In practical terms, those discussions resulted in a flexible floor plan in which the dining room and kitchen can be open or closed to the living room and its dazzling river views, depending on the day’s activities. The capacious living area, which is divided into two seating groups, has a decidedly loftlike feel, airy and inviting. Chandra and Henderson outfitted the room with a range of vintage treasures, including Charlotte Perriand stools, Jacques Quinet cocktail tables, lighting by Serge Mouille and Jacques Adnet, a Hans Wegner lounge chair, and an Edward Wormley sofa upholstered in yellow velvet. “I fell in love with that mustardy color, and we decided that would be the main pop of color,” Henderson explains.
The palette for the rest of the furnish- ings remains fairly neutral, and the envelope, save for the oak-paneled study and strategic accent walls, is crisp and white—all the better to display artworks from the Johnsons’ growing collection.
To keep things fresh, Chandra likes to rotate pieces from home to home. Currently, the stars of the show in New York are a squiggly Sol LeWitt painting and sculptures by Donald Judd and John Chamberlain in the living room; a legend- ary 1960s Horst P. Horst image of artist Cy Twombly and his wife, Tatiana, that adorns the study; and, in the dining room, Adieu, a massive Julian Schnabel canvas from 1996, the year Chandra graduated from high school and left Muskogee.
Still, despite the fancy pedigrees of the art and furniture, the vibe at the Johnson home remains distinctly family-friendly and free-spirited. When Evie and Lydia aren’t playing make-believe in their pink bedroom, the girls might easily be driving go-karts through the hallways or racing slot cars on a toy track in the living room. And what about Jimmie’s contributions to this sprightly domestic scene? “Jimmie’s more interested in the bones of the space and how the layout works,” Chandra says. “He’s not picking fabrics.”
