Blog | Cristopher Worthland Interiors

Elsa Schiaparelli at 22 Rue de Berri

Posted February 16, 2015. Filed in Boho Chic, Elsa Schiaparelli, French Eclecticism, Jansen, Jean-Michel Frank, Maison Jansen

In 1937 Elsa Schiaparelli moved into 22, rue de Berri in Paris’ 8th arrondissement, the third residence she would collaborate on decorating with Jean-Michel Frank, the father of the modern interior, as well as with the formidable firm Jansen. Less moderne and spare than her previous homes at rue Barbet-de-Jouy and the boulevard Saint-Germain (See Elsa Schiaparelli), her eighteen-room hôtel particulier on the rue de Berri reflected the evolution of her style coming into her own. Layered with color, curvaceous furniture and a mix of classical and modern art, chez Schiaparelli distilled her love affair with the worlds of art and fashion. Despite the success of her greatest rival, Coco Chanel, Schiaparelli maintained the distinction as Queen of Fashion between 1930 and 1940.

The white-and-gilt boiserie of the grand salon were covered with a series of eighteenth-century chinoiserie tapestries, taken from Boucher cartoons, with bookcases in each corner designed as white and gold pagodas. The upholstered furniture and bergeré swere scarlet, the canapés dressed in lilac silk – an elegant foil for the designer’s eclectic collection of Chinese and Egyptian curiosities and 18th-century, Cubist and Surrealist art. Throughout her career she collaborated and socialized with the greatest artists of her time – Christian Bérard, Diego Giacometti, Eduardo Benito, Leonor Fini, Salvador Dali, Man Ray, Duchamp and, in particular, Jean Cocteau – creating poetic fashions and sharing creative pursuits in the designer’s salon that was filled with their art. The eclectic decor mirrored Schiaparelli’s own sense of style and fantasy.

Fashion photographer Mark Shaw produced some of the most arresting photographs of his era. Here the style and glamour of Schiaparelli’s salon features a painted screen by Christain Bérard in a corner (1953).

In 1969 Schiaparelli was photographed at home by the seldom heard of fashion photographer Marie Cosindas.

Today the residence at 22, rue de Berri is but a memory, its chatelaine and contents long removed. In 1992 François Halard was invited to photograph the rooms Schiaparelli’s daughter, Gogo (Maria Luisa Yvonne Radha, Marchesa Cacciapuoti di Giugliano), created in her mother’s memory. The salon shares nearly identical white-and-gilt boiserie hung with the Boucher-inspired panels, and you will recognize the scarlet bergére, lilac canapés and colorful rugs. Eventually these, too, would migrate into the hands of admiring collectors when much of the Queen of Fashion’s collection was consigned to auction by her granddaughter and actress Marisa Schiaparelli Berenson at Christie’s in November of 2013.

Elsa Schiaparelli photographed by Horst in the 1930’s.

Photos from the January, 2013, issue of Italian Architectural Digest and Pinterest.

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In Search of Lost Time

Posted February 12, 2015. Filed in Chateaux, French Eclecticism, Jacques Grange, Le Goût Rothschild, Pierre Bergé, Yves Saint Laurent

Yesterday I was in the mood to leave winter behind for somewhere exotic and my journey took to me to Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé’s Russian folly, a reproduction of a dacha, on the their property at Château Gabriel on the coast of Deauville in Normandy, France. (See Russian Reverie). After pouring over articles written as far back as 1990 on their opulent coastal estate I became somewhat nostalgic to revisit the main house, Château Gabriel, once again. And how apropos that I find myself “In Search of Lost Time”, for it was Saint Laurent’s dream to fashion a fantasy at their château as hommage to Marcel Proust’s seminal work Á la Recherche du Temps Perdu. A dream that is no longer but in memory.

There are two accounts as to when Saint Laurent and Bergé purchased the 19th-century Neo-Gothic-style property. According to an article written for House & Garden in 2005 the couple bought it in 1978. According to an article written for The World of Interiors in 2009 the couple purchased it in 1983. No matter, really. What is fascinating is the story, the fantasy, that Saint Laurent conjured for their grand coastal retreat. He envisioned it as a richly layered celebration of the objective and subjective interior worlds of Proust’s characters and their noble dwellings. Bergé explained, “Decoration must start with a story, and then you embroider around the subject.”

To realize their fantasy they called upon interior designer Jacques Grange, who would go on to decorate most of their homes. As a starting point for the decoration of most of the public rooms Saint Laurent envisioned the painterly effect of Claude Monet’s Nymphéas (Water Lilies) for the walls, the artist whom Proust based the character Elstir upon, executed by decorative painter Paul Meriguet. The inky aquatic greens and blues of the grand salon’s mural served as a foil for an overabundance of opulent Napoleon III furniture and a dash of Louis XV, together with fanciful decorative flourishes, instilling a distinctly Proustian atmosphere. The affect is what Grange referred to as “a blend of a Visconti film and le goût Rothschild“. As if by providence, it wasn’t until after the couple purchased the château that they discovered Marcel Proust first met his publisher, Gaston Gallimard, on the grounds of the estate.

A corner vignette in the main salon features one of two saucy velvet and silk covered Napoleon III chairs which came from Madeleine Castaing, surrounded by Japanese Cloisonné cachepots and Art Nouveau decorative arts.

Another view of the grand salon features the baronial fireplace and decadent appointments.

A quiet, pale yellow version of Monet’s Water Lilies dress the walls of the dining room, which features French 19th-century Neo-Gothic chairs around an English mahogany table. The black-and-cream marble floors extend into a more intimate dining area in the foreground, next photo.

