DYNAMIC, MOVING DESIGN

Gary Riggs home brings imagination to life

BY REBECCA MARIN | PHOTOGRAPH BY HOLGER OBENAUS

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Gary Riggs doesn’t just think big, he thinks gigantic. The over 45,000-square-foot showroom at Gary Riggs Home is a maze of treasure-filled environments and architectural furnishings. As you walk through, each fully styled room holds its own color story, from ultramarine to Schiaparelli pink and Tango orange to eau de Nil. The effect is almost kaleidoscopic but flows quite elegantly.

As Riggs draws back the curtain and leads you through the wonderment, the maze becomes even more complex. There is an almost Russian doll effect or stores within the store. Gary Riggs Home contains not only luxury home furnishings, but also candles, throw pillows, an apothecary store and a soon to be bookstore. “I wanted to have a big enough place so that there could be enough merchandise,” says Riggs of the concept. “If [a designer is] working on someone’s home, [they’ve] got a lot to choose from.” The showroom brings Riggs’ imagination vividly to life.

The panoply completely snatches the breath away and then, not surprisingly, out pops another Russian doll. Gary Riggs Home offers complimentary interior design services with the purchase of its furnishings. Riggs has an in-house interior design staff of four, including himself, who have been known to pull an entire home together within a week, rather than months. These designers have truly mastered the art of interior installation.

First and foremost, Riggs is an artist. He earned a degree in painting and drawing from Brigham Young University in Utah, where he first utilized his artistic talents for television. Riggs worked at the Donny and Marie Show at Osmond Studios in the late ’70s as well as on the original Footloose film. Riggs wanted to delve into a different art market, so he packed up his bag with his portfolio and set forth for Dallas, a city where he says, “Things were going on and building.” In Dallas, he fed galleries wonderful work for a few years and spent a lot of his time painting.

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One day a woman called Riggs. She wanted to fill her home with works of art and had heard of his work. She asked if she could look at a few of his pieces, and Riggs invited her over to his home to view them. After purchasing a few of his masterworks, the woman called back the very next day. She told Riggs she had this wonderful feeling when she was in his home, and she wanted to replicate that same feeling in her own home. The woman, like many of us, had purchased a lot of furnishings and décor but didn’t know how to put it all together. That is where Riggs came in and where he and his team continue to come in today.

Gary Riggs Home showcases incredibly dynamic and eclectic design. Riggs plucks pieces in all different styles, from contemporary to traditional, but each fits incredibly well together. Riggs doesn’t shy away from design details that are moving, especially color. “It’s such an easy way to get impact,” he explains. “It can immediately make you feel. I love when you can feel.” No less moving is Riggs’ philosophy: No matter what is trending or what the magazines salute, incorporating hues, fabrics and pieces that you absolutely love is crucial to creating a space that is truly your home, a place that surrounds you with the pieces and feelings that you enjoy the most. Being true to oneself, generally and aesthetically, is a divinity we all should believe in. Riggs empowers this belief when helping you create your space. It is a design aesthetic expressed profoundly in both color and passion where you will feel very much at home.

Rebecca Marin is a freelance writer and the founder/event producer at The Wildflowers. Find out more at thewildflowers.events.

More Information

GARY RIGGS HOME
4450 Alpha Road
Dallas, TX 75244
214-547-1054