Global minimalism is the dominant form of interior design today, thanks to artists like Harry Nuriev, whose Instagram (@harrynuriev) has attracted followers and even a New York Times article. Contemporary designers emphasize arches and minimally decorated rooms which are punctuated by brightly colored accents. The influences are clearly mid-century Scandinavian, with its simple, white and rustic style. Japanese sparseness also plays a role.
Nuriev is particularly adept at blending these influences into meticulously curated rooms. The 33- year old Russian is based in Brooklyn but got his start in Moscow. He graduated from the Moscow Architectural Institute after six years of intensive training. In addition to all of his modern preferences, he is fascinated by the classical Roman and Greek arch. He incorporates arches and swooping shapes wherever possible, preventing his rooms from being to boring or stale, and avoiding too many severe edges, which often plagues high modernism.
The traditional Russian style is not part of his international design palette, however. Instead he pairs the industrial materials that are so popular today, with materials like brass. He has a fascination with archways and loves to use what some people all “millennial pink.” Shiny fixtures are his current, well, fixation, and they are incorporated into every room or space he designs.
Nuriev attracted clients from all over the world, but after he debuted his first collection in 2016 at New York Design Week, he made the move to Brooklyn. At first he simply utilized the coworking space WeWork in Williamsburg. He moved quickly into his own studio, Crosby Studios. He has clients ranging from restaurateurs to salons.
Nuriev is inspired by colors, and once he picks one he favors it obsessively over everything. He has moved from pink into royal blue, using it on furniture and accessories. The Times tour of his apartment revealed the things that make him a hot interior designer. His spaces embrace minimalism without being fussy or cold; he uses color blocking to great impact in small spaces. He combines expensive furniture with found items like a black plastic chair that was abandoned on the street.
He has a plastic blue sofa that looks like it has been severely beaten, but to Nuriev, that is part of the charm. Nuriev’s influences include Le Corbusier, Tadao Ando and the firm Sanaa. “When I’m inside their spaces, I start to think about things that don’t usually come to my mind. When architecture starts influencing your way of thinking — that’s when you can become calm,” observes Nuriev. When he was tapped to create a restaurant for a Danish chef, Nuriev put his theories into practice, making him an up and coming design star.
Nuriev cites fashion and movies as other major influences; even the most recent Dior campaign inspired his finishes, such as this office in Manhattan.
Nuriev’s home office includes a mood board that would look familiar to any creative. It’s currently used to come up with a new design for Design Miami. He is also now working drectly with Russian tinsmiths, with the aim of making lamps that take their ues from traditionally Russian chimneys. Here he is departing from his normal references to add in something more complex and ornate.
