5Ws of… Diana Vreeland’s Living Room

What: “Then a photograph of her living room appeared in a magazine.  Never had I seen such profusion, so much red! Red on the floor, red up the walls, and textures, textures, TEXTURES! Plaid on top of paisley, flowered chintz next to silk stripes, and silver, tortoise, ebony, conch, gilt – a magnificent explosion in the midst of a beige decade, a world in which the worst sin was to ‘clash.’ You knew the moment you looked at Mrs. Vreeland’s living room that you had seen the future. And indeed, it eventually became the great cliché of New York décor.” – Mary Louise Wilson, introduction to D.V. by Diana Vreeland.

Who: Billy Baldwin designed the living room in 1955.

When: Diana Vreeland burst onto the scene in 1936, when she began working at Harper’s Bazaar. She later worked at Vogue and The Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. 

 

Where: Legend has it she wanted her living room to look “like a garden, but a garden in hell.”

Why: “Why don’t you paint a map of the world on all four walls of your boys’ nursery so they won’t grow up with a provincial point of view?”

Images: With Fabulous Flair, Habitually Chic, Apartment Therapy, Architectural Digest, Harper's Bazaar (SJP as DV)

5Ws of... Hit the Books!

One of the best parts of back-to-school is cracking open all those new books.  If the back-to-school season has you in the mood to brush up on the Who, What, When, Where and Why of iconic design, the following books can help.

 Who: Billy Baldwin: The Great American Decorator by Adam Lewis

The definitive book on the legendary decorator Billy Baldwin, known as the "Dean of American Decorating," famous for his classical taste, streamlined modernism, and brilliant use of color. In the tradition of Rizzoli’s Albert Hadley and David Hicks, this is the first fully illustrated account of the career of Billy Baldwin (1903–1983), one of the most important decorators of the twentieth century, whose work has influenced contemporary designers from Bunny Williams to Jeffrey Bilhuber. With a foreword by Baldwin’s former student Albert Hadley, and enriched by never-before-published transcripts of four 1974 lectures that Baldwin gave at the Cooper-Hewitt, this is an important book for anyone interested in interior design.

What: Hans, His Chair and The World - a Children’s Book about Hans J. Wegner. 

With his 100 years anniversary just around the corner, Danish design icon Hans J. Wegner has become the center of a renewed international attention – resulting in new literary projects and exhibitions.  The richly illustrated book opens the world of the famous Danish furniture designer to the younger generations and draws attention to the old water tower in Wegner’s native city Tønder that has been transformed into a permanent collection of the Danish iconic chair designs.

When: The Stylemakers: Minimalism and Classic Modernism 1915-1945 by Mo Amelia Teitelbaum

In Paris in the 1920's a new style was born, rejecting the embellishments of Art Nouveau and Art Deco, paring down superfluous detail to the essence of classic modernism.  This new study documents how their interchange of partners and ideas led to innovation in every field of the arts. It is packed with fresh material and original insights on artists such as Man Ray, John Singer Sargent and Diaghilev.

Where: At Home with Town & Country by Sarah Medford 

These remarkable homes, lavishly photographed to the publication's singular standard, reflect the latest developments in residential architecture and design, including the “Invisible House,” Tadao Ando's avant-garde dwelling for the Benetton family in northern Italy and Antoine Predock's art-filled Dallas retreat for Deedie and Rusty Rose. But classic design also plays a part: here, too, are Chatsworth, the 400-year-old ancestral seat of the Dukes of Devonshire; Ralph and Ricky Lauren's 1920's-era family estate in Bedford, New York; and Spike and Tonya Lee's historic Manhattan town house. 

 

Why: House & Home by Orange Art Press

Go, little book, and wish to all

Flowers in the garden, meat in the hall,

A bin of wine, a spice of wit,

A house with lawns enclosing it,

A living river by the door,

A nightingale in the sycamore!

- Robert Louis Stevenson

Images and info: 1: Danish Agency for Culture/Press Release; 2, 3, 4: Potterton Books; 5: Orange Art Press.