Monet’s Water Lilies continue to inspire the decorative scheme of the library in shades of cream and pale green. On Saint Laurent’s desk is a 16th-century bronze of the Borghese gladiator between two Italian carved-marble urns.

Leaning against a chair back is a daguerreotype by Nadar of Sarah Bernhardt, whose style Saint Laurent admired. Stationary in the designer’s desk includes cards to indicate which rooms guest should occupy. As it turned out, the house hosted few parties.

An English leather chesterfield facing the fireplace divides the library; the chair behind is Gothic Revival. The portieres at the door create a cocooned intimacy.

The winter garden, a recreation of 19th-century style, was inspired by Princess Mathilde and always filled with orchids.

Pierre Bergé’s room was named after Charlus, Proust’s aristocratic and decadent aesthete, and revels in the 19th-century’s love affair with the exotic. Deep colors of mauve and viridian, and Orientalist touches including Bergé’s collection of paintings and a 19th-century bearskin rug complete the look. Furnishings include a padded armchair in brown leather, a French Empire daybed, and a Neo-Gothic French table.

Saint Laurent’s bedroom and study was inspired by Proust’s Charles Swann, the cultivated, sensitive and erudite hero. The walls are covered in a ravishing red fabric with an elephant-and-tiger motif.

The study off Saint Laurent’s bedroom features two parcel-painted Biedermeier chairs in front of a Louis-Philippe mahogany desk and a Neo-Gothic faux-bamboo bookcase beneath an enamel plaque from Limoges.

The main feature of Saint Laurent’s bathroom is a Neoclassical tile frieze depicting preparations for a marriage ceremony.

As an aside, here is a quote from Jacques Grange on the design of Château Gabriel and the evolution of his on-going business and personal relationship with Saint Laurent and Bergé, as recorded at the time of the Christie’s sale in 2009:

“When Pierre Bergé and Yves Saint Laurent acquired Château Gabriel, at Bénerville, an uninhabited, late nineteenth century neogothic mansion, with a commanding view over the bay of Deauville, they asked me to decorate it. This residence was simply waiting to be given a new life and the commission was most certainly a key moment in my career as a decorator. The very close relationship between us three gave to this project an exceptional dimension. All of Yves Saint Laurent’s decorative themes were quite meticulous; however I was encouraged to interpret them as I saw fit, in order to produce the best results. The main sources of my inspiration were the film sets of Luchino Visconti, more precisely that of “L’Innocente”, as well as the ambiance and atmosphere that were present in the numerous castles created by Ludwig II of Bavaria. The imposing ‘portières’ and curtains made from thick, opulent fabrics, formed a perfect contrast with the Napoleon III furniture and other unusual and fantastic objets d’art. This was indeed, quite similar to the way in which the Viscount and Viscountess de Noailles, the Rothschilds and Princess Mathilde, all decorated their properties, punctuated with an abundant use of plants and flowers, which rendered their homes both unique and enchanting. The living rooms all had a certain cinematographic and artistic quality to them, along with a mural representing Monet’s Nymphéas, with the decoration in the bedrooms inspired by characters taken from Marcel Proust’s A La Recherche du Temps Perdu. Two years later and after much effort to find extraordinary objects, driven by Pierre Bergé the house was finally ready. The park, which was designed by Franz Baecheler include both rose and Japanese gardens, a lake and a potager. Since then was added a checkerboard of topiary pushing up between sculptures of François-Xavier Lalanne. As I said to a journalist from the New York Times in 2005: “Of all the houses I have decorated, those I have decorated for Yves Saint Laurent are the most important part of my work”. Afterwards mentioning Château Gabriel I added: “I love this place. It is unbelievable, extraordinary. I would like to dismantle it all and spirit it away.” I do hope that each and every one of these pieces, which were chosen with such a fervent passion, will give to each collector, the same pleasure that they gave to us.” ~ Jacques Grange

This post is based on articles featured in House & Garden, December 2005, with photography by François Halard, and The World of Interiors, December 2009, with photography by Ivan Terestchenko.

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Russian Reverie

Posted February 11, 2015. Filed in Follies & Pavilions, Jacques Grange, Orientalism, Pierre Bergé, Russian Style, Yves Saint Laurent

With all the news of record snowfall and plummeting temperatures across the Eastern board an exotic getaway sounds very enticing. And what could be more exotic than the late Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé’s Russian folly at Château Gabriel overlooking the coast of Deauville in France? Granted, the weather on the coast of Normandy this time of year is blistery. But let us agree, for imagination’s sake, that there couldn’t be a more enticing winter respite! After all, the publication of their folly first appeared in the January, 1990, issue of House & Garden.

Following their purchase of the main house, Château Gabriel, in 1983 the partners called on long-time friend interior designer Jacques Grange to create a fantasy for living. While the main house was modeled after the rooms and characters from Marcel Proust’s In Search of Lost Time the design of this particular outbuilding was inspired by the design duo’s trip to Russia for a retrospective exhibition of YSL fashions in 1986. Based on the traditional Russian dacha, or vacation home, Grange designed their folly based on the 19th-century country cottage of Ludwig II of Bavaria. Constructed of unpainted pinewood around eight Moroccan-style stained glass windows with a steeply pitched roof and lacily carved extended eaves supported by pillars crowned by arched timber, their realization of a dream is set within a birch grove world’s away from their then frenetic life in Paris.

A ceremonial and flamboyantly carved Russian Art Nouveau doorcase from the late 19th-century frames the dacha’s main entrance. They were commissioned by a Russian princess devoted to reviving the Boyer style, having them carved in the village of Talachkino near Leningrad.

