Restraint is one of the most powerful yet underappreciated weapons in a designer’s armory. Consider the Dutchess County that interior designer Ghislaine Vias recently refurbished.
The Dutchess County is set on nearly 100 acres of rolling hills village of Tivoli, New York. This house was built in 1850 and restored a decade ago by Trimble Architecture. With landscape by Pamela Burton.
Vias and her clients ultimately opted to take it easy. “At first, we considered replacing the fresh white paint with something softer. But because the house’s experience is so much about the land’s majesty, and the white provided such a great contrast to the lush greenery and trees, we just went with it,” the designer continues.
Many of the home’s interior features, such as steel-framed beds, sisal carpeting, and oatmeal-colored linen drapes, were also kept by her and the homeowners. “Everything was calm and basic, which was ideal for the atmosphere, so we retained everything.”
Even yet, Ghislaine had a lot of work to match the intimidating home’s appearance and personality to her customers’ frolicsome attitude. Vias achieved this by using delicate greens and blues inspired by nature. Additionally, vibrant contemporary artworks and modern furniture are alternatively cheeky and enticing. Consider the Moooi pig table in the entryway, which greets guests. It’s a cheerful piece.
The bedroom in the attic is another opportunity for a lighthearted coup de théâtre. The entire walls and ceiling wrapping paper is a graphic Gucci paper. With the details of lion heads.
TOUR THE BRIGHT CONTEMPORARY SPIN ON GOTHIC REVIVAL DUTCHESS COUNTY, NEW YORK
Indeed, despite porcine tables; Studio Job breast-form sconces; neon-orange Tom Dixon seats, the real spirit of the house is the homeowners’ extensive art collection. It includes works by a broad spectrum of artists working in various mediums.
A huge Jill Greenberg photograph of a bald eagle is a statement piece in the dining room. Coupled with contrasts of Kehinde Wiley portrait plates with traditional 19th-century portraits. It makes a witty observation on how the concept of gentry has changed over the last 200 years
Moving forward, a stairway with a suite of photographs by photographer Henry Hargreaves.
To conclude, the designer says, “with Ghislaine, we share a love of whimsy. But we were much more restricted in our selections than in our past collaborations. ” Basically, we added a lot of flashes of color and intrigue without obliterating the house’s individuality.”
Credits: Archtectural Digest
