Architecture, Interior Design

Hollyhock House at Night

February 24, 2015 romicortier@yahoo.com Leave a comment

Hollyhock House, Barnsdall Park, Photo Romi Cortier

Viewing the Hollyhock House at Night was a rare opportunity, and I for one wasn’t going to miss it.

On February 13th, 2015, after a four year restoration at a cost of $4.5 million, Frank Lloyd Wrights iconic home in Barnsdall Park reopened to the public. In the spirit of giving back to the community, the nominal entry fee of $7 was waived, and the home was open to the public complimentary for a full 24-hour period. And best of all, photos were allowed! This is what kept running through my mind as I stood in line… for three, yes three very long hours. Otherwise I would have gladly come back at another time. Yes, I have photos from an earlier visit to the home in 2005, but it’s never open during the night. Wisely, there was a Girl Scout with her wagon of cookies working the extensive lines wrapping around the estate. I think her box of Do-si-dos saved my life, or the lives of those around me… low blood sugar is never my friend.

Built in 1921 for Bohemian oil heiress Aline Barnsdall, this 11-acre site known as Barnsdall Park, sits on a hill overlooking Hollywood with spectacular city views. The first of several Mayan concrete block structures created by Wright in Los Angeles, this home was inspired by Ms. Barnsdall’s love of hollyhock flowers. I’ll admit I didn’t know what a hollyhock flower actually looked like until now, so here it is.

Hollyhock Flower, Image courtesy Photography-blog.blogspot.com

You can see how the vertical spine of the flower inspired Wright’s concrete panel below, which is seen throughout the home. It appears that the lush color of the flower also influenced the color palette for both the Library and the Dining Room. And take a closer look at the chairs in the dining room. You’ll see that geometrized floral pattern appearing there as well.

Hollyhock Panel from Hollyhock Home, Barnsdall Park, Photo Romi Cortier

The exterior Colonnade below is another version of the Hollyhock panel stretched out, offering structural support for the roof. This is such a perfect example of utilizing a design motif in multiple ways, thus creating the visual rhythm for the space. All it takes in money, and lots of it. Even an oil heiress can get fed up with cost overruns and fire her architect, which is exactly what happened here. It’s hard to believe Ms. Barnsdall never actually lived in the home.

According to curator Jeffrey Herr, his devoted team spent countless hours returning the Hollyhock House back to its 1920’s glory, from the wall moldings to the bas-reliefs to the paint color. It seems the original forest green walls have chemicals banned by California, so they engineered a chemical formula that exactly resembled it… but safer of course. And for the golden glisten on top, they crafted a formula of mica, suspended in alcohol. According to Los Angeles Magazine, Herr hopes that viewers will walk in and go, This is great, what did they do? For him, that’s the sign of a good restoration. From my point of view, the home was impeccable. As everyone said as they left the home, it was worth the wait. And it was.

Click here for authorized Frank Lloyd Wright Reproductions.

Click here to visit the Hollyhock House

Architecture

Illuminated Modern in Palm Springs

February 18, 2015 romicortier@yahoo.com Leave a comment

Illuminated Modern, Palm Springs Visitor Center, Modernism Week 2015, Photo Romi Cortier

Illuminated Modern, Modernism Week 2015, Palm Springs, Photo Romi Cortier — Illuminated Modern, Coachella Valley Savings & Loan, Modernism Week 2015, Palm Springs, Photo Romi Cortier

Illuminated Modern, E. Stewart Williams Architect, Modernism Week 2015, Palm Springs, Photo Romi Cortier — Illuminated Modern, Town Palm Springs, Modernism Week 2015, Palm Springs, Photo Romi Cortier

Illuminated Modern, William F. Cody Architect, Modernism Week 2015, Palm Springs, Photo Romi Cortier — Illuminated Modern, Gas Station, Modernism Week 2015, Palm Springs, Photo Romi Cortier

Here’s a few of my favorite shots from Illuminated Modern, during Palm Springs Modernism Week 2015.

Now in it’s fourth year, Illuminated Modern focuses on significant modernist buildings in Palm Springs. It happens every night of Modernism Week, from February 12 -22. It’s a free self guided tour that simply requires you to get in your car and drive along Palm Canyon Drive between sundown and midnight. Therefore, no reservations are required, that is, unless you need to borrow a car or bicycle from someone.

I have no idea who came up with this brilliant idea, but it certainly adds another level of excitement to the full array of events happening during modernism’s 10 day extravaganza. Even though it feels a bit like Vegas, I really like it and almost wish they’d keep it lit like this year round. It would force both the tourists and locals to take note of the significant structures in town. However, that’s highly impractical. See that beautiful gas station by William F. Cody? I had to scramble through the sage brush to reach that vantage point while using the flashlight on my iphone. I don’t think of February as rattlesnake season… but who wants to take chances. That said, once I snapped my photo, it made me think of Ed Ruscha’s famous Standard Station screen print. I absolutely love how the paper thin roof nearly floats over the gas pumps, and I’d never noticed it while driving past it on the 111.

