A Gentleman's Refuge
The Grandeur of a Gilded Age Room,
Quietly Reimagined for One Connoisseur
There are rooms in old estates that were never intended to be quiet. conceived for balls, banquets, and cigar-smoking power deals, these spaces once lived in constant crescendo. But, what happens when a room as such outlives its original audience? What if it's purpose is quietly transformed?​
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The Mediterranean Villa Estate, designed by sought after Gilded Age Architect to Chicago's wealthiest families, stands on a cliff overlooking Lake Michigan. Within you will find this epically conceived dining salon, once boasted gilded age formality and opulence, now belongs to a worldly, self-possessed gentleman of means and imagination. A global traveler, he returns home, to find solitude in the world of his vast home. He entertains rarely, but lives fully immersed in beautiful intimacy of this space design for personal pleasures.
This is one such story
A table set for Two, Draped in Memory
Centered in the room the expansive dining table holds court Formal in its design yet casually draped by a 19th century Bessarabia carpet. The soft folds and style pattern suggest centuries of village storytelling.
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Notice, a singular antique chair covered in luxurious Damascene silk hold pride of place at the head of the table for the host. Another, adjacent for someone worthy of sharing fine wine and his worldview.
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The setting includes vintage Lalique crystal stemware and French sterling flatware procured in a Paris market comfortably share the company of clay colorfully decorated Moroccan Tagine likely collected on an expedition to Rabat or Tangier. The resulting taste blends European refinement and North African tradition. The imported elements woven throughout begin to reveal a story of adventure.
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A View, a Painting, a Legacy
A gilded fauteuil stares out toward the expansive lawn and infinite lake beyond. One can imagine our gentleman reclining there, a Puccini aria filling the air, his cigar in-hand, while bathed in the warm light of the setting sun. This is his home, his story, and his sanctuary.