Opposites Attract | Jacksonville Magazine June 2014 home profile

ATTRACT
OPPOSITES
WHAT DO YOU GET WHEN YOU BLEND A LITTLE ROCOCO, SOME ENGLISH
CHIPPENDALE, A DASH OF EXOTIC SOUVENIRS AND A SPRINKLING OF
FAMILY HEIRLOOMS? FOR ONE JACKSONVILLE COUPLE, THAT’S JUST THE
RECIPE FOR FEELING RIGHT AT HOME. words by Juliet Johnson images by Wally Sears
Since 1662, couples have traditionally followed their marriage vows with the
husband saying, “With this ring I thee wed... and with all my worldly goods
I thee endow.” It’s not long before those “worldly goods” multiply until one
or both parties are left asking, “just how much of this do we have to keep,
honey?” It’s no surprise, then, that for many couples, the first therapist they
seek is the interior designer.
The blending had already been done when Alyson and Walter Lee (yes, that Wally
Lee—former 20-year president of JAX Chamber) first moved into a spacious spread
in Glen Kernan. Alyson had plenty of her own furniture—magnificent, large antiques
that had been in her family for generations—tending towards Rococo, French Empire
and English Chippendale. Wally, too, had a wealth of treasures from trips and trade
missions, each significant, each with an amusing anecdote or story. He is especially
fond of chinoiserie. Thanks to the vision (and perhaps mediation) of the couple’s
Above: The colorful and inviting media room is a fun
space for the couple to decompress. The purple walls
are offset by a pair of Penio paintings of New York’s
Central Park (acquired locally in San Marco.) The
elephant, from Thailand, is made from a very dense
wood, and weighs just over 300 pounds. Photos from
a Kenyan safari keep the elephant company; nesting
tables evoke a holiday in Honduras. A neat Chinese
hand-painted red lacquer tower with a mass of little
drawers rounds out the room.
Right: Every painting in the home has a story: one piece
was done by a lady in the same asylum as Vincent Van
Gogh; three pastels are the work of Wally’s sister in
Spartanburg, SC; and a scene of Italian trees recalls
an amusing trip to Italy.
128 | JACKSONVILLEMAG.COM JUNE 2014