Ed Ruscha, Standard Station, 1966, Screenprint, Image Courtesy Los Angeles County Museum of Art

Here’s a quick run down on the architects of these buildings.

Palm Springs Visitor Center, 2901 N. Palm Canyon Dr. Albert Frey & Robson Chambers, 1963. (Photos 1, 6 & 7)

Coachella Valley Savings & Loan, 383 S. Palm Canyon Drive, E. Stewart Williams, 1956.

Towne Palm Springs, Originally The Harold Hicks – Desert Water Building, 1345 N. Palm Canyon Drive, E. Stewart Williams, 1955/1960

Kaplan Medical Building, 1492 N. Palm Canyon Drive, Bill Krisel

Gas Station, William F. Cody, 1961 – 62.

Click here to learn more about MODERNISM WEEK 2015

Art

My Favorites from the upcoming Los Angeles Modern Auction

February 13, 2015 romicortier@yahoo.com Leave a comment

Karl Benjamin, Lot 311, Image Courtesy LAMA — Karl Benjamin,#44, Oil on Canvas, Lot 311, Image Courtesy LAMA

Wayne Thiebaud, Lot 262, Image Courtesy LAMA

Julian Schnabel, Lot 424, Image Courtesy LAMA

Damien Hirst, Lot 222, Image Courtesy LAMA

John Baldessari, Lot 061, Image Courtesy LAMA

Josef Albers, Lot 302, Image Courtesy LAMA

Lari Pittman, Lot 430, Image Courtesy LAMA

Jun Dobashi, Lot 156, Image Courtesy LAMA

Pablo Picasso, Lot 140, Image Courtesy LAMA

Here’s a few of my favorite images from the upcoming Los Angeles Modern Art & Design Auction. The images that I’ve chosen to feature here on my Design Diary are primarily prints, however, this isn’t the full breadth of the upcoming auction.

To quote Los Angeles Modern Auctions: The March 1, 2015 Modern Art & Design Auction will feature an important and monumental Harry Bertoia sculpture, paintings by School of Paris masters Massimo Campigli and Antoni Clave, sculptures by De Wain Valentine, George Rickey, and Peter Alexander, in addition to works by George Condo, Billy Al Bengston, Roy Lichtenstein, Oskar Fischinger, and Bruce Conner.

I’ve had the pleasure of seeing major exhibitions by nearly all of the artists shown above, which is why I can relate to their work. That’s not to say that just because I’ve seen their works, I automatically love and resonate with everything that artist does. On the contrary. What it does do, is give me perspective on their work and a point of reference. That is why I’m such a huge advocate of seeing as much art as you have available to you, regardless of the venue. Auctions, Museums Shows, Gallery Exhibitions… and even flea markets or thrift stores. An educated eye can find the needle in a hay stack, which is an amazing thrill. Case in point, a decade ago I was driving by a garage sale when something caught my eye. I circled, parked, and found an amazing piece of art for about 20 bucks. I later had it appraised for $1800, and ultimately sold it at auction for a few hundred when I needed a little extra cash.

Karl Benjamin, #44, Oil on Canvas. Estimate $20,000 – $30,000. I first became aware of his work at the Birth of the Cool exhibit in Orange County Museum of Art, 2007. Since then I’ve seen his work for sale at several Southern California venues.

Takashi Murakami, And Then, And Then And Then and Then (4), Offset Color Lithograph on Paper From the edition of 300, Estimate $4,000 – $5,000. The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA Los Angeles had a massive exhibit of Murakami’s works in 2007. I was both spellbound and speechless at the scale and depth of his work. You might say he’s the Japanese equivalent of Jeff Koons, working in multiple mediums, blurring the line between high and low art.

Wayne Thiebaud, Eight Lipsticks, 1 of 7 unnumbered Trial Proofs, Estimate $25,000 – $35,000. The Palm Springs Art Museum had a recent retrospective of his work in 2009, covering 70 years of the artist works. I loved his more recent abstract landscapes, as well as his famous Cake and Dessert still life paintings. At nearly 95 years of age, he’s still making art.

Julian Schnabel, Color Screenprint on Arches paper, #125 of 250, Estimate $1,500 – $2,000. Sadly I’ve never had the pleasure of seeing a major exhibition of his work. If his name sounds familiar, it’s because he’s also an award winning filmmaker. Think Before Night Falls and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.

Damien Hirst, Silkscreen with bronze glitter on Somerset Tub-Sized 410-gram paper, #101 of 150. Estimate $6,000 – $8,000. I’ve seen his work at several venues, including the recent Los Angeles Art Fair. If you’ve seen my Butterfly Mural DIY video, I make reference to him and his famous Butterfly piece I Am Become Death, Shatterer of Worlds.

