Friday, August 22, 2014

The Glasgow Residence of Anthony Ferrie


The heat is on, both physically and euphemistically. It's mid-August, the temperature in Atlanta is close to 100 degrees, and I have not yet completed one of my goals for the summer: organizing my massive collection of magazine clippings. The old system really wasn't working, so I am in the throes of figuring out a new system before my end-of-the-summer deadline.  The good news is that while I'm in this organizational frenzy, I am finding old clippings that I had either forgotten about or assumed were lost, like the 2006 Architectural Digest article, seen here, that featured the Glasgow residence of prints dealer Anthony Ferrie and his partner.

According to the article, Ferrie submitted his home to the magazine as part of an AD challenge, which must have been a "show us your home"-type contest.  I can just imagine that the AD editors were ecstatic to have received an entry that was so sophisticated and pulled-together.  The decorative threads that run throughout the house include Neoclassicism as well as the work of Billy Baldwin, David Hicks, and Stéphane Boudin of Jansen. In fact, look at the photo of the living room below and tell me that it doesn't remind you of a David Hicks interior.  The cherry on top, though, has to be the master bedroom, which is both pleasantly crisp thanks to the use of a Colefax and Fowler plaid fabric and soothing, too, because of the soft blue color palette.

Stay tuned for more articles culled from my clipping files.  In the meantime, enjoy the tour of this polished gem of a residence.



A view of the living room, dressed for dinner.  Does this image not remind you of a David Hicks interior?


Alexander Pope stands guard in one corner of the living room.



The hallway with its assemblage of marble and plaster pieces.  I'm getting a whiff of Sir John Soane here.


A view from the living room to the garden.



The master bedroom with its bounty of plaid Colefax and Fowler fabric.


The garden.

All photos from Architectural Digest, June 2006, Durston Saylor photographer.

15 comments:

  1. Brilliant! I love it, especially because it is very much "Hicksian", with an element of stage design.

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    1. Yes! I agree. I do love an element of stage design in an interior, especially when it is executed well.

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  2. I must say that the bust looks more like Inigo Jones to me than Alexander Pope but .... Lovely place and so very British. Dado rail a bit high, though.

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    1. Agreeing with Blue about Jones vs Pope, and about dado rail height.

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    2. Plaster cast of Pope Alexander VIII by Domenico Guido (circa 1690s)

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  3. Yes, a degree of state design, but done with a warmth and a feeling of great comfort.

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  4. Masterly decorated although the mouldings all seem a bit skimpy, no? Under-scaled. A lovely apartment though, I had forgotten seeing this project!

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    1. Stefan, the article mentioned that the house was originally the staff quarters for a 19th-century town house. All of the architectural detail had been stripped by the time Ferrie bought it. Ferrie chose to keep the architectural details minimal to respect the house's history as a servants quarter.

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  5. Anonymous10:54 AM

    This is wonderful. I work in Glasgow and love walking by tenements in winter in the late afternoon when lights are on and curtains aren't yet drawn - every one is so disparate. I really love what he has achieved in that common back court.

    Tabitha.

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    1. Badinage, I love to walk or drive by houses in the early evening. It's the best way to see how a house looks inside.

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  6. I am intrigued by the white "rug" in the garden. It appears to be a circle of white-washed sand?

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    1. Ariane, I can't tell, but I wonder if it is some sort of bleached gravel??

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  7. Replies
    1. I agree. I could move in quite easily. :)

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