HOUSE OF STYLE
The new Miami estate of fashion mogul Tommy Hilfiger and his wife Dee is a vivid showcase of modern art within Sixties’ disco era-inspired interiors.
The name Tommy Hilfiger has become synonymous with an aesthetic of classic all-American style—cleancut sportswear in a palette of red, white and blue that wouldn’t look out of place in a private New England boarding school. But for the designer’s new home with his wife Dee, located on a white sand beach just off south Florida’s Atlantic coast in Golden Beach, Miami, all-American prep is eschewed for a ’60s and ’70s disco-pop motif, replete with chainmail curtains, kaleidoscopic patterned walls, flashing neon lights, a glittering disco ball, and an impressive museum-worthy collection of modern art.
“We wanted a home on the beach where we could escape, and there is no place like Miami to have fun!” says Hilfiger. “Miami is a major centre for art and culture, and Dee and I have always been drawn to the amazing energy of the city. Having a home in Miami let us have more fun with the design; we played with local flavour to make this home very unique. It’s groovy, mod and contemporary, and the best place to spend time as a family.”
The Miami abode is a striking departure from the ambiance of Hilfiger’s other homes, past and present: the lavish penthouse at the top of New York’s Plaza Hotel, with a rooftop view overlooking Central Park and Fifth Avenue, currently on the market for a cool USD80 million; the country-style Georgian manor the couple sold in Greenwich, Connecticut; or the British colonial-style villa on the private island of Mustique in the Caribbean, next door to Mick Jagger.
Hilfiger has certainly been in a Sixties mood of late. The spring/ summer 2015 collection he showed in New York was an ode to Sixties’ rock-and-roll and the era of his own coming of age, with references to The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, and the Rolling Stones— Jagger’s daughter Georgia May even opened the the show. It’s fitting,
then, to see portraits of Jagger by pop icon Andy Warhol adorning the “Disco Room” lounge area and the master bath in the new Miami residence. “My taste in fashion and interior design are rooted in the same inspirations, and I had a lot of fun combining these to design our Miami home,” he says. “I love to use bold pops of colour in my designs and you definitely see that here!”
To give the house the “very fun and psychedelic” vibe they were after, the Hilfigers turned to Los Angeles-based interior designer Martyn Lawrence Bullard, known for his work with celebrity clientele such as Eva Mendes, Edward Norton, and Sir Elton John.
“This project was wonderfully unique because Tommy and Dee wanted to have fun with the decorating,” says Bullard. “This house shows a different side to Tommy and explores his love of modern art and design. It shows the ever-evolving mind of a true fashion designer and it was my greatest pleasure to help him express that in the home.”
In addition to being Hilfiger’s residence while working on his latest business venture—the designer recently acquired the Raleigh Hotel in Miami Beach, and plans to refurbish it sometime this year— the 14,079sqft estate also plays home to the couple’s contemporary art collection that includes works by icons such as Warhol, Keith Haring and Damien Hirst, among others.
The art itself, along with the vibrant energy of Miami, served as the main influence for the interior decoration of the house.The glossy white mansion, which was built in 2007, in an art deco-inspired style, serves as the perfect gallery-like backdrop to highlight the Hilfigers’ collection of vibrant artworks. Even outside on the poolside terrace, Keith Haring’s Acrobats adds a splash of colour to the tranquil setting.
“This home is partly an art gallery, so my personal collection played a big role in the design process,” Hilfiger says. “Each room features at least one iconic piece of art that informs the design of the entire room.” A mix of vintage designer furniture from the ’60s and ’70s, sourced by Bullard and the Hilfigers from antique and vintage boutiques from New York to Naples, as well as custom-made rugs and furnishings take their colour cues from the art, often directly mimicking palettes from the artworks that punctuate each room.
Two artworks in particular, both collaborative paintings by Warhol and Basquiat, set the tone for the whole mood of the house, according to Bullard. In the dining room overlooking the red leather Paul Evans Cityscape chairs and mirrored table is Sweet Pungent, the first canvas painting the two artists collaborated on in 1984, which Hilfiger once described as his most treasured possession.
Another Warhol-Basquiat piece, New Flame from 1985, commands a wall in the living room and informs the red, purple, and white colour palette that extends to the Vladimir Kagan sofas and Kyle Bunting swirl-patterned rug, custom-designed by Bullard. It is Hilfiger’s favourite room in the new abode. “In three words, it is funky, cool, and memorable,” he remarks.
Designing the house with family gatherings in mind—the couple have seven children between them, aged five to 30—the guest bedrooms are equally eye-popping, from the oversized yellow polka dots in one room bearing Warhol’s Flowers to the candy cane-striped room with Warhol’s Mickey Mouse hung on the wall.The connecting bathrooms even boast a dose of Willy Wonka-inspired whimsy: fruitflavoured scratch-and-sniff wallpaper. “Martyn really helped us to push the limits,” says Hilfiger. “My taste is always evolving, and working with Martyn allowed me to open my mind to new things that I never would have imagined.” Case in point: a giant ’70s disco ball from a club in Capri now holds pride of place in the bar room above an illuminated counter, reflecting light from a neon wall piece by Tracey Emin, And I Said I Love You! Or the red neon-lit screening room, which is outfitted with terrace-style vintage de Sede sofas for an ultra-mod lounge look, described by Bullard as “so Austin Powers.” A few rooms do recall Hilfiger’s all-American sensibility, such as the lower-level recreation room that boasts red, white and blue striped walls and a modified pool table with the exterior of a classic Mustang. Hilfiger’s home office also bears a similar chromatic theme, with faux-suede fabric walls, vintage Harvey Probber barrel chairs, and a matching artwork by Jean Dubuffet on the wall.
One room that gets a reprieve from the extravagant hues and patterns abundant in the rest of the house is the master bedroom, but even with its neutral tones, it retains hints of ’70s glamour. At the heart of the room is a Paul Evans four-poster bed made of reflective metal, raised on a platform swathed in Mongolian lamb’s wool. A series of Marilyn Monroe photographs by Bert Stern adds some touches of colour, while the walls and ceiling are covered in subtly reflective wallpaper.
It’s rare to find an artwork in Hilfiger’s possession that isn’t a conversation piece, from British artist Marc Quinn’s painting of an eyeball, the huge circular Iris, to Marc Sijan’s Standing Security Guard, a sculpture that literally stands guard in one of the foyers... and his new Miami home is the latest masterpiece added to the collection.
The home is ultimately a reflection of the art housed within its walls: at times eccentric, often colourful, but always with an optimistic energy and a playful spirit. In other words, for modern art lovers like Tommy and Dee Hilfiger: a home out of their wildest dreams.
“E
ach room features at least one iconic piece of art that informs the design of that area.”
—Tommy Hilfiger