Jet-set, Go!

Michael Kors' recently renovated New York penthouse, which he shares with his husband Lance LePere, has been furnished from top to bottom with masterpieces of mid-century modern design, all cast in Kors’ signature black-and-white color palette. Recalling an era of jet-set luxury, elements of Kors’ eponymous brand are reflected in every aspect of the interior. Steel, wood, marble and fur define the textural dimension of the space, appealing simultaneously to the Mod and Glam sensibilities of the 1960s and the 1970s, respectively.

Photograph by Gross & Daley.

Kors hired longtime friend Glenn Gissler, whom Kors has known since the '70s, to decorate the penthouse. “I don’t think Michael’s design credo has really changed in the nearly three decades that I have known him,” Gissler said of catering to the designer’s particular aesthetic, “he is very consistent." Classic, tailored and neutral-toned, Kors’ pared-down approach to design leads him to gravitate toward uniformity and minimalism.

“I don’t think Michael’s design credo has really changed in the nearly three decades that I have known him, he is very consistent.”

—Glenn Gissler

Photograph by Gross & Daley.

The home’s décor echoes Kors’ all-black, everyday uniform, consisting of a blazer, t-shirt and jeans. In some cases, fashion informs furniture: Gissler used a Michael Kors' suiting fabric to reupholster the designer's Florence Knoll Sofa. Mies’ Barcelona Chair and Ottoman, meanwhile, are both upholstered in luxurious black Sabrina leather. Behind the lounge seating, one catches a glimpse of a Platner Side Table, adapting the aesthetic vocabulary of modernism to the period-style furniture of Louis XV. The rest of the living room setup includes a Florence Knoll Coffee Table and two square side tables, whose beveled edges appear strikingly contemporary amidst Kors’ furnishings.

Photograph by Gross & Daley.

The rarely used dining table is flanked on either side by three Spoleto Chairs, again furnished in black leather. Up above, a delicate paper pendant by George Nelson gently counterbalances the polished chrome surfaces of the condominium.

Project Credits:

Design: Glenn Gissler
Photography: Gross & Daley

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