little bits of Coral

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full fathom five thy father lies:

of his bones are coral made:

those pearls that were his eyes

Nothing of him that doth fade

But does suffer a sea-change

Into something rich and strange.

                     -Shakespeare, The Tempest, Act 1,sc ii

I asked Barbara of It's About Time to help me with a subject that intrigues me-
Distinctive in portraits.
Distracting in vibrancy.
Heaving symbolism.
Coral.

 Coral Fishers, J.Zucchi c.1560

Artists from Western religious backgrounds, mostly Christian, sometimes used coral in their paintings to protect against illness or evil.

flemish school 1625

 "apotropein" Greek- to turn away threatening forces

In Western cultures, coral had religious significance before Christianity. The ancient Greeks connected coral with Perseus cutting off Medusa's head, when the gushing blood changed into coral upon contact with the sea. For this reason, they saw coral is a symbol of rebirth.

 Persues & Andromeda, Giorgio Vasari,1570, a Renaissance painter's Origin of Coral.

 

Later, some came to believe that the red of the coral could represent the blood of Jesus Christ & could be construed as protection against his future passion & resurrection. (Of course, without his passion & resurrection, there would be no Christian religion.)

 

 

 detail of Mantegna, Madonna della Vittoria

 in Mantegna's painting Coral is symbolic of Christ's blood sacrifice-suspended above the coral branch foreshadows the crucifixion absolving Man's sin.

 

In the Mediterranean area, many believed that a gift of coral for a newborn helped protect the baby.  Many Mediaeval and Renaissance paintings of the Madonna and Child show the infant Jesus holding a branch of coral or his Mother’s coral rosary.

Madonna de Senigallia, 1470's ,Piero della Francesca

 

 a branch of coral adorns the wall of Carolina Irving's home- no doubt protection against the evil eye.

 

 snippets of coral at home-warding off the evil eye.

1st image A Cabinet with Objects of Art, Johann Georg Hainz

It's about time here

a through exploration of this and other jewels, I recommend Brilliant Effects, by Marcia Pointon.

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Irving and Fine, Where are You?

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detail of Irvine and Fine Kutch coat

In Kutch, tribes have their own defined styles of embroidery-with each stitch executed in a particular order &  the handwork is done by women. read more about the embroidery here

Sarah Horton in Irving and Fine's Kutch coat

as seen in Town and Country

Charleston

where?
everywhere-

Mia Armstrong wearing Patmos dress

San Antonio

everywhere

Irving and Fine
on-
facebook here

at-
house parties
in-
new york
la
dallas

their LAMU Coat 

Natasha Fraser Cavassoni in Irving and Fine's coral Kutch coat,

 Paris

&
finally  here-
in VOGUE

& today, at STYLEBEAT here

& though I don't have plans to stitch one- it is interesting to watch-




ALL THESE PHOTOGRAPHS ARE FROM IRVING AND FINE'S FACEBOOK PROFILE . Both designers have their own fabric companies and are inspired by their travels and ties to India. Other inspirations are paintings by Zubaran.

 IRVING AND FINE here
 LISA FINE here
CAROLINA IRVING here
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a Grand Room:Carolina Irving

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Often there are rooms that hold my attention for years. Case in point-this lofty space decorated by Carolina Irving. Most readers of design blogs, and its publications are familiar with Carolina Irving's current home- it has been in magazines, emags and blogs galore. She is not a decorator- she has an eye- as it were. She is a woman of style. I wrote about that room in New York here- saying-'The Carolina Irving home is what Rose Tarlow calls "the essence of intimacy." It is a space that exudes that certain intimacy that I admire and aspire to. We will be watching this room appear over and over again in years to come.' I was right. The fabric designer, writer,collector,fashion designer, mother's living room will grace the upcoming book-Rooms to Inspire in the City by Annie Kelly.

(photograph - Ivan Terestchenko)

 a French wallhanging ,c 1730, is mounted above the fireplace

This grand room - is Grand- and timeless. There are many facets to Irving's decoration -the strong architectural details, the vibrant use of colour-but it is the casual nonchalance that instantly invites one to linger. To stay and examine each corner for each treasure it holds. Textiles, a love evident in her current apartment, appear throughout the room : a French brocade hanging on the wall -another French brocade draping a table, a scarf covering a lamp, a Chinese rug covering an ottoman. Works of art are propped up along the walls and a few personal photographs are displayed on a small table-maintaining a personal intimacy that is unique for such a Grand room. A porcelain collection decorates the large skirted table in the center of the room. Irving's serious textile collection is accompanied by sturdy traditional English stripes on a chaise, an ottoman and a deep divan divine sofa.

