Thursday, July 21, 2016

Lord Weidenfeld and Geoffrey Bennison


As I read last Saturday's edition of the Financial Times, I came across a small version of the photo above, which accompanied an article on London real estate. The rich wall color, more of an egg-yolk shade in the paper's version of the photo, first caught my eye, followed by those walls of books, books, and more books. The apartment seemed familiar to me, and yet, I couldn't place it.  The only information I could glean from the article was that the three-bedroom apartment was located in an 1879 building in Chelsea.

Intrigued and wanting to see more, I visited the website of the brokerage firm, Hamptons International, to see the listing. Described as having been under the same ownership for the past forty years, the apartment is touted as "of historic importance." And two photos into the slideshow, I quickly understood its importance, recognizing it as the Geoffrey Bennison-designed apartment of the late Lord Weidenfeld, publisher extraordinaire.  Decorated in the early 1970s, the apartment, which can also been seen in Gillian Newberry's  Geoffrey Bennison: Master Decorator, seems to have changed little through the decades, a testament to Bennison's design genius.

Considering that Weidenfeld, who died at 96 earlier this year, was a prominent man-about-town and an avid entertainer, Bennison decorated the apartment to accommodate the homeowner's frequent gatherings.  Seating seems never more than a few steps away, while the open plan of the drawing and dining rooms provides flexibility: spacious enough for large gatherings, but with a few intimately-sized areas, conducive to small get-togethers and dinners, too.

There are more photos on the Hamptons International online listing, so I encourage you to visit the website to see more.  And in case you're wondering, the apartment is currently listed for £9,250,000.








19 comments:

  1. Oh, I adore walls lined with books.
    I do hope they've read them, or most of them. Buying books by the yard just to fill shelves seems like cheating!

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    1. Considering that he was a publisher, I suspect that he read most if not all of those books.

      I agree with you that buying books by the yard is a little phony!

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  2. It seems to me that Bennison's décor was a triumph over an architecturally mediocre space, 9 million pounds notwithstanding! Furthermore, the apartment is a marvellous example of the now-extinct maxim that Books DO Furnish a Room.

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    1. I agree with both of your points wholeheartedly.

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    2. Now I see the exterior, and recognise the building--perhaps I ought not to have dismissed the architecture so lightly! Nice neighbourhood, too....

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  3. Hi Jennifer!
    Wow, what a fabulous story-the images are AMAZING ! I have something FUNNY to share with you- you know that awful little novel I self-published? I had the nerve and the audacity to send a query about it to the agent in New York who is the US rep for Weidenfeld! Of course, with it being a first time work of fiction by an unknown hack (me) it was rejected, HOWEVER, I did receive the MOST ELEGANT and beautiful letter, printed on the Weidenfeld letterhead! Amazing! I am still wanting to come out with a (non-fiction) book on decorating, and Mitch Owens, suggested I try Rizzoli! Of course I don't even have an agent. But this is an interesting subject, especially as books have gone out of fashion with the millennial set it seems. I know that this subject must have resonated with you as well, since you are now a published author, (In With The Old) Congrats again!
    Dean Farris

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    1. Dean, The publisher missed out...your book is a fun read! You have another book in you, and I'm sure the next one will be published by a major publisher. :)

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    2. J,
      I found the letter, it was from Janklow and Nesbit- ! Literary Agents (New York and London)

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  4. Books are so decorative, don't you think? (Wink wink)

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  5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkuZ0PG-ejs

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    1. I forgot about that line from the movie! What a hoot.

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  6. Hello Jennifer, More evidence that the books were in active use: They are not obscured by overhanging pictures or interrupted by little vignettes on the shelves of antiques or objects. Also, they are not too strictly arranged by color, size, etc., and there are quite a few odd volumes laid horizontally on top of the shelved books, as though new additions (or re-shelvings) had constantly to be accommodated.
    --Jim

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    1. Jim, Exactly right. It appears to have been a well-used, functional library. How refreshing not to see vignettes on any of the shelves.

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  7. Often driving home along Cheyne Walk, I see glimpses of dark grey bookcases from a window on the first floor of a "Pont Street Dutch" apartment block. Think this is same flat. Inviting and cosy. Hope you're well. Life busy here- just taken in a 13 week old whippet puppy...

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  8. Adore the house of books that looks used and loved. What an enchanting place that speaks volumes.

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  9. Ilove all these books! There was just a funny article in the New York Times about a man selling a house in Santa Barbara he had "staged" (at the insistence of his real estate agent)! The stager had some ludicrous percentage of bookcases that "had to be filled with other than books"! And also filled the place with tons of "moth orchids! He had it "unstaged" immediately; and it quickly sold! The buyers wanted to buy it furnished!
    This is the real deal. Obviously!

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    1. Penelope, I read that article over the weekend. Shocking! Horrors!

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