Austin-based Mark Cravotta, owner of Cravotta Interiors, is known for his creative designs that have

made him a highly sought out interior designer with an impressive client list ranging from A-list
celebrities to CEOs. Cravotta meets his clients desires by designing spaces that exude livable luxury,
subtle warmth and inspiring beauty. When Cravottas friend and globally-renowned jewelry designer
Kendra Scott asked him to revamp her former downtown Austin condo, he came to the rescue by
breathing color and sophistication into a previously bland and monotonous space. We sat down with
the passionate designer to talk about how he converted this previously sterile Austin City Lofts
condo overlooking downtown Austin into a rich, warm and chic urban space to live and entertain.
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WHY THIS SPACE
Designer Spotlight:
Mark Cravotta
By MAURI ELBEL | Photography by PAUL BARDAGJY
Upon rst glance, what were your original
impressions of this space?
MC: My frst impression was that it had good bones but
it was really dark and cold and drab. Honestly, it conjured
thoughts of a well-appointed prison. Tis condo is on the
western edge of downtown with views looking over west
Austin. But everything inside was brown or gray the
concrete ceiling, brown leather sofa, brown reclaimed wood
cofee and side tables. Tey didnt have any art, any rugs, any
pillows, any color. I was happy they called me.
What did you envision in terms of potential for this
condo?
MC: Te main objective was to soften the space and infuse
it with color so that it felt more warm and inviting without
losing its masculinity. I knew we needed to get some color in
here and we needed to marry the textures. Te client really liked
these reclaimed wood pieces (the cofee table and the side table)
but we needed to make sure not all the furnishings were the
same color all the surfaces were gray and the furniture was all
brown and leather. I wanted to get some variation in color and
texture. Tey didnt want to waste the furniture that they had
already spent money on, which is understandable, so I worked
with both of them to see what they were open to. I tried to bring
other elements into the space to up the sophistication and soften
the overall aesthetic.
What elements did you bring into the condo to help
you achieve this look?
MC: I brought in the table running behind the sofa, a
chrome frame with a black glass top, that helped make the
space a little more sophisticated and modernized it a bit. I
wanted to make sure those reclaimed wood tables worked well
with the overall composition of the room so I brought in some
tribal pillows and throws to help break up the sea of brown. I
brought in an antique Turkish Oushak rug which was over 100
years old. You can imagine the brown wood tables with brown
sofa on the brown foor before everything receded into itself
and there was a real lack of dimension. Tat rug was really
important that and the triptych art piece on the wall were
probably the most important elements in establishing some
life and dimension into this room.
The clean lines and open feel in these rooms really
allow your interior furnishings and art selections to
take center stage please tell us about some of
your specic design and art choices.
MC: All the architectural detailing was there when I became
involved. Te only thing we had to do was paint and furnish
the space. I shifted the paint color on some of the walls and
warmed up the grays. We reupholstered a basic chair in the
living room in a vibrant green mohair and anchored the room
with the amazing 100-year-old Oushak rug to add color, pattern
URBAN HOME AUSTIN SAN ANTONIO 59 urbanhomemagazine.com 58 URBAN HOME AUSTIN SAN ANTONIO urbanhomemagazine.com
Were there any lines in particular
that you gravitated toward in terms
of furniture selection?
MC: Te space was done on a relatively
small budget. We kept many of the pieces
the client already owned and then added
pieces that I either found or designed to
achieve the overall aesthetic.
I love the paneled art hanging above
the wooden benches please tell
us where you found these pieces.
MC: I commissioned the hall art from
another Austin artist, Jennifer Prichard, whose
work Ive long admired. Jennifer Prichard
typically attaches her ceramic creations
directly to walls and ceilings. I wanted
something more contained, and though she
had never done anything like this before, she
was willing to explore the idea with me. I
asked her to create a series of ceramic bowls
in many hues of blue and green and arrange
them in a way that creates an ombre efect
as it progresses down the hall. I love the way
it turned out on these fve white canvases. I
designed the walnut benches in the hall, each
with four slabs of claro walnut, and from the
front, you can still see the wall behind them.
Tis hallway has a view that overlooks South
Austin. Tese clients had a lot of parties and
entertained frequently so we really wanted to
create a gallery space out of this dark hall that
leads from one section of the condo to the
other as people are walking through the space.
What are your favorite elements in
this space what words do you
feel best describe this space when
you are standing in the room?
MC: Te art. Vibrant. Art-infused.
Expansive. Comfortable. One of the things
that was exciting about this space is that we
flled it almost exclusively with works from
local artists. It really contains the crme de
la crme of Austin art. I think these talents
stand with the best artists, anywhere. All
of these pieces have a magical luminescent
quality to them, from the Jennifer
Chenoweth painting to the piece by Roi
James. We made sure they were all properly
lit so none of their vibrance is lost.
For your clients, why did this space work? What did
they most love about it?
MC: Tey wanted a cool, hip downtown living experience
and I think they would agree we achieved that. v
CRAVOTTA INTERIORS
512.499.0400 | Cravottainteriors.com
and soul. Te foor lamp is a functional sculpture bringing art
into the space along with the triptych painting by Austin artist
Jennifer Chenoweth. Placing an architectural planting in the
corner provides texture, color and real life. Te kitchen just had
to be cleaned up and styled with a few elements of interest. Te
painting seen just beyond the kitchen to the left is by one of my
favorite local artists, Roi James.
60 URBAN HOME AUSTIN SAN ANTONIO urbanhomemagazine.com