John Baldessari, Photogravure, aquatint, and sanding on torn Rives BFK paper, #3 of 35, Estimate $4,000 – $6,000. In 2010 LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) had a retrospective of his work titled Pure Beauty. I was quite surprised to see his 1977 series Throwing Three Balls in the Air to Get a Straight Line, which reminded me of my own Red Ball oil paintings.

Josef Albers, Encircled, Woodcut on Paper, Estimate $5,000 – $7,000. I love this piece because it’s so not what Albers is famous for. Homage to the Square is a massive series of mid-century works, with yep, you guessed it, variations of squares set into bigger squares and even bigger squares. I recently bought one of these pieces at an Estate Sale, Homage to the Square in Black.

Lari Pittman, Untitled #27, Acrylic on paper, Estimate $5,000 – $7,000. Nearly 20 years ago in 1996 I saw a Survey of Lari Pittman’s work at LACMA. It was so bold and inventive that I never forgot it. The show was referred to as a Defining Moment in his career.

Joan Miro, Untitled, Etching and aquatint on Rives paper, #23 of 50, Estimate $2,000 – $3,000. Miro is a name that’s synonymous with Surrealism, a sandbox for the subconscious mind, a re-creation of the childlike… It makes me think of a re-occuring nightmare I had as a child that featured an inner tube, a needle and thread, and floating sensations. I still have no clue what the dream was really about.

Jun Dobashi, La Priere au Balcon, Oil on canvas laid down on board, Estimate $2,000 – $3,000. I’ve never seen the work of this artist before, but I love the composition of this piece and his use of black. Divided into 4 regions, light on one side, dark on the other, it feels religious, as if someone is in a state of prayer.

Pablo Picasso, Femme regardant par la Fenetre, Color linocut print on Arches paper, #43 of 50, Estimate $18,000 – $25,000. Nearly every major museum in the United States has some form of Picasso’s work, so it’s hard not to have seen something from the epic career of one of the most important artists of the 20th Century. I love how the subject of this piece leans forward to open the drape, letting the light into the room. The use of off white is so effective and powerful.

Art

Meeting Francoise Gilot

February 4, 2015 romicortier@yahoo.com 1 Comment

Hysterikos Book, Drawings by Francoise Gilot, Photo Romi Cortier — Hysterikos Book, Drawings by Francoise Gilot, Collection of Romi Cortier

Remnant Drawing by Francoise Gilot, Photo Romi Cortier — Remnant Drawing by Francoise Gilot, Collection of Romi Cortier

Francoise Gilot Easel, Collection of Romi Cortier

Paloma - Sphynx by Francoise Gilot, Collection of Romi Cortier — Paloma – Sphynx by Francoise Gilot, #214 of 300, Collection of Romi Cortier

Interior page of Paloma - Sphynx by Francoise Gilot, Collection of Romi Cortier — Interior page of Paloma – Sphynx by Francoise Gilot, Collection of Romi Cortier

Back Jacket of Paloma - Sphynx by Francoise Gilot, Collection of Romi Cortier — Back Jacket of Paloma – Sphynx by Francoise Gilot, Collection of Romi Cortier

Francoise Gilot and Romi Cortier, Elkon Gallery NYC, October 2006

I had the distinct pleasure of Meeting Francoise Gilot during an exhibition of her art work at the Elkon Gallery in New York City, in 2006.

I was introduced to Francoise by Mel Yoakum Ph. D., a long time client and friend of mine who was the curator of the F. Gilot Archives for over two decades. Having published several books on Ms. Gilot, Mel is the foremost authority on her work. He gave me a tremendous education about her over the years, as well as some of these priceless treasures shown above. There’s her plein air easel for outdoor painting from her days in La Jolla, when married to Jonas Salk. A rare numbered book published by her daughter Paloma Picasso in 1975, featuring drawings by Francoise. A 1946 remnant drawing that now sits on my nightstand. And most importantly, the golden opportunity of meeting Ms. Gilot during her art show on Manhattan’s upper east side.

I travelled from LA to New York the day of the exhibition, stopping to pick up my buddies David and Courtney en route to the Gallery. It was chic beyond belief. Ms. Kitty Carlisle was dressed from head to toe in red, in a room full of people wearing only black. Ms. Gilot and myself were the only other two people in the room wearing color (my shirt is pale pink). I’ll never forget the moment I first laid eyes on her. She seemed so tiny for a woman with such bold and powerful work hanging on the walls. Mel introduced me to her as a Los Angeles collector who’d flown in for her show, as well as the owner of Citrus and Alizarine, 2003, a painting he’d recently sold me. She was demure, smiled, and firmly shook my hand. After mingling with the other art patrons for about 30 minutes, my friends and I retreated to the lounge just off the main gallery. As we were discussing the show, a very spirited blonde socialite bounced into the room and began talking with one of the men in the room. They knew each from boarding school, possibly in Florida. She stood in the doorway, tilted her head and said Well… it’s a Small World… at the Top! She then spun on her heels and made a grand exit. We were all dying of laughter, her timing was impeccable.