The interiors were inspired in part by the sets in the 1930’s movie The Scarlett Empress by Josef von Sternberg, staring Marlene Dietrich. The eight French-designed Moroccan-style stained glass windows set into chestnut planks were the starting point for the exuberant layering of pattern and color, and their passion for Orientalism. A polychrome panel of Czar Nicholas II presides over an Orientalist sofa designed by Grange. The Austrian longhorn chaise longue is covered in Ukranian-style English Arts & Crafts embroidery. As in all their homes tables are piled with collections and books, and the air scented with fragrant flowers.

A writing table was dedicated to one side of the room for Saint Laurent to draw at. Above it hangs a Belgian Art Nouveau chandelier by Serurier-Bovy; the bench is Danish and the armoire is 18th-century Provencal.

Their Russian-style dacha appeared again in the pages of House & Garden in 2005, offering a more expansive view of the main living area featuring a 19th-century French Orientalist-style mantel and mirror and a 19th-century Russian carpet.

A photo of the main salon published in Architectural Digest following the death of Yves Saint Laurent in 2009 reveals nothing had changed but the flowers.

In one corner of the salon is a dining area with circa-1900 Russian chairs made at the Talachkino workshops.

Russian and French genre paintings surmount a 19th-century textile that hangs behind the sofa, and a velvet-edged quilt drapes the cocktail table.

Antique hunting trophies dapple the room’s walls, while a Turkish enameled vase towers nearby.

A 19th-century Russian paperweight is paired with a photograph of Saint Laurent standing amid a flock of François-Xavier Lalanne sheep sculptures.

An early photo of the charming kitchen reveals a marble countertop basin set against antique French tiles.

A recent photo of the kitchen features a 19th-century Eastern European light fixture, a ceramic topped garden table and a La Cornue range and hood.

In the sleeping annex, Bergé’s room includes a colorful custom-made painted bed, desk, and chair that compliment the early-20th-century Russian set designs displayed on a wall. The hall chair at left is 19th-century Swedish, and a brown-bear pelt softens the plank floor.

An Austrian chair fashioned from hunter’s trophy horns stands beneath a 19th-century Turkish chandelier in the bathroom.

A side porch is arranged for serving tea as featured in the 1990 issue of House & Garden. The brass and enamel samovar on the same table later photographed in the kitchen was given to Saint Laurent by Raisa Gorbachev. Tea is served á la russe in glasses with silver holders.

Landscape designer and longtime friend Madison Cox furnished the dacha’s terrace with custom-made teak armchairs. The building in the background is the sleeping annex, which contains the master bedroom and a guest suite.

Pierre Bergé, riding through the forest that hides the dacha from the main house, is pure Chekhovian.

Another outbuilding on the property is a Romany caravan that Jacques Grange transformed into a tidy guesthouse.

Inside the caravan’s guest room custom-made pine beds stand on a checked kilim, and the green curtains are made from an antique William Morris fabric.

Following the death of Yves Saint Laurent the Saint Laurent-Pierre Bergé collection of art and antiques from Château Gabriel went on the auction block at Christie’s in Paris on November 17th and 18th of the same year. Though Bergé elected to sell main house he kept their Russian folly in the forest for his own use and, perhaps, to relive countless magical moments spent there.

Descriptions for this post based on articles written by Edmund White for House & Garden, January 1990, with photography by François Halard; by Jean Bond Rafferty for House & Garden, December 2005, with photography by François Halard; and by Robert Murphy for Architectural Digest, March 2014, with photography by Pascal Chevallier.

Arc

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My Favoriet Rooms

Posted February 10, 2015. Filed in Juan Montoya, Moderne, My Favorite Rooms

I have always dreamed of having an apartment in Paris that captures the curiosity of a collector and artist … a cabinet d’amateur! It wouldn’t have to be large, but the perfect dwelling would possess the spirit of my favorite era, the 1920’s. It needn’t be grand at all, either. Character and atmosphere are all I really require. It could even possess its fair share idiosyncrasies. Good natural light, a fireplace or two, French windows and doors opening onto a terrace, wood floors polished to a patina by years of use, and hot water – with good pressure!

A favorite room of mine for several years counting is the living area of interior designer Juan Montoya’s Paris piéd-a-terre in the Saint-Germnain-des-Prés. It is a modern evocation of his mentor Jean-Michel Frank, whose warm modernist style remains as relevant today as it did ninety-five years ago. Walls and furniture are washed in subdued shades of white, cream and beige to allow the small space to breath and for curated objects and art rendered in black, bronze and brown to take notice. A fireplace wall divided into a grid pattern, and a shagreen-covered cabinet designed by India Mahdavi, are a nod to Frank. What I find seductive is the insouciant mix of styles and periods – from a slate-topped cocktail table of his own design to white painted cane-seat dining chairs he purchased from the Rodin museum surrounding a dark wood country dining table, to a modernist aluminum chair designed by Mathias Bengtsson. For a small room there is a comfortable balance of the antique and the modern, the conventional and the haute, the gutsy and the refined. In fact, I can’t imagine the tableau he created on the fireplace mantel without the feminine addition of prettily potted flowers amongst the masculine forms. And none of it is pretentious; in fact, it is all quite humble in its appearance. Yet it oozes style and confidence. It’s the kind of room that spurs one’s curiosity. It’s the kind of room that incites creative pursuits.

Yes, I would be quite happy here. Perhaps one day I will have a place of my own, à Paris. Here are more photos of the designer’s Paris apartment which was featured in the June, 2012, issue of British House & Garden. Photography by Eric Laignel.

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Classic + Modern Mix

Posted February 9, 2015. Filed in American Chic, Arthur Smith, Coastal Chic, David Hicks, Haynes Roberts, Jacques Grange, James Huniford, Jean-Louis Deniot, Jed Johnson, Markham Roberts, Michele Bönan, Stephen Sills, Steven Gambrel, Steven Volpe, Vicente Wolf

Florida apartment decorated by Vicente Wolf. Photo by Björn Wallander.

