Menswear designer Robert Geller has been transformed into a devoted Brooklynite. Formerly residents of the Financial District, he and his wife Anna moved into a four story brownstone nestled on a quiet block in Fort Greene. “I totally fell in love,” he says. “It feels super European, which just feels like home.”
Originally from Hamburg, Germany, raising a family in New York wasn’t always the plan for the designer. “I never thought I’d want to raise my kids [here],” he says. “I had this impression of New York as this crazy, big city, and I wanted to give my kids a chance to breathe. But I feel like in Brooklyn, we have that.”
Arriving at their home, I am met by Geller and his young daughter Anis. A crystal chandelier hangs in the foyer, a fixture that, he explains, was already there when they bought the house. After a two year renovation, the family officially moved in four years ago. “We had a vision going in, very much the Parisian apartment look” he explains. “We wanted to keep it open, light, and with a lot of detailing.” The living room, dining, room, and kitchen on the first floor is where the family of five spends most of their time, and it’s the part of the house he loves the most.
In the dining room hangs Geller’s most cherished piece: a portrait of his mother by Andy Warhol. Five Christo and Jeanne-Claude works are also a part of his art collection. And, of course, included in these prized possessions is his CFDA Trova award, which he won in 2009 for Best New Menswear Designer.
Geller’s home office, a large space with tall windows and lots of books, is where he works two days out of the week. He explains the crossover between his mindset as a designer and as a home renovator/decorator. “I think with creative [people], the most important thing is aesthetics and taste,” he says. “Everything you see goes through that aesthetic filter. The same thing happens when renovating a house. The guy who wears my clothes lives in this kind of a space.”
Our last stop is the basement, where the remnants of Anis’ birthday party can still be seen. Partially deflated balloons drift across the room. Entertaining is something Geller does often, from summer barbecues in the backyard to more formal dinners in the parlor. But it’s the downtime that he most loves the most. “Those beautiful Sunday afternoons where I’m cooking, the girls are at the table drawing, Anna is maybe reading a book….I travel all the time for work. So I really appreciate time at home with family,” he says.
