Wednesday, July 6, 2011

'La Selva'

'La Selva', the Henry Sanderson estate designed by Hunt & Hunt c. 1915 in Upper Brookville with landscaping by the Olmsted Brothers. Click HERE for more on 'La Selva' and Henry Sanderson. Click HERE to see 'La Selva' on google earth and HERE on bing.




Photos from Country Life, 1922.

7 comments:

The Devoted Classicist said...

It is so difficult to successfully photograph a garden, especially in black & white, and a wonderful record was presented here. And I appreciated seeing an intimate Library in contrast to the grandly scaled other spaces. There are lessons to be learned here.

The Ancient said...

http://longislandstyle.blogspot.com/2009_09_01_archive.html

Warning: Very annoying music. Turn off your sound before viewing.

Doug Floor Plan said...

Thanks for the link Ancient – I am rarely a fan of subjecting a house to being a ‘Designer Showcase’ & this is a perfect example (in addition to the lousy music they’re playing on their web-site). Designers in these instances are way more interested in achieving a look they like regardless of whether it fits the house or not. & there are two good comparison photos here to illustrate:

• The Living Room – in 1922 there are dark beams on the ceiling, two wrought iron chandeliers, & the room is furnished like an old Mediterranean villa (great rugs, except the bear, & yes, the room was probably a little dark).
• The Living Room – 2009 Designer Showcase, same angle only standing closer to the center of the room: the beams have been lightened to match that – whatever the hell color that is – that the walls have been painted, there are now two chandeliers just at this end of the room & they look like they’re brass & porcelain (yuck!) & the room is decorated like a condo in Boca Raton.

• The Library – in 1922 yes this is another dark room (only two lamps) but like Classicist noted it was intimate; another great rug & nice artwork.
• The Library – 2009 Designer Showcase, same angle & now there are four lamps hanging from the ceiling and five table lamps … all turned on; & the art work now looks like framed prints. It looks like the waiting room for an expensive psychologist.

I did note that in most of the 1922 pictures there were very few chandeliers, sconces, or even lamps so, yes it was probably a little dark; but the 2009 Designer Showcase went WAY too far the other direction – probably because they wanted to push light fixtures that year. If you own a historic home … PLEASE don’t let them do this to it!

Like Classicist I also wish we could see that garden in color … & maybe 3D? Like many of the great old gardens I’m sure it would be cost prohibitive today.

The Ancient said...

http://historichouses.wordpress.com/2009/10/20/la-selva-upper-brookville-ny/

HalfPuddingHalfSauce said...

Another Designers Showcase 2011 -

http://www.designersshowcaseny.com/

View the past 40 years at the above link including Winfield Hall.

http://wikimapia.org/#lat=40.8501768&lon=-73.5736477&z=17&l=0&m=b&show=/13610812/Wolver-Hollow-Main-House

Check photo and wikipedia links.

http://www.historiclongisland.com/index.php?page=events-calendar

HalfPuddingHalfSauce said...

Wolver Hollow became the home of Meshulam Riklis and his wife Pia Zadora. Luckily it didn't meet the same fate as "Pickfair" -

http://wikimapia.org/#lat=34.0902342&lon=-118.4181976&z=17&l=0&m=b&show=/4171102/Pickfair

Turner Pack Rats said...

to quote charlie brown "AAUUGGHHH !!
In the old pictures, that staircase gives new meaning to the word "GRAND"
if that's good taste, MacDonald's is a gourmet restaurant. i hope they revert to good taste and good sense after the "Showcase (basket case)" is over. The old pix show a really grand house with not too much Med. villa overlaid. i like eclectic and this is.

security word def - "senes" - what i would be making if i had to live in the "Showcase"