One of my favorite approaches to decorating a room is mixing classic and modern design elements. Modern paintings, or perhaps a gleaming Claude Lalanne chair, in a predominantly traditional room adds verve and prevents the room from becoming staid. Conversely, a predominantly contemporary, or even modern, space is heightened by an occasional classic flourish – a bust on a pedestal, a tabletop tableau, or perhaps an antique carved chair as sculpture. Their visual success lies in not only the selection of items, but in their strategic placement and final editing. The results should produce a feeling of heightened sensory delight and rooms that will look as relevant tomorrow as they do today. David Hicks was one of the first, along with Billy Baldwin, to mix classic, traditional furniture with modern art, pull-up tables, chairs, lighting and accessories. In the right hands the look proves opposites attract. Add some vitality and personality to your rooms today. It’s all in the mix – Here is how the masters do it!

A vignette decorated by David Hicks.

A showhouse dining room designed by Haynes-Roberts.

A Manhattan living room designed by Sills-Huniford. Photo by Thibault Jeanson.

A living room vignette designed by Sills-Huniford. Photo by Mary E. Nichols.

Jean-Louis Deniot- Paris apt-Elle Decor-Simon Upton

Jean-Louis Deniot’s Paris apartment. Photo by Simon Upton.

A Paris townhouse designed by Jean-Louis Deniot.

A Berlin residence designed by Michel Bonan. Photo by Massimo Listri.

A Manhattan dining room designed by Jacques Grange. Photo by François Halard,

A living room designed by Jed Johnson. Photo by François Halard.

A living room designed by Markham-Roberts.

A living room vignette designed by Eric Cohler. Photo by Jeff McNamara.

Steven Gambrel’s Sag Harbor home. Photo by William Waldron.

A Manhattan living room designed by Randall Ridless. Photo by Simon Upton.

A living room designed by Arthur Smith, from the July, 1989, issue of Architectural Digest.

A London dining room designed by Steven Volpe. Photo by Simon Upton.

A 1920’s townhouse decorated by Andrew Flesher.

An apartment decorated by Andrew Flesher; via Metropolitan Home.

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Spotlight on Benjamin Vandiver

Posted February 4, 2015. Filed in American Chic

There has been a lot of noise lately surrounding the rising star that is Benjamin Vandiver of Nashville, Tennessee. A self-taught designer who originates from Kentucky, he traded playing the piano as a career for interior decoration when he was asked by singer-songwriter Jessie Baylin to transform the mid-century modern Nashville home she shares with her husband, Nathan Followill, the drummer for the band Kings of Leon. Following the project’s publication in Garden & Gun he has gone on to work for high-profile local clients, such as actors Connie Britton and Hayden Panettiere, which led to eventual projects in Los Angeles, New York and Mexico.

The Vandiver style is at once masculine and feminine, bold and refined, classic and modern – with a distinctly American point of view. When I first laid eyes on the photo above, featuring Vandiver in a his sitting room, Billy Baldwin and Albert Hadley came to mind: crisp, classic, and chic. The rooms he crafts are layered and well-edited with the right proportions of luxury, comfort, and personality. Timeless rooms that will continue to bring pleasure to their inhabitants for years to come. At the rate he’s going he will enter the annals of American Chic in no time at all. I think you’ll agree, a star is on the rise!

Photos from Benjamin Vandiver + Lifestyle, Gun & Garden, Domaine, and Nashville Lifestyle.

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Atelier Florence Lopez, Then and Now

Posted February 2, 2015. Filed in Florence Lopez, Modernism, Uncategorized

While writing a recent post titled Collected Cool I discovered the stylistic beginnings of antiques dealer and interior designer Florence Lopez in the September, 1995, issue of The World of Interiors. Featured was her new apartment in an artist’s studio in the Saint-Germain-des Prés, Paris. Bold and gutsy, yet a tad romantic, this studio apartment sheds light on the evolution of the collector and designer who today occupies the same space as artist-in-residence and chatelaine of her twenty-year old business.

The designer approached the space above as an artist would his studio, mixing exotic ephemera and beloved fetish objects for inspiration. A floating midnight blue mohair velvet sofa, a framed mirror within an empty frame leaning casually against a wall, photos hung salon style, and books piled here and there, all contribute to a feeling that one’s entered a cabinet d’amateur. The simple background of white for walls and window treatments allows the richness of the furniture and objects to take center stage. This apartment was Lopez’s first modern incarnation after six years of absorbing l’ancien regime training under Jacques Garcia. She described her style as esoteric, but with soul.

Above is the same room as it appeared when it was last photographed. The designer changes the contents of the rooms as pieces sell, and every six months changes colors and makes stylistic changes. Where there was once a mix of neo-Renaissance, Arts & Crafts and French 40’s furniture now exists mid-century modern furniture and objects d’art, and where there was once a cocoon of white now exists saturated, inky color. In the photo above a mirror opens up the view of the studio and dining room beyond, and a tableau reveals the designer’s continued taste for bold, masculine objects with sculptural qualities.

Lopez created a dining room out of a small area off the kitchen, separating the two by a curtain of white linen. The oak table and chairs, by Jean Charles Moreux, are covered in parchment. The study of figures is by Ribrolles. On the table are 20th-century ceramics and stone balls.

Today the dining room is enlivened by a yellow, black-and-white graphic pattern painted on to the walls. The room, once nostalgic and romantic, is now optimistic and vibrant.