Irving described the space she decorated as 'heaven on earth.' 

The angels agree.

more glimpses from the 1993 House and Garden article written by Andrew Solomon and photographed by Ivan Terestchenko.

 all of the images are by and courtesy of photographer 

Ivan Terestchenko- here and here*

  

 * Please contact IVAN for any use of these images.

 see the new Annie Kelly book here

NEW RULES, Mrs Blandings Enduring Style Series- gets me thinking...

It is ever more inspiring to give readers- A Room to Aspire To- Better Not having the LOOK of the Moment-only to find that LOOK is no longer. Give readers a room that sends them to an antique store in search of treasures that will move with them from their first home to last.

Simon Upton photograph WI Cover of Carolina Irving's home

A room that will inspire for years- the aesthetic of Pauline de Rothschild is the bar.

a Pauline de Rothschild Sanctuary-Paris, photographed by Horst

My mother scrapbooked rooms our family home for years; A large den with paneled walls, dark wood floors, classic oriental carpet, grand oversize wing chairs upholstered in a classic blue woven- slightly sampler style fabric, and a wide beamed 10' red ceiling. By the time my parents achieved this room the tear sheet was dog eared, a little tattered and etched into all of our minds. My father painted the entire house-that ceiling required according to my father 10 coats of paint to achieve the perfect effect. Our floor finisher moved before the job was complete and a new crew was brought in; our family of five- I was 9 years old. The floors turned out just like the ceiling- It was perfect. The room continued to evolve over the years.

de Rothschild's London flat

The recent buzz of  bloggers and their readers has been the inspired posts of MRS. BLANDINGS. Her Enduring Style Series got me to thinking-

de Rothschild- London, photographed by Derry Moore

Here are some stellar examples of my NEW RULES via MRS BLANDINGS Enduring Style Series:

de Rothschild's Mouton Bedroon

 
An Aesthete's Lament selected ROSE TARLOW: She is truly- a master of design.

Rose Tarlow

"There are those who spend lifetimes in houses that have nothing to do with who they really are. They may be perfectly designed, yet if they fail to reflect the personalities of the people who live in them, the very essence of intimacy is missing and this absence is disturbingly visible."

-Rose Tarlow

The All Knowing HOUSE OF BEAUTY AND CULTURE said "if one had to choose a legendary decorator I would choose Miles Redd-Given the right clients, he will be his generation's equivalent of Parish Hadley. Bloggers-Style Court and the Peak Of Chic dubbed Miles Redd too as the one to watch.

Miles Redd

I love this room!

photographs Simon Upton, ED 2009

Miles Redd said to Mrs. B on the subject of- Enduring Spaces "Pretty much everything the de la Rentas touch is masterful in its room arrangement, color palette and collection of objects and furniture."

the De la Rentas
image from Vogue

The prevailing pick from most of MRS BLANDINGS' Enduring Style- was Miles Redd. Miles Redd in turn cited Oscar and Annette de la Renta as one of his own enduring style picks, while Emily Evans Eerdman tapped the de la Rentas as one of her picks.

A Trend?
Let Us Hope.
Genuinely beautiful classically appointed rooms.

I fall in line with these experts and for your preponderance suggest two designers and one "style-setter*"-editor-textile-clothing designer-who for me- make the list.

Thomas Jayne

photgraphs from T&C, & Francois Dischinger, & Elle Decor

Classic Americana rooms that evoke the past, livable rooms with good eclectic pieces (a much overworked-misused word in design-used to describe a mixed miss. Eclectic-It is what Thomas Jayne does-and does well.

Nicholas Haslam

photographs from Haslam's Sheer Opulence and Southern Accents 2001

I have always loved the rooms Nicky Haslam does- they have that monied Colefax and Fowler look. I savor his book Sheer Opulence and covet all his published work. Other than the overdressed windows in some of the rooms- He would be my personal decorator- great fun and glorious rooms.

&

Carolina Irving

photographs Simon Upton (WI)

The Carolina Irving home is what Rose Tarlow calls "the essence of intimacy." It is a space that exudes that certain intimacy that I admire and aspire to. We will be watching this room reappear over and over again in years to come. More about Carolina Irving in a future post.

*look for little augury's next book post on Friday* Mrs. Blandings builds a Summer Reading List*

*from Emily Evans Eerdmans

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