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The day before I left New York I visited Rosemary Hallgarten at her home and studio in Westport, CT.
These stools remind me of a conversation I had years ago with someone who had a houseful of oak. I was a guest with some friends at her home and she was a delightful hostess full of vitality and humor. Being in her home, I wished I could paint out all the wood: moldings, cabinets, paneling and doors as it would have enlivened the space and the quality of light.
Painting out wood can be difficult to do, “Just take a deep breath and don’t think about it!” The designer said to the painter pointing to the mahogany trim. I’m not saying that one should never have wood. It can be appropriate when the wood is beautiful and it enhances the space and the quality of ones life there!
But wood for wood sake, is not always the best option. A great paint job can work wonders.
As an elementary example, the Swedish rococo stools 18th c. reupholstered in glazed linen from Evergreen Antiques, NY. Paint and gilt enhances the taper and curve of the leg making it ever more gracious and delightful to the eye.
It started out with me thinking of Florine Stettheimer. She sold nothing in her life time; had only one opening in 1916, and said that she set her prices high because she couldn’t stand the thought of one of her paintings ending up hanging in someones living room above their sofa. When a Williamsburg hipster offered me “10-15 dollars” for my dresser, I thought of Miss Stettheimer; smiled and said, “I’d rather take a hammer and break it up in tiny pieces and shove it in a black garbage bag rather than sell it to you for 10 or 15 dollars.” Well, I at least thought that when I answered, “Sorry, can’t do it!”