The bedroom and office were carved out of an unforgiving space under the eves that twenty years later attests to the designer’s forgiveness. At one end Lopez covered heavy 1940’s chairs with cotton slipcovers to blend with the walls, against which she placed the honeyed glow of mostly Arts & Crafts furniture. The combination reads almost British Colonial, a favored aesthetic at the time. On the neo-Renaissance desk is a plaster figure attributed to Belomondo or Aljean, an early 20th-century globe and 19th-century photograph albums.

Today a graphic pattern in black-and-white defines the bedroom’s scheme – where a bed now inhabits the space the neo-Renaissance desk once did.

Photography by Jacques Dirand for The World of Interiors, September, 1995. Recent photography by Phillippe Garcia via Florence Lopez Atelier. To view more photos of the evolution of the studio visit her website.

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Henri Samuel for Susan and John Gutfreund, Paris

Posted January 29, 2015. Filed in French Style, Henri Samuel, Hubert de Givenchy, Susan Gutfreund, Uncategorized

The salon featured above is quite possibly one of the most beautiful rooms I have ever seen, for many reasons. Unquestionably French by design, it succeeds in balancing fine 18th-century boiserie, antiques and objets d’arts with comfortable, if not humble, statements including loose linen slip covered furniture, a tone-on-tone checkerboard patterned carpet, the contemporary curve of an antique Chinese scholar’s table, and an all-over monochromatic color scheme that goes from creamy white to Trianon gray with the changing light. If a room were a lady, this room would be Grace Kelly: stylish, chic and timeless.

This knock-out room, and those that follow, was decorated for American financier John Gutfreund and his wife, Susan, in the 1980’s by the late great French interior designer Henri Samuel. If you scroll down to the next photo you may recognize the entry hall from a very recent post, Le goût Givenchy, Paris. It so happens that Givenchy purchased the main wing of l’Hôtel Orrouer, also known as l’Hôtel de Beauffremont, in 1986 after the Gutfreund’s had moved into the less grand yet spacious wing comprising a five-floor townhouse. On June 28th, 2011, the contents of the Gutfreund’s Paris hôtel particulier went on the block at Christie’s Paris.

The main entry hall was shared by the Gutfreund’s with couturier Hubert de Givenchy. The Gutfreund’s townhouse apartment began on the second level – or the first level, the etáge noble, as it is referred to in most fine European buildings.

While architect Alain Reynaud returned an 18th-century spirit to the apartment townhouse designer Henri Samuel filled it with Continental treasures. The entrance to the apartment shares the same creamy boiserie as the salon, accented with gold silk covered settees and gold silk damask curtains.

Susan Gutfreund requested that Henri Samuel integrate a looser, more provincial ambiance alongside the fine 18th-century antiques and decorative arts. Slipcovers on some of the furniture creates a more approachable and pared-down aesthetic, beautifully rendered in shades of cream. An embroidered wall hanging attributed to Versailles hangs before a Sicilian bust on a bleached carved console. Throughout the residence Samuel created clean and classic backgrounds with refined detailing for which to showcase the Gutfreund’s personal style and growing collections.

Here, slipcovers were removed for the winter months, revealing sepia tone velvet upholstered furniture in one seating arrangement. A set of six Louis XVI painted armchairs, stamped Adrien-Pierre Dupain, sold at Christie’s.

The atmosphere of the dining room blends elegant formality and provincial charm, where eight antique French panels of the Muses surround a draped dining table surrounded by French chairs wearing a checked silk fabric, crowned by a Russian chandelier.

The silk-lined library, based on an 18th-century shade of yellow, was a treasure trove full of unique collections – from trompe l’oeil bookcases made by Tony Duquette for the Duchess of Windsor and a sofa inspired by a model for Louis XIV’s brother, to the ormolu-mounted ebonized desk of 1730 from neighbor de Givenchy’s collection, and four Salzburg paintings, gifts from Karl Lagerfeld.

The giltwood mirror above the fireplace in the library also came from de Givenchy’s private collection.

The picture above the Louis XV fireplace in the master bedroom was painted by Jean Raoux.

Henri enveloped the master bedroom en suite in a Braquenié floral to create a romantic and cozy cocoon; he also designed the lit a la polonaise.

Madame Gutfreund’s boudoir was fit for Marie Antoinette!

A seating area in one of the stair halls is a symphony of French blue.

At the foot of a four-poster bed in one of the guest bedrooms sits a 19th-century red velvet doghouse.

Photography by Alexander Bailhache for the January/February and on-line issues of Veranda.

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COLLECTED COOL

Posted January 26, 2015. Filed in Collected Cool, Florence Lopez, Frédéric Méchiche, James Huniford, Lorenzo Castillo, Mark Cunningham, Paul Fortune, Thomas O'Brien, Urban Alchemy, Vicente Wolf

Thomas O’Brien’s New York apartment photographed by Martyn Thompson.

Somewhere between 19th-century-style eclecticism and pared-down Modernism lies a highly personal style that I am very much drawn to, what I call Collected Cool. For those of us who want to embrace Modernism but feel left out in the cold where it comes to spare and stream-lined spaces this look summons the tradition of 19th-century collectors reinterpreted for modern living. The success of these rooms lies in their creator’s ability to synthesize antique, vintage and modern design into one decorative resolution. Often resembling artist’s ateliers they speak to my inner artist – rooms layered with art, curiosities and beloved collections; rooms that speak of the ever-evolving creative process. There is a casual insouciance inherent in their design … the leaning and stacked art work; the piles of books; the trays artfully displayed with bibelots; the occasional oddity. Anything but formulaic, the creation of such rooms requires a discerning eye with the ability to curate and assemble objects so that their expressive qualities and spirit share a dialogue. It’s not an easy feat and requires trial and error, and constant editing. It requires the creator to know who they are and what they want. I think many of us reach a point, with the decoration of our homes, when we no longer want matching pillows and curtains. We want something more … something deeper that is a reflection of where we’ve been and where we’re going. The following rooms celebrate our artist within and open us up to a world of possibilities. Enjoy!

