JOHN STEFANIDIS: April 2012

Monday, 30 April 2012

DESIGN: Passementerie

A detail of Passmenterie - silk taffeta curtains, stencilled, painted squares on the walls.

Friday, 27 April 2012

DESIGN: Chairs - Hommage à Emilio Terry

At a performance of the Alice in Wonderland ballet at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden - a full house and enthusiastic audience - Act III had an avalanche of playing cards as part of the set which reminded me of my chairs - Hommage à Emilio Terry

Thursday, 26 April 2012

TRAVEL: The Highlands of Scotland

A visit to the Highlands of Scotland - for work or pleasure - is always exhilarating!....particularly when a magnificent stag and red deer can be seen from the windows.

Wednesday, 25 April 2012

John Stefanidis Fabrics: Flowers

An original Japanese paper print featuring rows of swirls and small stylised flowers.

Available in 5 Colours: Azure, Bright Blue, Cocoa, Scarlet and Sunny Yellow.

Flowers 'Scarlet'- loose chair covers for summer and, to the left, my JS Patmos tray

Flowers 'Bright Blue'- Curtain lining detail, Le Richemond Hotel, Geneva

Available from:

Miami, USA - Monica James

Showroom: 40 NE 40th Street, Miami, FL 33137

Phone: + 1 305-576-6222

Email: sales@monicajames.com

Website: monicajames.com

Los Angeles, USA – Harbinger

Showroom: 752 North La Cienega Blvd,West Hollywood, CA 90069

Phone: +1 310 858 6884

Email: Info@HarbingerLA.com

Website: harbingerla.com

Melbourne, Australia – Tigger Hall

Showroom: 720 High Street Armadale Vic 3143

Phone: +61 (0) 3 9509 6456

Email: info@tiggerhall.com

Website: tigger hall.com

John Stefanidis Fabrics Website

stefanidisfabrics.com

Tuesday, 24 April 2012

DESIGN: 1970's Modern: Place Fürstemberg, Paris

I have recently used fine chainmail for curtains in a house in London..... An earlier incarnation of this device was an apartment overlooking Place Fürstemberg in Paris VII--note HI-FI and turntable built into lacquer bedside unit.

Salzburg Easter Festival 2012

GOODBYE to the Berlin Philharmonic and Sir Simon Rattle who have absconded to Baden Baden.

Glorious music at the Siftung Mozarteum Kontrapunkte 02 as a start off, Debussy and Fauré, Emanuel Ax at the piano and the most talented of flautists, Emmanuel Pahud.

At the Festspielhaus, a Beethoven piano concert and Mahler: Das lied vonder Erde with Mezzosoprano Anne Sofie von Otter and Tenor, Jonas Kaufmann; a choral concert - Schumann, Berio and Fauré with Murray Perahia at the piano - stunningly good! Bruckner: Symphonie No.8 c-Moll conducted by Zubin Mehta..............and Bizet's Carmen with Jonas Kaufmann playing a wonderful Don José and Genia Kümeier got a standing ovation for Micaëla - the orchestra played wonderfully and the chorus sang beautifully but I thoroughly disliked the production.

Monday, 23 April 2012

FABRIC: Humphries Weaving

The very best of British ...

Humphries Weaving specialises in creating custom fabrics and embraces the hand silk weaving traditions of Spitalfields, by using the very latest in weaving techniques.

They are terrific.

http://www.humphriesweaving.co.uk/

Thursday, 19 April 2012

SOMERSET HOUSE, London

The portico and staircase are as handsome as they come.

POETRY: Odysseus Elytis

From Diary of An Invisible April

Holy Saturday.25.

Passing by during yesterday's sleeplessness
the little goddess with her purple ribbon
who since childhood carries my secrets about
smiled at me for just a moment

Later she vanished sailing to the right
and went to empty my rubbish basket
- the soul's cigarette butts and rejected poems -
where the sea haughty and full of old youth is still boiling.

Thursday, 12 April 2012

THE RITZ, PARIS: Closed for renovations

Farewell to the Ritz in Paris - goodbye to pale pink towels - the new incarnation may well be wonderful...it's the end of an era...

American Vogue is in agreement - see their 16 page tribute in the April issue:

Wednesday, 11 April 2012

DINING ROOM CONTRASTS [by John Stefanidis]

Patmos, Greece: Silver candlesticks stand on a simple trestle table covered by a linen cloth with sharp folds reminiscent of medieval paintings [Rooms 1988].

London, England: Rich silk beige and brown striped curtains, upholstered chairs around an oval terracotta-red lacquer table. The walls are stencilled [a design taken from a Japanese kimono] and avoid the geometric look of a wallpaper repeat [Rooms 1988].

Herefordshire, England: The blue, yellow and black rug was made for the room to a design inspired by Emilio Terry. The parcel-gilt chairs, also made for the room, are covered in a wide satin stripe in Saxon blue. The intense blue silk curtains hang on poles with neo-classical finials. Beneath them are folding Roman blinds of yellow and blue horsehair. The cornflower blue walls are stippled and below the dado rail are marbled pale blue panels framed in cobalt.

London, England: The painting is by Cy Twombly. The round table, painted to look like parchment, sits on a pink Spanish rug with an Arabic inscription. In the centre of the table is an Indonesian bowl, the boxes are Indian and the plates Wedgewood. [ Rooms 1988].

Tuscany, Italy: A former cowshed transformed. The floor is covered with large traditional Tuscan fired tiles. The rough plaster walls are lime-washed white. The glass storm lanterns protect the candles from breezes that waft through the terrace door

Tuesday, 10 April 2012

GARDENS

A cherry tree in Notting Hill, London on a spring day

Thursday, 5 April 2012

YAYOI KUSAMA

An astonishing exploration of talent showing at the Tate Modern in London...

YAYOI KUSAMA--her work has been described as 'having an almost hallucinatory intensity'...her rooms are heart-wrenching and beautiful.

On until June 5.

Wednesday, 4 April 2012

A heroine of mine

Mariga Guinness

[Fürstin Marie Gabriele von Urach Gräfin von Württemberg]

I came across this photograph by Horst which reminded me how remarkable Mariga Guinness was.

A wit, a tease, an intelligent and enchanting beauty, gifted with impeccable taste. She had panache…whether in a fur hat and muff, or in fancy dress with a large hat and feather boa, she always looked marvellous. A wonderful hostess, Leixlip Castle was an example on how to live in an historic house – despite it being freezing cold in winter [she longed for central heating].

It was thrilling to stay there surrounded by marvellous furniture she had found and not an ugly thing in sight. She was the inspiration behind the founding of the Irish Georgian Society – not only did she find houses and restore them but also doggedly charmed her way through bureaucratic red tape in Dublin.