bluestocking
living in style:paris“Parisisanocean‚” wrote Balzac. Grounded in mineral toned floors‚ walls and ceilings‚ the
“You may cast the sounding-line‚ but you will never fathom space is an eclectic boogie land melange of 19th century
its depth.” While this may be true‚ that sentiment served Portuguese tile splashes‚ native American art objects‚ a
as a driving force for interior designer and editor Caroline black and white checkerboard fireplace with a fanged
Sarkozy to plumb those same depths in Living In Style: Paris. gargoyle mouth hearth and an exuberant painted bronze
In it‚ the French President's half-sister takes you on a magical Mattia Bonetti dinner table wreathed by a suite of Technicolor
mystery tour through 22 of the city’s “confidential residences‚ chairs and photos. Decadent and debonair‚ outrageous
embalmed by multitudes of civilizations‚” such as Diane von and sweet‚ Sarkozy’s style guide repeatedly calls to mind
Furstenberg’s boho-chic pied–à–terre overlooking the dome Nietzsche‚ who aptly observed in Ecce Homo‚ “As an artist‚ a
of the Bibliothéque Mazarine‚ France’s oldest public library‚ man has no home in Europe save in Paris.” n Michael Slenske,
which interior designer Francois Catroux filled with leopard Living In Style: Paris, edited by Caroline Sarkozy, teNeues,
print rugs‚ Warhol paintings of Marilyn and DVF‚ and industrial
teneues.com
metal furniture balanced by vibrant porcelain birds and
beaded African armchairs. Like her clothes‚ the apartment
feels youthful‚ fresh‚ yet anchored by sophistication.
Meanwhile‚ Catroux’s own apartment in Saint-Germain-des-Prés offers a more restrained vision of modernity. Flush with
lacquered wood furniture‚ frames and sculptures punctuated
by black lacquer and mirrored pieces including a desk that
once belonged to André Arbus‚ the tonal contrast provides
a cozied if cool gallery setting for African masks‚ vintage
books‚ and a gridded photo of his wife‚ famed YSL muse Betty
Catroux. By the Bourse‚ opulence reigns supreme in the 17th
century Hôtel de Gesvres‚ one of two remaining mansions
built by Louis XIV’s architect—with rock excess on full display
in the Trocadéro Lenny Kravitz-designed Hôtel de Roxie—the
overriding theme of the book is that these are livable works of
art (for artists) inside of which glass pianos and Damien Hirst
spin paintings are simply accessories. There is perhaps no
team better suited to make this point than the design critic/
designer couple of Pierre Passebon and Jacques Granges
with their 19th Century Directoire style flat near the Louvre.
