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Photography by Alise O'Brien
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"They're the antithesis of flashy," Jimmy Jamieson says of the clients who own this Clayton town house. “But they’re sophisticated and glamorous.” In New York, the wife designed and produced runway shows for Bill Blass. Her husband’s smart and cultured. They throw great parties. Their past homes were pretty traditional; this one should be fresher, they said. They would stay out of
Mr. Jamieson’s way.
He had the better part of two years to strike the right balance, find an understated glamour that unfolded in layers of stories. He already knew what he wanted to put together for them: early 19th-century neoclassical and early 20th-century Modernist antiques. Both periods stripped away the heavy, ornate embellishment that preceded them. Both found their freedom in purity and restraint.
Mr. Jamieson began by pulling a detail from an early 19th-century Aubusson carpet and using it to custom- design a new rug. He changed the scale so the detail dominated, and set it off-register to break the old, rigid symmetry. For living-room drapes, he chose a bronze silk woven of red and green threads, “so depending on which way the light rakes, they give a reddish or greenish tone.” His source? Jim Thompson Fabrics, founded by a spy who vanished from Malaysia in 1967. Drapery hardware came from Houlès, founded in 1928 along Paris’ Rue du Faubourg Saint-Antoine; the welted couch was designed by Jean-Michel Frank in Paris circa 1940; the mahogany cabinets, by Jules Leleu, who became famous at the 1925 International Exposition of Modern Industrial and Decorative Arts in Paris. The bronze leather Brentwood chairs were designed by Billy Haines, creator of the Hollywood Regency style, who once announced, “I would rather have taste than either love or money.”
The town house feels Parisian throughout, with a bit of German sleekness from Vladimir Kagan and finespun bed linens from Italy. The art, curated by Robert Lococo, comes from all over the world: a Julian Schnabel canvas over the carved limestone fireplace, an unglazed Han Dynasty horse on the Jean Royère cocktail table, an Oceanic hemp mask in the hearth room, a Senufo horse-and-rider sculpture in the kitchen. Even the chandelier is art, wrought from gold bronze and cut-and-polished rock crystal. Fabrics include Jules Leleu’s goatskin vellum; a pale shagreen of stingray skin; an antique ivory linen-velvet; and a gilded Fortuny fabric covering the powder-room walls. Textures range from the dull sheen of Venetian antique mirrored obelisks to the matte black Modernist panel Mr. Jamieson designed to incorporate the television and hearth-room fireplace.
More than a series of interiors, this is a collection. As Mr. Jamieson acquired different pieces, he told the couple stories about the designers and described the way interiors evolved alongside fashion, literature, politics, architecture, and music. “It keeps the journey interesting,” he says. “You look at all those things together, and it makes you realize that they are much more important than people realize. They shape who we are.”
Resources:
Living room: drapes: Jim Thompson, jimthompsonfabrics.com; drapery hardware: Houlès, houles.com; Brentwood chairs: William Haines Designs, 310-289-0280, williamhaines.com; brass lamps: Pierre Cardin, circa 1970; mahogany cabinets: Jules Leleu, circa 1950; circa-1940 Jean-Michel Frank couch and chairs: DeLorenzo Gallery, 956 Madison, New York, N.Y., 212-249-7575, delorenzogallery.com; cocktail tables: Jean Royère. Antiques throughout: Karl Kemp Antiques, 36 E. 10th, New York, N.Y., 212-254-1877, karlkemp.com; Bernd Goeckler, 30 E. 10th, New York, N.Y., 212-777-8209, bgoecklerantiques.com; Friedman & Vallois, 27 E. 67th, New York, N.Y., 212-517-3820, vallois.com; DeLorenzo Gallery. Powder room: vanity: converted from a piece by Holly Hunt, 800-320-3145, hollyhunt.com; Philippe Starck fixtures: Duravit, 770-931-3575, duravit.com; mirror behind antique mirror: Williams-Sonoma Home, wshome.com; abstract gouaches: Ryan McGinness, ryanmcginness.com. Hearth room: Great Plains curtains: Holly Hunt; Papa Bear chair: Hans Wegner; sofa, swivel chair, and rosewood cocktail table: originals by Vladimir Kagan; reproductions available through Ralph Pucci International, 44 W. 18th, New York, N.Y., 212-289-0031, vladimirkagan.com; white-bronze floor lamp: Christian Liaigre, www.christianliaigre.fr. Dining room: John Hutton Modernist dining chairs: Holly Hunt; dining table: designed by Jimmy Jamieson, made by Classic Woodworking, 9524 S. Broadway, 314-544-0121, classicwoodworkinginc.com; serigraph: Ross Bleckner, rbleckner.com; buffets: Jules Leleu. Bedroom: headboard: Angelo Donghia, 631 Merchandise Mart, Chicago, 312-822-0766, donghia.com; bed linens: Frette, 800-353-7388, frette.com; carpet: designed by Jimmy Jamieson, made in Tibet; table: Jean Royère; drapes: J. Robert Scott, 877-207-5130, jrobertscott.com. Kitchen: George Nelson pendant lights: Design Within Reach, 44 Maryland Plaza, 314-361-1701, dwr.com; counter chairs: Angelo Donghia; Harry dining chairs: Christian Liaigre; pearl granite countertop: Global Granite & Marble, 10330 Page Industrial, 314-426-1466, globalgranite.com; cabinetry: designed by Jimmy Jamieson, made by Classic Woodworking. Master bath: cabinetry: designed by Jimmy Jamieson, made by Classic Woodworking; Philippe Starck fixtures: Duravit
