Blanc de Baroque

Mona Williams captured by Cecil Beaton who included her in his pantheon of greats (cf. The Glass of Fashion)

Anyone interested in the brittle elegance of the interwar years has long revered Mrs. Harrison Williams, later the Countess von Bismarck, as a paragon of style.  In 1926, after steadily marrying up, the Louisville native married Williams, purportedly the richest man in American.

Where others might dive into a surfeit of ormolu and opulence with such ample means newly at their disposal,  Mona kept it (relatively) spare and simple.  And as all my designer friends know, "less" is a lot more unforgiving than "more."  

The Delano and Aldrich house at 1130 Fifth acquired by the Williams in 1928

For both their Manhattan townhouse and their Palm Beach residence, the Williams turned to Syrie Maugham for the right balance of blanc de Baroque.  I recently stumbled across these photos of the townhouse's dining room taken in 1931.  

My first thought was to question Mona's mythical status as it seemed more depressingly stark than glamorously so.  However all was soon explained when I read the inscription: "to be used by Mr. Sert in drawing murals." 

Jose Maria Sert's murals

These murals, nine in all, by "Tiepolo of the Ritz" Jose Maria Sert (Spanish, 1874–1945), were sold at Parke-Bernet in 1952, shortly before Harrison's death.  They were acquired by Ruxton and Audrey Love whose collection was sold in 2004 by Christie's.  (Lament not - Sert completed another commission for the Williams' Long Island residence which Mona ultimately took with her to Capri).   In 1954, Beaton's "rock crystal goddess" married her secretary, Eddy von Bismarck, and added Countess to her well-selected adornments.

Such was Mona's verve even in the domain of real estate that the Palm Beach residence was bought lock, stock and barrel by Jayne and Charles Wrightsman. 

The Williams in Palm Beach in their Maugham-decorated living room, depicted by Beaton

Only the Maugham-installed wallpaper stayed after the Wrightsmans became Francophiles and entrusted the room to Stephane Boudin of Jansen, followed by our man Henri Samuel.  The exuberant reupholstery was a later Deming and Fourcade update.  Supposedly, upon seeing further estimates from Denning and Fourcade, Charles Wrightsman thought it better to sell the house…

P.S. Apologies if my prose seems rambling or overdone or just poorly edited - in an attempt to re-enter blogging, time polishing must be sacrificed…  

P.S.S.  Thank you to The Swan… Here is the Maugham-Williams Palm Beach Paper installed in Pierre Berge's dining room

Auction Spotlight: Jayne Wrightsman's London Duplex

You can imagine my heart skipped a beat when I first heard about this upcoming sale. "Simmer down," my in-the-know friend told me. "It's not the Important Stuff." As I'm not in the market for a BVRB III lacquer commode or Marie Antoinette's letter opener, this information did nothing to dampen my anticipation.

Don't miss the 18th century dog bed in front of the fireplace

For as you all know, Jayne - whom most of us have already fetishized for her exquisite eye - worked with the illustrious decorating firm Jansen, who in its day was pretty much synonymous with "impeccable taste". The collaboration of these powerhouse aesthetes is unquestionably one that deserves to be studied and one that yields many lessons and ideas, from furniture plans to passementerie.
Like an ormolu-mounted Blue John urn brimming with peacock feathers, a look that could be replicated albeit with a more humble receptacle...

While the house itself has been emptied and the contents warehoused stateside, these lovely photographs by Fritz von der Schulenberg give us a peek into the Jayne-Jansen magic.


And for my china-smitten friends....

If we were invited over chez Jayne to fete some visiting dignitary, Meissen "Fliegender Hund", lot 195 $20-30,000, might enliven our place setting for dinner...
with less is so much more Sevres white and gilt porcelain for dessert, lot 199, $2 - 3,000

But for an intimate ladies lunch with just you, Jayne and Jackie,
your coq au vin might be served on these charming Dior plates, lot 202 $1,500-2000

Click here to browse Sotheby's e-catalogue or purchase the print version to see more delectable interior images.