James Huniford’s New York apartment photographed by William Waldron for Veranda.

Designer Adam Dolle’s NYC apartment photographed by Peter Estersohn for Metropolitan Home.

Florence Lopez’s Paris studio-cum-apartment, c. 1995. Photo by Jacques Dirand for The World of Interiors.

An earlier incarnation of Frédéric Méchiche’s Directoire-style Paris flat. Photographed by Jacques Dirand for ElleDecor.

Nate Berkus and Jeremiah Brent’s West Hollywood home. Photo by Douglas Friedman for Bazaar.

An aura of Old Hollywood imbues the Laurel Canyon home of Paul Fortune. Photography by Oberto Gili for House & Garden.

David Cruz and Richard Hochberg’s Schiff House in Los Angeles. Photo by Tim Street-Porter.

Benoist Drut’s upstate New York home. Photo by William Waldron for Elle Decor.

The Montauk home of Robin Standefer and Kevin Guyer of Roman-Williams. From Martha Stewart Living.

Mark Cunningham’s Hudson Valley home photographed by William Waldron for Elle Decor.

From Lorenzo Castillo on-line

Alfredo Paredes and Brad Goldfarb’s New York City Apartment. Photography by Miguel Flores-Vianna

A photo taken by Vicente Wolf of his Manhattan loft for the May, 2002, issue of Elle Decor.

Vicente Wolf’s Manhattan bedroom. Photo by Jamie Beck for Rue Magazine.

Visit my Pinterest album Collected Cool + Urban Alchemy for more photos.

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A Winter’s Respite

Posted January 20, 2015. Filed in Amanda Lindroth, Andrew Raquet, Angelo Donghia, British Colonial Style, Bunny Mellon, Bunny Williams, Caribbean Style, Christian Liagre, Colefax & Fowler, Genevieve Faure, Grant White, India Hicks, John Stefanidis, Miles Redd, Nancy Lancaster, Nicholas Haslam, Oliver Mesel, Palladian-Style, Plantation Style, Tom Scheerer, Tropical Style

The living area in Genevieve Faure’s Palladian-style villa in the Dominican Republic. Photo by Oberto Gili.

Following the embracing warmth and good cheer of the holiday season January can sometimes seem anticlimactic – a tad boring, if not completely gray, cold and depressing. Fresh from a winter’s week-long respite in Jamaica I feel rejuvenated, energized and positively upbeat. There is nothing like the tonic of the Caribbean’s blue skies and crystal clear azure waters to soothe away the winter blues (pun intended!).

I love the mix of sophisticated elegance and subdued, carefree comfort that informs the homes and resorts of the Caribbean and Bahamian islands. Rich in their colonial pasts these retreats often combine the elegance of French or English Colonial-style. Some of the best of them are simply washed in white, paired with deep stained wood furniture and flooring, such as mahogany, for a crisp and elegant affect. Many of the grander villas borrow from the architectural style of Palladio, reinterpreted in coral stone and plaster, producing classical rooms utilizing indigenous materials. Their pale and cool interiors invite a lighter touch, where fine antiques blend effortlessly with humble textiles, dhurrie rugs, and natural fibers, such as wicker. Others tap into native color, introducing coral, blue, and green into their rooms – an enlivening mix that is sure to lift one’s spirits. Americans, too, incorporate this decorative vernacular into their homes set in tropical climates. Any way you cut it, a winter’s respite in a tropical locale is certain to make you feel refreshed. Which of the following tropical retreats is calling your name?!

Another view of the great room at Genevieve Faure’s Palladian-style villa in the Dominican Republic. Photo by Oberto Gili.

Genevieve Faure’s bedroom at her villa. Photo by Oberto Gili.

The late Oscar de la Renta’s plantation-style villa in the Domincan Republic. Photo by François Halard for Vogue.

The great room at the de la Renta’s villa combines Palladian influences and Oscar’s love of the Orient. Photo by François Halard for Vogue.

The coral stone enveloped veranda at Oscar de la Renta’s Palladian-style villa in Punta Cana. Photo by Michel Arnaud for British House & Garden.

The de la Renta’s coral stone pool pavilion. Photo by François Halard for Vogue.

The great room in Bunny Williams and John Rosselli’s villa in the Dominican Republic. From Bunny Williams: A Point of View.

The dining pavilion at Bunny Williams’ Punta Cana retreat. Photo via Bunny Williams on-line.

A restful garden room at Bunny Williams retreat. From Bunny Williams on-line.

A bedroom in Bunny Williams and John Rosselli’s Punta Cana villa. Photo by Fritz van der Schulenberg for Town & Country.

Bunny William’s veranda overlooking the pool. Photo by Fritz von der Schulenberg for Town & Country.

The grotto-style entrance of a plantation-style home in Windsor, Florida, designed by John Stefanidis. Photo from John Stefanidis on-line.

John Stefanidis accented the great room of a Windsor, Florida, home with sorbet colors. Photo by Miguel Flores-Vianna.

John Stefanidis accented the great room of the Florida home with sorbet colors. Photo by Miguel Flores-Vianna.

Patrician style in the late Bunny Mellon’s retreat on Antiqua. Photo via Christies.

A bedroom in Bunny Mellon’s Caribbean retreat featured floors stenciled in a large-scale pattern of blue and green. Photo from Christies.

The main drawing room of the Lyford Cay Club House in the Bahamas, decorated by Tom Scheerer.

A living room designed by Tom Scheerer on Florida’s Jupiter Island. Photo by William Waldron.

