Resembling an English estate, Sir John Richardson’s full-floor Flatiron co-op seeks $7.2M

The estate of renowned Picasso biographer and art historian Sir John Richardson—who passed away in March—recently listed his Flatiron co-op for $7.2 million. The seventh-floor loft at 73 Fifth Avenue spans across 5,400 square feet but despite some original details—dark oak floors, wood beams, exposed pipes, and oversized windows—it looks more like “a vast English country house” than a traditional loft, as New York Magazine noted. Currently configured as a two-bedroom with plenty of library space, the home is filled with a “mash-up of exotic and classical furniture,” alongside countless artworks from friends like Lucian Freud and Andy Warhol, and other curiosities.

Richardson moved into the raw loft space (which had previously been used as a dance studio) in 1995. He worked with architect Ernesto Buch to transform the space, “creating an enfilade of rooms connected via mahogany doorways crowned with neoclassical pediments,” according to the New York Times.

The reception room is flanked by a library lined with built-in shelves and a large, 46-foot long living room. There’s a dining area with a decorative fireplace and separate kitchen adjacent to the living room, which also connects to a back hallway leading to the guest bedroom, two full bathrooms (one of which is clad in eye-catching Moroccan tile), and a laundry room.

The master bedroom is on the other side of the living room as well as Richardon’s turquoise studio, one of his favorite rooms where he did most of his work. There are 30 windows throughout the full-floor home, which benefits from four exposures.

The elaborate space is likely to be transformed by future owners, but for now, it provides a unique glimpse into the world where some of the most important figures of the last two centuries came to enjoy Richardson’s dinner parties and conversation. There are plans to auction off his extensive art collection next year, though no date has been set yet.

[Listing: 73 5th Avenue, Unit 7FL by Jeffrey Stockwell, Jill Bernard, and Alan Shaker of Compass]

[At CityRealty]

RELATED:

• Jeff Bezos scoops up three Flatiron apartments for a record-setting $80M
• Lucy Liu’s $5.9M pair of Flatiron condos finds a buyer
• $4M Flatiron penthouse is the perfect mix of old and new with a timeless rooftop paradise

Listing images by DDReps; courtesy of Compass