With its traditional beamed facade, the 17th-century manor house appears typical of the Pays d'Auge, a rural region in Normandy, France, filled with rolling hills, horse farms, and apple orchards. Step inside, however, and W one enters a different world, where owner François Laffanour has created a minimalist backdrop for the modern furniture and contemporary art he collects. Meanwhile, the property now also boasts a midcentury addition: a prefab house by the iconic French designer Jean Prouvé. "I feel strongly that historic architecture enhances contemporary art [and design]," Laffanour says. "For me, it harmonizes perfectly."
In the 1980s, Laffanour was a furniture dealer at the Paris flea market when he opened his Downtown Gallery on the Left Bank. Quickly, he became one of the leading forces behind the international ascension of French modernist designers, including Prouvé, Charlotte Perriand, Serge Mouille, and Pierre Jeanneret. In addition to an apartment he keeps in Paris, Laffanour spends much of his free time at his Normandy home, a two-story manor house set on 70 acres. He oversaw the renovation and interior design, with help from architect Mikael Klatzkow and designer Jean de Piépape.
Bu hikaye Elle Decor US dergisinin March 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
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Bu hikaye Elle Decor US dergisinin March 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
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Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
The Empire Strikes Back - A 19th-century gem in Cambridge, Massachusetts, gets a tour-de-force restoration thanks to Frances Merrill of Reath Design.
Is it possible to simultaneously go back in time and leap forward? This was the challenge a couple set for themselves upon purchasing a salmon-pink 1869 house in Cambridge, Massachusetts, not far from Longfellow House, the National Historic Site that served as George Washington's headquarters during the revolution. We loved all the beautiful old details of this house, the homeowner says.
Just Like That, But Cheaper. -One writer tried to replicate a classic ELLE DECOR interior in his apartment. Could he do it for $500?
It was all about the green curtains. In 2008, to my great surprise, I was offered a ninemonth fellowship based in New York City. I had lived there twice before, both times unsuccessfully, meaning I had failed to create any kind of significant social life, and so this was a chance not only to do research for my new novel, but also an opportunity to get things right. I swore I wouldn't let the city break me a third time.
And How! - Decorator Nick Olsen transforms a Sag Harbor home into a Hamptons retreat with an irreverent humor.
If you must go to the Hamptons, however-because it is devilishly good fun, after all-you may notice an apparently modest, low-slung cottage on Sag Harbor's Main Street and think, with a comfortable sort of feeling, Now that is how a house should look. Nestled amid the Botox bars, helipads, and club-staurants, it could almost set the sordid world aright both a rebuke and a solution to the chaos that surrounds it. A real home.
You Stay Here
At a Martha's Vineyard compound, Steven Gambrel and Tom Kligerman have made a guest retreat so good, visitors may never want to leave.
WHAT'S IN THE MIX?
Rayman Boozer brings his mastery of color and pattern to the renovation of a Harlem duplex for a young family.
Now You See It
A modernist beach house's discreet profile hides killer views and knockout interiors by Rafael de Cárdenas.
CIRCLE D'AMOUR
For an object lesson on how to design a Paris love nest, look to Pierre Yovanovitch.
PARK AND RECREATIONS
With the rise of electric vehicles and a fresh focus on design, the once overlooked garage is becoming a future-forward source of joy and energy at home.
But This is My Home - One writer discovers that living in an architectural icon can be a blessing and a curse.
One writer discovers that living in an architectural icon can be a blessing and a curse. My husband and I moved into the Kallis House in Los Angeles six years ago. It was designed in 1946 by the modernist architect Rudolph Schindler, and it's believed by many, including Frank Gehry, to be among Schindler's best. The house is eccentric, perched on the lip of a hill, with a butterfly roof and a shaggy exterior made of grape stakes. The interior is an unfolding series of surprising angles, with a wonderful wide view of the San Fernando Valley.
A SISTER STORY
Jewelry designer Brent Neale Winston and her decorator sibling, Ramsey Lyons, recast a historic Long Island home.