CREATIVE EXPRESSION

Designer David Cafiero has carefully preserved the integrity of this former painter’s studio belonging to Hollywood hitmaker Ryan Murphy

- RACHEL LEEDHAM

Situated at the northernmost tip of Cape Cod, Provincetown has long harboured a resident population of artists who were first attracted to the fishing village by its extraordinary elemental light. This former studio was built by seascape painter Frederick Judd Waugh and was later used by Hans Hofmann, a key figure in abstract expressionism and one of the most prominent characters of post-war American art.

Five years ago, the property was bought by Hollywood TV maestro Ryan Murphy, the creator of hit series including Glee, American Horror Story and Pose. The purchase was an act of preservation: Ryan and his photographer husband David Miller already owned a home on the waterfront but they recognised the studio’s importance and decided to adapt it as a guest house and entertaining space.

Tasked with this role was Manhattan-based designer and antiques shop owner David Cafiero, a friend of the couple and fellow Provincetown aficionado. ‘I’ve been coming here for the last 30 years and, coincidentally, I was commissioned to renovate the studio Hans Hofmann had prior to this, which I now rent every summer from the client,’ says David, whose passion for the painter ensured that he approached the project with the lightest of touches: ‘It was important to let the space be the story.’