Ashe Leandro on Designing With—Not Against—History

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It’s hard to banish the classic notion of Manhattan from our mind’s eye: the Sex and the City, the Annie Hall, the brownstone-on-tree-lined streets of it all. Cut to actuality, where a lot of us have decamped to Brooklyn, uptown, or upstate, and just a lucky few have managed to pursue that dream of old New York—which makes it all the more spectacular when you get to see it in immaculate detail. Such was the case in AD’s October issue, where writer Michael Boodro and photographer Adrian Gaut documented a quintessential 19th-century row house in Greenwich Village, restored for a family with enough quirk to lift it from the Victorian era.

Ashe Leandro, of course, was the creative strong-arm behind the interiors of this operation. The AD100 firm was contracted to restore the house, though most of its period details had previously been stripped away. With architect Eric Sheffield and Regele Builders, the project became a full-scale renovation and re-decoration, resulting in a historically considered abode with flexible interiors and contemporary accents. How did Ariel Ashe and Reinaldo Leandro manage to pull it off? Below, I asked them about their hard-won insights on Federal-style details, soundproofing old walls, and fighting for vintage furniture finds suited to an even older home.

–Maya Ibbitson, Associate Editor, AD

Charm School

Maya Ibbitson: The article notes you’re known for your “sensitivity to history.” In your own words, what does this look like as a design aesthetic?

Ashe Leandro: We more mean sensitivity to the history of the building. Who designed it and who lived there? How did they live? What was happening nearby? What happened next?...

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