I recently began a new project in one of the great Art Deco buildings on Central Park West. As a nod to the building, the clients asked that the final design–a complete renovation of their apartment–have “an echo of Deco.” Not too much, not too little. It was a challenge I was delighted to take.
The clients had visited Eltham Palace near London–built by the wealthy Courtauld family in the 1930s, and one of the finest examples of Art Deco architecture in England–and fallen in love with the design details. In particular, they liked the wallpaper panorama in the palace bedroom, and wanted to use it in their new dining room.
Eltham Palace Bedroom
The clients found they could buy an authentic set of the vintage paper from a preserved cache at Georgia Horton in London. Called “Kew Gardens,” it was registered as a design by Sanderson on January 1, 1926, and is hand printed using 134 blocks. The panorama depicts real features at the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew, including the Palm Stove, the Greek Temple, the Lake, and the famous Pagoda. The clients chose it in a grey color with a lavender cast.
To make it fit, we are adding a wainscoting that will wrap the dining room. We Photoshopped the image onto our presentation to figure out the scale and to show the clients how it would look. As far as I’m concerned, there’s only one person in New York who can hang this type of paper–John Nalewaja–so we engaged him.
- Proposed dining room elevation with Kew Gardens wallpaper
I found the following items that are going to make a great dining room.
Dining Table from High Style Deco
French Chandelier from Carlos de la Puenete
French Deco sconces from Karl Kemp
Eaton Side Chair by Donghia
Baker chair by Laura Kirar
One of the ideas for a rug is this simple Deco design, which will ground the room. Its border design, which will not be hidden by the table, subtly echoes the new moldings at the ceiling.
Rug to be custom color
We are also going to change the traditional dentil moldings for a Deco design similar to what would have been installed in the original building. I found this design at invitinghome.com.
Art Deco Crown Molding
One of the challenges to this project is that there is a wall of built-in cabinets on the left side of the room. They are only seven feet high, and feel more appropriate for a bedroom.
Before: Existing Dining Room Cabinetry
My solution is to keep the carcasses, and put on new “disappearing doors.” The wainscot will run across the bottom of the doors, the top half will be mirrored, and the height “faked” to seem to reach the ceiling line. This will make the doors disappear and reflect the incredible mural on the opposite wall. The shaded diamonds represent audio speakers that will be installed in that location.
After: Proposed Dining Room Cabinetry
I think this dining room is going to be fantastic. Stay tuned for the reveal in the fall.