The dining room in the same Hobe Sound villa decorated by Tom Scheerer. From Elle Decor.

The dining room in the same Hobe Sound villa decorated by Tom Scheerer. Photo by William Waldron for Elle Decor.

Decorator Tom Scheerer’s bungalow in the Bahamas. Photo by Pieter Estersohn.

The living room of Tom Scheerer’s bungalow in the Bahamas featured in Elle Decor.

Crisp green-and-white awning stripes greet guests at Roundhill Hotel and Villas on Jamaica.

A guest villa at Roundhill, Jamaica.

The veranda at Roundhill, Jamaica.

The British Colonial-style living room in Designer David Flint's Harbour Island retreat. Photo by Patrick Cline for Lonny.

The British Colonial-style living room in designer David Flint and India Hicks’ Harbour Island retreat, “King’s Treat”. Photo by Patrick Cline for Lonny.

Flint covered the daybed on the sleeping porch with a hand-printed fabric he found at a Cairo market. Photo by Patrick Cline for Lonny.

Black accents warm Flint's cool gray bedroom. Photo by Patrick Cline for Lonny.

Black accents warm the cool gray bedroom. Photo by Patrick Cline for Lonny.

India Hicks low-key style at Hibiscus Hill, her home in the Bahamas. Photo by Tm Street Porter.

India Hicks’ low-key style at Hibiscus Hill, another house on the couple’s property. Photo by Tim Street Porter.

A living room in a guest house at India Hicks Bahaman retreat. Photo by Fernando Bengoechea for House Beautiful.

A dining room in a guest house at India Hicks Bahaman retreat. Photo by Fernando Bengoechea for House Beautiful.

The dining room in the same guest house. Photo by Fernando Bengoechea for House Beautiful.

David Hicks built Savannah Guest House on Windemere in 1976, the year India was born.

The master bedroom at Savannah House as refreshed by India Hicks.

A Javanese aesthetic imbues David Bowie and Iman’s Mustique retreat. Photo by Derry Moore for Architectural Digest.

The teak dining pavilion at David Bowie’s retreat is an adaptation of those used in the palaces of Java. Photo by Derry Moore for Architectural Digest.

A collection of Egyptian-revival furniture furnishes David Bowie’s bedroom. Photo by Derry Moore for Architectural Digest.

The late Angelo Donghia’s Key West, Florida, retreat photographed in the 1970’s by Jaime Ardiles-Arce for Architectural Digest.

Angelo Donghia created a quietly luxurious environment for the Ralph Lauren’s Jamaican villa. Photo by Edgar de Evia for House & Garden.

In a photo taken in 1984 of Ralph Lauren's veranda at Round Hill, Jamaica, a white lacquer bamboo dining table is surrounded by McGuire dining chairs. The bar is from the 1930's. Design by Angelo Donghia.

In a photo taken in 1984 of Ralph Lauren’s veranda at Round Hill, Jamaica, designed by Angelo Donghia. Photo by Edgar de Evia for House & Garden.

Today the master bedroom contains the same furniture, right down to the white ruffled bedding by Ralph Lauren Home. Photo by Durston Saylor.

Appropriately named, the Ralph Laurens’ guest house is a study in white. Photo by Durston Saylor.

White Orchid was originally the retreat of Babe Paley. Photo by Durston Saylor.

An ordered yet laid-back chic informs the vacation home of Christian Liagre in St. Barts. Photo by The dining room in Liagre's beach house. Photo by William Abranowicz.

An ordered yet laid-back chic informs the vacation home of Christian Liaigre in St. Barts. Photo by William Abranowicz.

The dining room in Liagre's beach house. Photo by William Abranowicz.

The dining room in Liaigre’s beach house. Photo by William Abranowicz.

The entrance to Amanda Lindroth’s Lyford Cay villa in the Bahamas. Photo by Bjorn Wallander.

The living room in Amanda Lindroth's plantation-style home at Lyford Cay in the Bahamas. Photo by Bjorn Wallander.

The living room in Amanda Lindroth’s plantation-style home at Lyford Cay. Photo by Bjorn Wallander.

The exuberant entrance-cum-lounge at Pineapple Hill, a private retreat at Lyford Cay Club in the Bahamas decorated by Miles Redd. Photo by Bjorn Wallander.

Miles Redd used a Lee Jofa fabric to tent the dining room. Photo by Bjorn Wallander.

The entrance gallery in a Lyford Cay villa, once owned by Laura Ashley, designed by Andrew Raquet. From Veranda.

The entrance gallery in a Lyford Cay villa, once owned by Laura Ashley, designed by Andrew Raquet. Photo by Max Kim Bee.

The dining room designed by Andrew Raquet for the Lyford Cay villa. From Veranda.

The dining room designed by Andrew Raquet for the Lyford Cay villa. Photo by Max Kim Bee.

A refreshing solarium designed by Andrew Raquet for the same Lyford Cay villa. Photo by Max Kim Bee.

Leaminton Pavilion on Barbados, designed by Oliver Messel as part of a larger estate.

The drawing room at Leamington Pavilion was decorated by Nicky Haslam in the 1980’s. Photo by Michael Mundy for HG.

For the dining room at Leamington Haslam created his piéce de resistance: a coral stone lined space featuring seashell-festooned niches and a neo-Rococo table the color of seaweed.

Nicky Haslam added trellis and pagoda-shaped sconces and a commodious banquet to the outdoor sitting room. Photo by Michael Mundy for HG.

Haslam devised a pale pallete against cool terrazzo floors in the master bedroom sometime in the 1980’s. Photo by Michael Mundy for HG.

Emma Burns of Colefax & Fowler channeled Sweden for a client’s vacation home on Mustique. Photo by Luke White for Architectural Digest.

