This Art-Filled Apartment Transports Visitors to an 18th-Century French Salon

Katie Kiefner

“I opened my mail one day and there was a check for $35,000 from New York state,” divulges illustrious hairdresser and owner of the eponymous salon John Barrett. “Instead of calling my accountant, I phoned [art dealer] Bill Acquavella and said, ‘What should I do?’ He told me to sit tight and came back with this Lucian Freud [etching],” says Barrett, standing over the aforementioned Portrait Head of British art critic Martin Gayford.

The airy, open-plan midtown Manhattan apartment serves as a prime backdrop for story after unforgettable story behind nearly every item in the space—from a grand piano acquired during a furnishings auction at the original Tavern on the Green (“I simply went to hold the hand of my friend Kay LeRoy and somehow ended up with a piano!”) to the Leontine bed linens (“I can hardly sleep in a bed unless they’re Leontine Linens!”). Preternaturally, it’s revealed that Angelica Huston and Vanessa Redgrave have had a “heated” discussion on his Leontine Linens–clad bed, which alludes to a broader, more salient point: The home is an entertainer’s dream. When the numerous sitting nooks in his living room are filled with anywhere from 50 to 100 of the host’s nearest and dearest during semiregular dinner parties, the vibe hearkens to European salons of yore. “Many New Yorkers never invite you into their homes, but I spent my formative years in London, and that’s where you go,” he comments.

“The lime green paint on my bookshelves was inspired by a similar shade I had seen on one of my trips to Paris. It’s super, super high-gloss," says Barrett. "The books are an obsession.”
“The lime green paint on my bookshelves was inspired by a similar shade I had seen on one of my trips to Paris. It’s super, super high-gloss," says Barrett. "The books are an obsession.”

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Irish-born creative decorated entirely on his own. “I don’t want to be pushed down a certain road—it’s about having confidence in your taste,” he expounds, referencing as an example a Joe Gaffney diptych that hangs on opposite walls of his bedroom. “The message—both here and in my salon—is to use your initiative. I was told not to break it up, but why not when it looks amazing like this? Don’t be bound by rules! The feeling of my whole apartment is to be comfortable: If you spill a glass of wine or a cup of coffee, it doesn’t matter. They’re just things.”

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In keeping with that sentiment, creature comforts abound: Walls upon walls of coffee-table and limited-edition books from extensive travels beckon for perusal, gallery walls of fine art from the likes of Helmut Newton and James Nares to David Bailey and Elisabeth Frink invite cultural discourse, and the master shower was outfitted with both a rain shower and a handheld spray head for regular visits from his goddaughter and her mother. “I’m very conscious of the fact that women don’t always want to get their hair wet, so voilà,” he says with a laugh. Spoken like a true hair connoisseur.

This Art-Filled Apartment Transports Visitors to an 18th-Century French Salon

“I simply went to hold the hand of my friend Kay LeRoy and somehow ended up with a piano!” reflects hairdresser John Barrett, who acquired the instrument for his midtown Manhattan apartment during a furnishings auction at the original Tavern on the Green. Also pictured: a painting is by Eric Watson, a former employee of Barrett; a photograph of Keith Haring by Patrick McMullen; an etching by Lucian Freud; and a seagull painting by Elisabeth Frink.
“The Indonesian wood table came from the seventh floor of Bergdorf Goodman. I had to bribe the movers with a lot of money because it wouldn’t fit in the elevator and is so heavy that it’s never leaving this apartment!” On the center column hangs a portrait of Barrett by artist Heidi Becker. “She painted me when I was 29. I hid it for years and didn’t have the courage to display it until I was 55,” he says. Dining chairs by CB2. Rug from The Rug Company.
“When I moved in to this apartment it blew my mind that there was nothing on the terrace and that I could see into my neighbor’s [apartment],” reflects Barrett. “I immediately went to work planting it, with Jimmy Johnson of Green Earth Gardens. Our first order of business was a walk through Central Park, where I picked out things that I loved and felt would create a sense of lushness and privacy. I love seeing the juxtaposition between the beauty of the age of my building against the metropolis.”
“Someone once asked why I have a rug in the kitchen, and my feeling is that the whole apartment has to be a movement. Plus, it’s not like I’m making roast dinners!” Corner chair procured from charity fundraiser Design on a Dime.
“Someone once asked why I have a rug in the kitchen, and my feeling is that the whole apartment has to be a movement. Plus, it’s not like I’m making roast dinners!” Corner chair procured from charity fundraiser Design on a Dime.
“The Marilyn images were taken by various photographers,” says Barrett. “The one in the center just blows me away because I don’t know how famous she was at the time but if you look at the bottoms of her feet they were dirty and she’s in a motel room. My imagination tells me a whole story about that!” He continues: “In the bottom image, she’s meeting the Queen of England. I just can’t imagine the talk at the palace after that meeting!” Photo of Salvador Dalí by Joe Gaffney; still life of flowers by Sarah Sticc. Kenmare sofa by James Huniford. Rug and table are vintage.
“At the time I bought this apartment, Downton Abbey had just premiered, and I wanted to infuse some Lady Mary red into the space, so these are my Lady Mary sofas, which were custom made.” Red painting (on the right) is by James Nares; large center painting by Malcolm Morley. Chairs and table in the foreground are vintage. Ottoman from One Kings Lane.
In the top left corner hangs a framed photograph by Barrett’s friend, the cinematographer Jared Moossy. “When he was at the New School studying photography, he received an opportunity to be embedded with the U.S. army in Afghanistan, and I helped sponsor that. This was a thank-you gift,” says Barrett. Hide rug from The Rug Company.
“I’m very spoiled with bedding thanks to my friend Jane Scott Hodges of Leontine Linens. I can hardly sleep in a bed unless they’re Leontine—I came from poverty, so that statement is crazy, but I’m telling you: Once you’ve slept on these sheets you won’t want to sleep anywhere else," Barrett says. The table was originally a butcher’s block that was converted into a table, and is so heavy that it takes three people to lift it. The top photograph is by close friend Billy Sullivan and “takes me back to the time when we used to depend on a Rolodex and remembered telephone numbers." Diptych (on opposite walls) by artist Joe Gaffney.
“My contractor’s response upon bringing in this huge [Victoria + Albert] bath was ‘My goodness, are you going to take swimming lessons in here?’ It’s my total joy,” says Barrett. The bathroom was also outfitted with a rain shower and a handheld spray head for regular visits from his goddaughter and her mother. “I’m very conscious of the fact that women don’t always want to get their hair wet, so voilà,” he says with a laugh. The painting was a gift from artist and former employee Eric Watson.
“The lime green paint on my bookshelves was inspired by a similar shade I had seen on one of my trips to Paris. It’s super, super high-gloss,” says Barrett. “The books are an obsession.”
“The lime green paint on my bookshelves was inspired by a similar shade I had seen on one of my trips to Paris. It’s super, super high-gloss,” says Barrett. “The books are an obsession.”
“The photograph of David Hockney [pictured in the bottom left corner] was taken by my late friend and architect David Collins, who designed my original salon at Bergdorf’s. When he passed away unexpectedly, I wanted a part of him, and bought this at a Christie’s auction in London,” says Barrett. Also hanging on the gallery wall are a photograph of Grace Jones by Patrick McMullan, an oil-on-canvas painting by Laurie Ogle, a painting by Heidi Becker, and a sketch by stage designer Scott Pask. Midcentury cabinet from One Kings Lane. Custom paint color from Benjamin Moore.

Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest