Brooklyn Studio

The 19th century masonry structure most recently had been converted into a day care center—as the Medgar Evers Headstart Child Development Center—but before that it was a union headquarters, home to the Candy & Confectioners Workers Local 452, whose name remained carved above the front door.

The demolition of the upper floor, which had been carved up into many small rooms, revealed an expansive loft with an assortment of old skylights, while the gutting of the ground floor uncovered what had been the uniquely-engineered union meeting hall, with a steel beam spanning 45 feet.

Bartlett’s living and creative life are so entwined that there is no distinction between work/home. That idea governed the creation of spaces that flow from reception/administration to gallery/studio, cooking/eating, sleeping/bathing, all opening onto a garden designed by the artist, with water and rock features.

Working closely with Bartlett, architect Berridge employed a deceptively simple gallery aesthetic in his design and renovation of the building, with little desire to provoke undue attention. 

But one particular detail, evoking some of Bartlett’s well-known work, was the incorporation of Mexican tiles on the wall of each wet area, using 15 different custom colors, particularly arranged by the artist for each space. Another accent of note is a 37- foot- long solid walnut counter on top of stainless steel cabinets in the kitchen area.

Her former studio in Greenwich Village, with its pool in the sleeping area, and her onetime stylish Paris apartment, were frequently photographed and published. Here is the first look at the latest home the artist has created, this time with the New Zealand-born New York architect David Berridge.