The master bedroom is a restful study in foggy gray and white. Photo by Luke White for Architectural Digest.

Grant White gave a new home on Mustique inspired by Oliver Mesel Colonial-style flavor. Photo by Tim Beddow for Architectural Digest.

The airy dining pavilion is soothing in its singularity of bleached woods. Photo by Tim Beddow for Architectural Digest.

The airy dining pavilion is soothing in its singularity of bleached woods inspired by Swedish design. Photo by Tim Beddow for Architectural Digest.

Grant White designed the veranda as an outdoor room for relaxation, dining and cocktails. Photo by Tim Beddow for Architectural Digest.

Heron Bay, the Palladian-style villa in Barbados. Photo from Architecture Design in Barbados via The Devoted Classicist.

Heron Bay, the Palladian-style villa in Barbados once owned by Ronald Tree, Nancy Lancaster’s ex-husband. Photo from Architecture Design in Barbados via The Devoted Classicist.

The Morning Room at Heron Bay as photographed for Architectural Digest by Derry Moore for the August, 1987, issue; via The Devoted Classicist.

A rendering of the Morning Room at Heron Bay by Will Topley. Via The Devoted Classicist.

For more on Oscar de la Renta’s villa in the Dominican Republic see my post Oscar de la Renta: Punta Cana, c1990′s – 2014. For the full story on Ricky and Ralph Lauren’s retreat, High Rock, in the Roundhill community of Montego Bay, Jamaica, see my post A Jamaican Jewel: Roundhill.

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Valentino’s Homes & Interiors in Vogue

Posted January 8, 2015. Filed in Mediterranean Style, Orientalism, Romantic Classical Style, Uncategorized, Valentino

1970: Valentino’s Roman penthouse boasts a Turkish tent alcove with motifs the designer selected from a Persian art book, redrawn and printed on linen. Photographed by Horst P. Horst, Vogue, April 1970.

In anticipation of the publication of Valentino: An Emperor’s Table this past November Vogue dipped into their archives to curate and on-line review of the style-setter’s sumptuous homes and interiors over the years, reaching back to Valentino’s rise to fame in the 1970’s. Design hounds, like myself, are likely familiar with every home and interior featured in this article, from their publication in shelter magazines over the years, yet most of the following photos are images of familiar rooms I’m discovering for the first time – which is actually a thrill, given I sometimes think I’ve seen it all. I hope you enjoy revisiting Valentino’s homes and interiors and, perhaps, a few new perspectives, as much as I have!

1974: Valentino collaborated with one of the 20th century’s most important interior designers, Lorenzo Mongiardino, on his Appian Way villa. Picasso’s Femme Assise dictates the living room’s color scheme, anchored in soothingly pale greens. Eighteenth-century Chinese cloisonné birds survey the space.
Photographed by Horst P. Horst, Vogue, August 1974.

1974: Tessellating Neapolitan ceramic tiles offer a graphic backdrop between the Moorish archways of the pool house. The Roman pool is framed by Baroque fish. Photographed by Horst P. Horst, Vogue, August 1974.

1984: An outdoor dining room in his Capri villa is covered by a vine-festooned ceiling in jasmine and bougainvillea. The table is set with a collection of corn majolica.
Photographed by Jacques Dirand, Vogue, December 1984.

1984: Sumptuous, florid walls are custom-upholstered to fit a vaulted alcove next to the sitting room, which overlooks the gardens. Photographed by Jacques Dirand, Vogue, December 1984.

1989: The designer’s Peter Marino–devised Central Park–perched apartment boasts graphic and understatedly elegant Le Manach red gingham walls, which offset a gilded Louis XVI chair. The sofa is upholstered in an antique Turkish wedding cape.Photographed by Michael Mundy, Vogue, March 1989.

This post is based on an article written by Mieke Ten Have for Vogue, published on-line November 6, 2014. You can see the original story at Vogue Online. Rooms descriptions taken directly from article.

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Past Meets Present

Posted January 5, 2015. Filed in Belgian-Dutch Style, Elemental Design, Organic Modern, Vincent Van Duysen

There is something about the holiday season that fills me up. And every year I look forward to it … to the merriment and good will; to the holiday treats and yuletide libations; to the mantels and banisters dressed with boughs of greenery; to the twinkling lights; to the spirit of Christmas and all it promises. Yet once the holidays come to an end I am considerably sated, to say the least. Full, you could say. And so, every year, I look forward to the opposite of feeling full, to a cleansing of mind, body and spirit. I look forward to getting back to the basics.

The compound featured in today’s post characterizes my new year’s state of mind, featuring a collection of barns and outbuildings renovated and designed by the brilliant architect Vincent Van Duysen in his inimitable elemental style. Located in the farming town of Zwevegem, Belgium, near the French border, Van Duysen was presented with the challenge of reconciling the past with the present. Local building codes require that specific historic worthy architectural elements stay intact, maintaining the essential architectural character of Flemish country houses. This meant the terra-cotta roof tiles had to stay. But virtually everything else was re-imagined, from the ground up. To honor the local architectural vernacular Van Duysen put up exterior brick walls covered with light colored traditional clay-and-plaster, called kalei (lime wash).

To provide the interiors with a feeling of openness and light Van Duysen installed large floor-to-ceiling windows throughout, and kept materials to a minimum. Free of extraneous decor his rooms breathe. A monochromatic scheme of plaster white, stone gray, bleached straw and smoky charcoal allows the views of the countryside beyond the picture windows to take center stage, and soothe the mind, body and soul. The main house comprises one of three barns; the second houses the stable and garage, and the third an indoor swimming pool. If the holidays left you feeling over-indulged, step into these sybaritic spaces designed with simplicity, comfort and peacefulness in mind.