‘I don’t think they wanted typical mid-century American,’ designer Damon Liss says of his clients, a New York-based couple with a serious art collection. ‘They wanted something with a little more interest, a little more colour, a little more playfulness.’
For Damon, whose New York-based firm Damon Liss Design is known for its expert international sourcing and masterful use of vintage, this was the ideal brief. Built in 1967, the single-storey home sits in the heart of Palm Springs with sweeping views of the desert. With repeat clients who had already trusted him with their Manhattan apartment, the comfort level was high from the start. ‘When people are at ease, they take more risks,’ he says. ‘They let go.’
That ease translated. Firm design director Ligia Pinto led the architectural work alongside Damon. The house required more of what he calls a ‘re-skinning’ than a gut renovation: they added new bathrooms, a modern kitchen, refreshed floors and a fireplace.
As for the palette, the pair drew directly from the desert outside. ‘The colours were just so special,’ Ligia says. ‘We wanted to bring that into the house.’ Custom terrazzo, poured on-site, picks up the warm browns, dusty greens and ochres of the Coachella Valley. Against it, the team kept cabinetry clean and linear, a counterweight to the colourful, patterned tile throughout.
The den developed naturally, built around a stained-glass window from artist Sarah Cain. The piece, called Desert Sky, is set into rich purple walls, casting light through the space as the sun moves across the valley. Cain is a longtime friend of the clients, and conceived the piece specifically for the room. ‘We didn’t present it as, “This is going to be the really dark purple moody room,”’ Damon says. ‘It came together organically, less pre-programmed and contrived.’
In the entryway, the clients commissioned friend and artist Mark Hagen to create a custom concrete wall cast from moulds of cereal boxes and juice bottles, a twist on the quintessential Palm Springs breeze block screen.
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A nearby sculpture by Moffat Takadiwa, built from discarded computer keyboard keys and toothbrush heads, hangs above the dining table, surrounded by Joseph André Motte ‘Tongue’ chairs. In the office, a ceramic light fixture portraying a set of nostrils by Bay Area ceramicist Woody de Othello hangs in clear sight of the desk. ‘There’s a little bit of almost making fun of ourselves in it, right?’ Damon laughs.
The emphasis on art continued through install day. As Damon remembers, the clients arrived with a truckload of pieces: works by Leilah Babirye, Salomón Huerta, and Tony Feher filled the garage alongside pieces by California desert artists Edie Fake and Jonathan Cross. The whole team then worked with the clients to incorporate the pieces into the home’s new design. ‘It was probably the most open overall design experience I’ve been part of,’ Damon says.
The works now hang in rooms where Joseph André Motte dining chairs sit alongside an Edward Wormley Janus sofa and Milo Baughman swivel chairs. European and American vintage in easy conversation with core pieces from the couple’s highly personal collection. ‘There isn’t a single star of the show,’ Liss says. ‘It’s all about composition.’
