as plant stands in the
as plant stands in the entrance hall. “We don’t know where everything is going to go at the beginning, but things find their place as if by magic,” marvels Pinto. There was, however, a certain method to creating the mix. The art collection focuses mainly on emblematic figures of the post-World War II era, and there was an insistence on integrating works in different media. “That makes things more complex and visually interesting,” notes Pietro Scaglione, the interior designer who oversaw the project. At times, certain elements of the decor were directly inspired by the art. The animal prints in the living room, for instance, are an obvious nod to the collection of African sculpture. At others, the goal was to create a deliberate dissonance. Pinto is keen to point out that not everything has to be of great value. The two sconces on either side of the Picasso painting above the fireplace were bought for a song at a Paris flea market. “They were lying on the ground and looked like nothing until they were regilded,” notes Scaglione. The Charlotte Perriand bench, meanwhile, was initially earmarked The TV-room sofa was upholstered by Tapissier Seigneur in Andro fabric by Zimmer + Rohde for the client’s villa in Ibiza. “I told him his gardener there wouldn’t understand its value and would chop it up for firewood,” he says. Not everything initially acquired for the Parisian flat made the cut either. Two truckloads of furniture and objects ended up being placed in storage. “They’ll be for our client’s next house,” In the master bedroom, the vintage lacquered sliding doors are from Steinitz; the armchair by Elizabeth Garouste and Mattia Bonetti was upholstered in a J Robert Scott fabric; the rug is from Alfombras Peña in Madrid says Pinto matter-of-factly. She recalls the first dinner party her client held once the installation was complete. “All the guests said, ‘It’s incredible. Everything looks like it’s been here forever,’ ” she recalls. “For me, that was quite a compliment. Our goal is always to create homes that feel anything but brand-new.” DEPARTURES
DEPARTURES CULTURE ON VIEW The curtains part at Ulla von Brandenburg’s self-titled The exhibition curtains part at at Paris’s Ulla Palais von Brandenburg’s Tokyo self-titled exhibition at Paris’s Palais de Tokyo 46 Unveiling the Future Up-and-comers, established masters and multidisciplinary designers: all have shown – or are showing – what will come next in the art world, as these exhibitions prove. by Brian Noone