A few minutes later Francoise entered the room and plopped down on the Sofa next to me. For a woman in her mid 80’s she was holding up remarkably well. We sat around and chatted for a bit, and then she happily posed for a photo with me. This photo was the basis for my painting below. I was inspired to paint her with a green halo which barely shows in this photo. I later found out that Matisse and Picasso had also been inspired to use green as a major component in their portraits of her. Trust me, I’m not comparing myself to those two masters, I just find it curious that I dialed into that energy with no prior knowledge of their interpretation of her.

Francoise Gilot - 1500 Paintings, Oil on Canvas, by Romi Cortier — Francoise Gilot – 1500 Paintings, Oil on Canvas, by Romi Cortier

I love Francoise’s mid-century work, especially her use of the square for texture. I used that square as a pattern to represent the tremendous amount of paintings she’s created in her lifetime, over 1600 at last count. I continue to observe and study her work, which gives me inspiration in new and powerful ways. I feel about her the same way she felt about Matisse, which you can watch in the video below.

Architecture, Art, Interior Design

Lux Mid-Century Remodel at 930 S. Paseo Dorotea

January 29, 2015 romicortier@yahoo.com 1 Comment

Xeriscaping at 930 S. Paseo Dorotea, Palm Springs, Ca. Photo Romi Cortier

This lux mid century remodel at 930 S. Paseo Dorotea has been a labor of love for over a decade. And if you’re a friend or client, then you know that this is also my personal weekend retreat away from Los Angeles, and my artist studio.

After selling my condo in L A, I was looking for a new place to call home. Demuth Park in South Palm Springs became my new home away from home. I won’t lie to you, I’ve invested so much more money into this home than I ever imagined, but when you’re fresh out of design school at UCLA and obsessed with detail, you simply have no other choice.

I started by removing every piece of landscaping except for the palm tree in the front yard. The fruit trees in the back yard were replaced with drought resistant Palo Verde trees. The front lawn was replaced with Ocotillos and Barrel Cactus. And that traditional sidewalk up to the front door was replaced with 36 x 36 concrete pavers placed on the diagonal from the driveway… who needs pesky salesmen walking right up to your front door so easily, right? The dilapidated wooden gates and walls were replaced with corrugated metal, or cinderblock, to better withstand the summer heat. And when I replaced the rickety pergola on the north side of the home, I expanded it to wrap down onto the cinderblock wall, creating an additional private patio for outdoor dining or reading. I added a 12 x 12 concrete slab in the back yard for a gazebo, just steps away from the out door shower that I also added. Nothing better than jumping out of the pool from swimming laps, then rinsing off outdoors, clothing optional of course.

When it came to redoing the interior, my sledgehammer and I had so much fun. I opened up the wall leading into the kitchen, and while doing so, discovered that a dropped ceiling had been added in the 70’s to modernize the kitchen. In one afternoon I was able to completely pull it down, exposing the original ceiling, still intact. I removed the hallway closet behind the kitchen, and closed up the odd pass through to the bedroom. Voila, I doubled the size of the kitchen in one afternoon!

The guest bedroom had been equally chopped up, so I reconfigured it by removing a tiny closet and adding a new back door for patio access in it’s place. The old back door was walled off, and became the outdoor shower. The little tool room became the new walk-in closet complete with a washer and dryer.

The master suite bathroom had a very dated and non-functioning jacuzzi tub, remember those? I replaced it with a large walk-in shower made from tumbled travertine and chocolate frosted glass tiles... the contractor hated working with those materials, but it turned out stunningly well.

Some of the other boring, but expensive items I replace included: a new roof, new ac unit and duct work, energy efficient double-pane windows, and 18 x 18 tiles through out the home to unify the flow from room to room.

More recently I installed ceiling fans and low voltage halogen lighting. The later was a must since I opened my home to the public for Modernism Week 2014 , showcasing all of my original oil paintings that you see in the photos above. I even created that butterfly wall mural as part of a youtube video to promote the event at my home.

All good things must come to an end, so this home will be put on the market shortly. It’s time for me to move onto to another project… maybe an Art Deco inspired pied-a-terre in the city?

I’m including a few images below to show you some of the before and afters… after all, isn’t that always the best issue of Architectural Digest! Oh, and in case you’re wondering about the rock wall in front of the house painted high gloss white… I faux painted it to look like natural rock again.