Staging
A Johnson Modern
Victoria’s
involvement with the Alice Ball house began when she approached
the New Canaan League of Women Voters with the idea of a lecture
and tour about adapting today’s lifestyle to that of
a mid-century modern.
The success
of that event led to several more. The house was the setting
for a William Pitt-Sotheby’s event; evening parties
for guests and friends of Victoria Lyon Interiors, including
project participants, architects, builders, designers, and
friends of modern architecture; and open-house tours for the
benefit of the New Canaan Historical Society.
To prepare
for the series of events, Victoria left no stone unturned.
She decided to base her staging on a fictional owner who was
both an art collector and lover of mid-century-modern architecture.
“I
wanted to capture the soul of the house and do everything
I could with the interior décor to bring the beautiful
outside in,” she said. Built in 1953 on 2.2 acres, the
house was and is relatively small – 1,800 square-feet.
It has a living room/dining room, kitchen, two bedrooms, two
baths, and a fully finished lower level. Outside, the home
is surrounded by private, serene gardens with an Asian theme.
A harmonizing studio/office has a full bath, and there is
a two-car garage.
After
studying the house, Victoria decided to keep the decor “clean
and simple,” in keeping with the lines of the house.
“I wanted to be true to the architect’s aesthetic
principles and incorporate lots of vivid and unusual art,”
she said. “The idea was to showcase the house while
uplifting it. To bring the project to fruition, we teamed
up with an array of art galleries, furniture and accessory
stores, artisans and craftsmen, fine art professional lighting
and audio designers, and builders, architects and contractors.
“We
worked very hard to find the artists, furniture and accessories
that would bring out the best in the home,” she said.
“We were not necessarily looking for famous artists,
and included works from a cross section – from practically
unknown to very well established.”
Looking
at the empty home as a canvass to be filled from a palette
of visually striking vintage and contemporary decor, Victoria
was careful not to clutter any of the rooms.
“We
wanted to bring the lovely outside in through the gorgeous
windows, and incorporate what was going on outside with what
was happening within,” she said. “We decided that
clean and simple was the way to go.”
In the
living room/dining room area, Victoria chose neutral colors
for the major pieces of furniture and accented the room with
a variety of bright, modern art and unusual accessories. She
used neutral area rugs on the stone floors throughout the
home, with nothing added to distract from the tranquil feeling.
A striking
feature of the dining area was a “floating” dining
room table, which featured a slab of wood sitting on two poured-glass
blocks. From a distance, it appeared the table was suspended,
which enhanced the tranquility of the room. Two cantilevered
wood chairs and two clear Lucite chairs surrounded the table.
The master
bedroom featured a bed and bedside tables from the Artifact
Design Group of Wilton. The headboard had built-in lighting
on each side. Again, the room featured striking modern art
and furniture placed to maximize function and carry the eye
to the private outside patio and gardens that adjoin both
bedrooms. Once again, there was a generous use of unique accessories.
The galley-style
kitchen remains true to its original design and featured distinctive
art and accessories that brought it to life. Both bathrooms
have major stone elements that start from the floor and wrap
up the walls, with gleaming stone counters and bright lighting.
Moving
downstairs to what Victoria called the “pleasure den,”
visitors discover a wine cellar and comfortable black leather
furniture. Outside, it’s a short walk through manicured
Asian gardens to the studio, which could be adapted to a variety
of uses. |
