master canvases, meanwhile, hang alongside contemporary works, such as the geometric Krysten Cunningham sculpture standing guard in the primary suite’s antechamber.

“It was a whole geometry puzzle,” says architect-designer Nicholas Potts of reconfiguring the layout of an apartment on a high floor of the Watergate in Washington, DC, for his client. “We needed a big living room with a lot of space to have people in to watch sports, to gather for dinners.” The resulting space, which opens onto a terrace with views of the Potomac River, includes Philippe Malouin’s Gridlock ceiling fixture for Roll & Hill over an Arthur Vallin travertine coffee table flanked by a Philippe Malouin for SCP sofa and Orior’s Bianca chairs. George Nakashima’s Greenrock ottoman, upholstered in a Pierre Frey fabric, stands on a Nordic Knots rug. The sconces are by Blue Green Works and the floor lamp is vintage.

For the client, who discovered the designer through his work on an extension for the Winona History Museum in Minnesota, the project’s success came down to striking a balance between institutional gravitas and everyday livability—as Potts describes, “toeing this line of going over the top but also giving space to breathe for someone to feel comfortable.” And that, adds the homeowner, was only achievable through teamwork and mutual respect. “Commonly, voices are steamrolled for the sake of someone’s ego,” she explains, “but here, everyone’s perspective, gifts, and hard work was honored and elevated.”

In the expansive living room, Tom Bensari’s Chameleon credenza stands below Giovanni Paolo Pannini’s Architectural Capriccio with Figures, circa 1730, on loan from Nicholas Hall in New York. “I thought there was great poetry there with the river and the Roman ruins right next to the Potomac,” says Potts of the painting, “and Washington is a little mini Rome, so there was a bit of a nod to the place.”

“She’s someone who values that it has to work, it has to be comfortable, it has to feel right,” says Potts of his client, who likes to cook. “She was actually going to use this thing rather than just commission it, look at it, and move on.” The functional space, illuminated by another ceiling fixture by Gaetano Sciolari, features faucet hardware from House of Rohl, an Onice Arco onyx backsplash from ABC Stone, and custom bent-bronze cabinet pulls by Potts.

In the light-flooded dining area, adjacent to the open kitchen and living room, a circa-1960 Viennese chandelier, which once appointed a jewelry store, hangs over a custom travertine dining table that was created by Arthur Vallin and is surrounded by vintage Gianni Moscatelli chairs. The rug is by Nordic Knots and the tabletop anagama-kiln-fired vessels are by Noah Hughey-Commers.

In the primary bedroom, Blue Green Works pendants hang above floating bedside cabinets with custom pulls by P.E. Guerin. The bedding is Frette, the throw pillows are from John Derian, and the rug is by Christopher Farr.

The custom double-sink vanity in the primary bath was designed by Potts and built by Ferris Custom Cabinetry to float above the marble floors. The vanity sconces were also designed by Potts.

Lilac Reale marble from ABC Stone lines a guest bath. The faucet hardware is from Nanz. Potts incorporated Verde Antigua edge bands on the floors as a nod to the Watergate’s own common areas, which feature a similar green stone.

A view from the primary bath chamber into the 500-square-foot-plus closet, which was inspired in part by a Prada boutique. “We don’t want a hard surface in the closet where someone’s dressing,” Potts says of the hideaway, which features a custom silk carpet. “So there was a lot of haptic thought about how someone’s actually going to use the space.” The millwork throughout, adorned with Sherle Wagner pulls, is by Ferris Custom Cabinetry; and in the wardrobe, it’s painted with Farrow & Ball’s Cromarty. The circa-1970s ceiling fixture, by Gaetano Sciolari, hangs over a Champignon stool from Maison Gerard.

In the home office, which leads to the terrace off one of the home’s six curved bays, a vintage chair by Gastone Rinaldi for Rima Padova before a circa-1980s Seltz writing desk makes for a rather pleasant spot to answer emails in the glow of a Stilnovo lamp in Carrara marble.

“The artistry in the powder room, from the hand-painted gold leafing [by Lenore Winters Studio] to the carved marble sink, is truly special,” says the homeowner of this space. “The gold makes it feel warm, like you’re inside a jewel box, and the custom light fixtures designed by Nick and handmade by AK Metal are so original, a true hallmark of this project.” John Pawson’s Column sink for Cocoon complements discreet faucet hardware from Nanz.