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Have you spent more time at home lately than you ever thought possible? If so, it may be time to seek out a fresh crop of living room ideas. After all, what may have once been considered a formal sitting area is now the hub of many individuals’ 24/7 work-from-home lifestyles. So it would be perfectly understandable if you found yourself—by this point—utterly sick of that same space.
To help spark new living room ideas and usher in creative thoughts, we’ve rounded up 10 of our favorite finds from the AD archive. It was no simple task, considering that our archive holdings stretch back 101 years, but the medley you’ll find speaks to a variety of divergent types of design, while making room for an artist’s home, a historic photograph, and other such gems.
A perfectly pink Italian perch.
The Milanese Living Room of Designer J.J. Martin
J.J. Martin is known for her exuberant—and unabashedly maximalist—designs, which range from riotous fabrics to enviable plates. So it makes sense that her own Milan home would be brimming with pattern and verve. Case in point is her dusty pink living room, which features a cacophony of special finds. A vintage needlepoint unicorn, sourced from Etsy, can be seen above a blue velvet Arflex sofa. The glass tables were picked up at flea markets, while the ottoman has been upholstered in a David Hicks fabric. The leather chairs date back to the 1970s.
White walls allow for the red-rose-patterned textile to further stand out.
One Locust Valley Hideaway
A plaster fireplace—plus chairs covered in a Olya Thompson Textiles print—makes this room a knockout. Its location is the Locust Valley, more specifically the home of Asia Baker Stokes. Of her first encounter with the house, Baker Stokes recalled to AD: “It was a magical, forlorn mess, but you could see its potential.” Indeed.
Some of the throw pillows seen are in fact by KAWS, although they are hardly the focal point of the space.
KAWS’s Colorful Brooklyn Home
Artist Brian Donnelly is better known by his moniker, KAWS. Regardless, in the Brooklyn home he shares with sculptor Julia Chiang and their two daughters, his own oeuvre takes a backseat to the works of other talents. In addition to the pieces seen on this gallery wall, the living room features an Ettore Sottsass cabinet and a Gaetano Pesce seat. The sofa is from Wyeth.
The seven-window stunner.
A Gable Ceiling Tour de Force on the Island of Nantucket
Jacobsen Architecture was the firm behind this modern Nantucket escape. The seating pieces are Christophe Delcourt designs from Ralph Pucci, while the pillows and throws were sourced from the local shop Flowers on Chestnut. The four small reading lamps situated at each corner of the rug are by Cedric Hartman, while Jacobsen Architecture custom-designed the table. The expansive green grounds, which can be seen just beyond this room, were the work of Stephen Stimson Associates.
A glowing fire further warms the room on an already bright day.
Mario Buatta’s Floral-Forward Creation
In this Floridian escape, legendary decorator Mario Buatta marshaled all the best and brightest colors of the Sunshine State. From a lime green garden stool to pops of pink provided by throw pillows, it’s still a design that speaks to its wider locale. A blossoming chandelier, vine-laden upholstery fabric, and carefully placed potted plants further accentuate the composition.
Electric blue pillars are difficult to miss.
A Modernist Marvel in Structural Engineering
Without a doubt, the dramatically angled steel-and-glass wall, which reaches a whopping 23 feet, is the star feature of this living room. But it was not purely an aesthetic choice for architect Carlene Nolan, thanks to the challenging topography posed by the wooded area. The 11,000-square-foot house is also perched on a lakeside hill.
The iconic Egg Chair by Arne Jacobsen can be seen in the background.
An All-White Living Room in Miami Beach
“I wanted to create a fresh, very bright beach home,” designer Charles Allem said to AD in 2006. He was speaking of his own pied-à-terre in Miami Beach, Florida. Seen here is the entrance to the living room. “The sculptural forms help maintain the feel of continuous flow throughout,” he noted.
The swinging mood of the 1960s (and early 1970s) is well captured here.
One Futuristic Palm Springs Abode
Architect John Lautner and interior designer Arthur Elrod worked together to create this circular home in the Palm Springs desert. In the living room, which includes a fireplace and overlooks a pool, an Edward Fields carpet helps unite the space. The flooring is black slate.
Plants add a greater sense of life to this abode.
A Blue-Tinged Room Fit for a Winter Cover
For their Winter 1967 issue, the editors of Architectural Digest chose this living room image to grace the magazine’s cover. Located in Pasadena, California, the room belonged to Ken Carmichael. The blue of the Metropolitan sofas, which were designed by Charles Lewis, was further accentuated by the cover’s border choice.
Here, two upholstered seats face off.
The Traditional L.A. Living Room That Made AD History
This cover dates back all the way to Spring 1964. Interestingly, it marked the last time that the magazine used a black-and-white photograph for its cover before switching to color images for the Fall 1964 issue. The living room pictured here was designed by the Barnett Brothers firm, and was located in Los Angeles.
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