WRJ Design

photo by Roger Davies

If you could have a second home anywhere, where would you live?  
Klaus) Cotswolds, United Kingdom.
(Rush) Why just one home? Why a second home? Why not three, four, or five? The reality is I love many places. The Cotswolds, the Pacific Northwest coast, and London would all be contenders. Ideally, it would be a home perched on a bluff overlooking the ocean, surrounded by trees and rugged cliffs.

What are three words to describe your style?

• (Klaus) Timeless (an overused term, but one that we feel drives our intentions and selections.  There is a reason why things that are timeless, are so!), Authentic, Comfortable

• (Rush) Classic, Layered, Timeless

Tell us about your childhood bedroom?
(Klaus) Fun question:  I actually loved to build things—hence my current role as COO in helping build the infrastructure for our design firm.  I used to have a huge model train that took up half the room, and when I didn’t have that, I loved building things with Legos or my erector set.
(Rush) When I was 12, I was determined to move out of the bunk room I shared with my brothers. I created my own bedroom with bamboo-covered walls and a custom patchwork carpet. There was layers of very colorful shag carpeting, and beaded curtains hanging in the doorway. It was very 1970s. I also had a Farrah Fawcett poster proudly hanging on the wall.

What’s the first investment piece you ever bought for your house?
(Klaus) I would consider the first significant investment piece was an oil painting by Daniel Adel that my husband Rush found in a NYC Soho Studio.  We literally purchased it before we had a wall for it in our NYC condo, and has followed us around from home to home over the last 26 years.  It happened to have been captured in a photo in our 1st book, and remains one of our absolute favorite paintings that we still enjoy passing by every day in our current residence.
(Rush) The first significant piece Klaus and I purchased together was a painting by Daniel Adel. We still own it today. We designed our New York apartment around the artwork after purchasing it from Arcadia Gallery in SoHo. It felt like a major investment at the time, but we justified it because we didn't own a car.

In the history of design, if you could hire any designer other than yourself, who would it be?
(Klaus) Axel Vervoordt – who we happened to have had the opportunity to meet him and his wife a few years ago through an LDC event in Bruges.
(Rush) I greatly admire Robert Adam for the beauty and rigor of his historic architecture. I also love the aesthetic eye of Vincenzo De Cotiis and his extraordinary furnishings. More recently, I visited Ingrid Donat's apartment in Paris, where she designed all of the furnishings herself. It was absolutely breathtaking.

No room is complete without:
(Klaus) Dimmable lighting.
(Rush) Layers of personal items, books, accessories, antiques, collectibles, and meaningful objects that bring a home to life. And most importantly, family pets.

(Klaus) People think of me as the business guy, but I am really just as passionate about beauty, design and creating meaningful experiences as the design team.

(Rush) People think of me as outgoing and active, but I am really someone who values solitude and quiet time.

Things you omit from

• A flower arrangement:  (Klaus) carnations, (Rush) Baby's breath

• An hors d’oeuvre platter: (Klaus) foie gras (animal treatment), (Rush) Cheap cheese

• A bar cabinet: (Klaus) ill-chosen glassware and stemware! (Rush) Anything plastic

A song for

• Dinner at home:  (Klaus) ambient chill, (Rush) Harry Connick Jr. and classic film scores

• Working at your desk:  (Klaus) Anything from William Orbit., (Rush) Anything by Alexandre Desplat, very cinematic and Downton Abbey-esque.

• Going for a run:  (Klaus) Club music from the 90’s, (Rush) Queen 

Biggest Vice? 
(Klaus) French Fries (or, given my roots, Apple Streudel with vanilla custard sauce)
(Rush) Potato chips and French fries.

If you were on an Ambien high and internet shopping, what would you buy?
(Klaus) Don’t take Ambien, and not a big shopper.
(Rush) Antiques. I'd likely be scrolling antique websites and buying decorative arts and collectibles.

Do your clothes reflect your design sensibility, if so, how? 
(Klaus) Since we live in Jackson Hole, for me, practicality for our environment typically takes precedence.  I love the Kuhl brand—made in the west.  It’s totally adaptable to dressing up or casual, and to being active.  I also love a fantastic Italian sports jacket!
(Rush) Yes. Tailored, understated, and often tone-on-tone. I appreciate timelessness and restraint in both interiors and clothing.

