Lee Broom’s New York home is incredibly glamorous. A 280-square-metre duplex spread across the fifth and sixth floors of a 147-year-old cast-iron building in the heart of Tribeca. As one might expect from the British designer, the penthouse carries all the hallmarks of his design brand: contemporary and playful with its roots in classical design, always precise and elegant.

Lee wanted to use his second home – he’s mostly based in London – to showcase his own products, his collection of vintage furniture and art and also as a place in which to experiment with interior design.‘I think that all appealed to me. In my own work there’s this sense of tradition and a historical narrative but shown in a modern way. I really like how that has been interpreted here,’ Lee explains.

The formal living room to the front of the building on the fifth floor is an exercise in serenity and calm, with soft tones of cream, ivory and sand highlighted with black and brass finishes. Lee has designed site-specific pieces here, too, such as the exquisite modular ‘White Street’ sofa, which appears to float weightlessly over its ash end tables.

Both the travertine fireplace surround and black marble cantilevered ‘Tribeca’ coffee tables, also designed by Lee, reflect the notched architectural details of the brutalist-style AT&T Long Lines Building seen from the window. A kitchen is discreetly hidden behind muslin drapery, while the television has been disguised by a Dedar tapestry stretched on canvas above the fireplace.