In Manhattan, location is everything, and this Fifth Avenue apartment embraces a sweeping view of Central Park. But it wasn’t always that way. The building had begun life as a hotel in the late 1920s. A condominium conversion decades later left the apartment with a choppy layout, and built-ins blocked precious vistas. The owners, who used the place during their stays in the city, initially hoped to undertake a simple redecorating project, but it soon became apparent that not only did the HVAC system need replacing, but the ceiling slabs were deteriorating due to water damage. What’s more, the awkward ceiling heights and intrusive columns weren’t just remnants of a prior renovation but elements that concealed the building’s infrastructure.

Once the underlying problems were rectified, Sam Mitchell and project lead Bill Pollack resolved to remove unnecessary built-ins along with an ill-placed broom closet just inside the front door. They would raise the ceilings wherever — and as much as — they could. As for the offending columns in the hall to the living/dining room, they transformed them into a feature by encasing them in a sculptural, Déco-inspired fluting. “Now they look like they belong there,” says Mitchell. “I’d say that was one of the most successful moves — making an event out of all those columns we couldn’t get rid of.”

The expanded, walnut-clad entry itself enjoys a newfound sense of arrival. Pulling triple duty as a foyer, a library, and a cozy dining area, it’s also the launching point for the rest of the apartment. Wrapped in studded aubergine leather, one door in particular signals that something special is on the other side. Indeed, Mitchell Studio combined walnut, gunmetal steel, brass, and a highly figured marble to create a dynamic interplay between the materials.

The apartment is a testament to making the most of its limitations. “I would never say that constraints are a problem,” Mitchell says. “They take you places you wouldn’t otherwise go.”

Interior Design: Elizabeth Bauer Design