Who is your star crush? 
(Klaus) Meryl Streep, Ryan Reynolds
(Rush) Jake Gyllenhaal and Henry Cavill.

What is the thing you would never do on a project, but don’t detest when you see others do it?  
(Klaus) I’d say that we would never design a home around a trend, however it’s always fun to see how other design firms interpret trends in the industry.
(Rush) I don’t think I would ever do a combination of tons of pattern and tons of color all layered together. But I really don’t object to it when other designers do it extremely well. In fact, when it’s done well, it’s really beautiful.

What design book do you find yourself going back to again and again?
(Klaus) The “Gardens of Bunny Mellon”.  As an avid gardener, it reminds me that restraint and elegance are often more powerful than excess.
(Rush) AD at 100: A Century of Style by Architectural Digest

For posterity, what would you like your work to be known for?  
(Klaus) Probably for helping clients create timeless homes that feel as meaningful and enduring as they are beautiful and comfortable.
(Rush) Timelessness and serenity. I hope people see our work as beautiful, calming environments that they never want to leave, spaces layered with meaning that reflect the lives of the people who inhabit them. Most importantly, I hope our work elevates people's lives in meaningful ways.

photo by eric Piasecki

A Few Favorites:

• Movie:
  (Klaus) Auntie Mame (1958), starring Rosalind Russell. A classic—clever, witty, and memorable for its beautiful set design. A close second is The Sound of Music; I couldn't claim my Austrian heritage without mentioning it, even though many of my family and friends in Austria have never actually seen it!
  (Rush) I'm a bit of a romantic. The Sound of Music, Somewhere in Time, and Camelot.

• Book: (Klaus) Unreasonable hospitality, (Rush) The Fountainhead

• Scent: (Klaus) The smell of early spring sagebrush leaves in the Rockies.
  (Rush) Lilacs 

• The fabric you always come back to: (Klaus) Natural cashmere
  (Rush) Cashmere 

• Dream project: (Klaus) A legacy ranch project where the architecture, landscape design and interior design come together seamlessly creating a property that feels as though it has evolved naturally over generations.  Again, timelessness.
  (Rush) An expansive historic estate in the Cotswolds.

• Meal: (Klaus) Steamed wild-caught salmon and vegetables, with Apfelstrudel for dessert.
  (Rush) Anything with truffles. Klaus and I had our engagement dinner at La Truffière in Paris, a restaurant renowned for its truffle dishes, and I've been obsessed ever since.

• Drink: (Klaus) Aperol Spritz, and more recently discovered in Provence, France—the Hugo Spritz.
  (Rush) A Plymouth Gin martini with blue cheese olives.

• Hotel: (Klaus) Castello di Reschio 
   (Rush) The Reschio 

• Travel Destination: (Klaus) Austria, specifically Tyrol, where my dad’s family is from.
   (Rush) The Dolomites 

• Artist: (Klaus) Claude Monet and Paul Cézanne. It’s a toss-up.
  (Rush) Mark Rothko  

• A cause near and dear to me: (Klaus) Animal welfare and organizations focused on improving conditions for animals.
  (Rush) Pet rescue organizations

• Thing to collect obsessively: (Klaus) Cookbooks!
   (Rush) Antiques and unique objects, both old and new.

• Era in the history of design:  (Klaus) Egyptian, and more deeply, how so many Egyptian aesthetic styles have filtered into countless other design styles.
  (Rush) Ancient Egypt, as well as the enduring architecture and decorative arts of Greece and Rome.

• Museum: (Klaus) The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York for a domestic choice. Internationally, the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, home to masterpieces by Rembrandt, Vermeer, and Van Gogh.
  (Rush) The British Museum, London

• Paint Color: (Klaus) Steel Blue
  (Rush) Benjamin Moore Steel Blue

• Favorite person to follow on Instagram:
  (Klaus) Too many to select just one!
  (Rush) Aaron Parnas (@aaronparnas) and Ryan Resatka (@ryanresatka)

• Dogs, Cats, or No Pets? 
  (Klaus) Dogs: Newfoundlands
  (Rush) Definitely pets. I love all animals, especially dogs.