tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post2567715690448113526..comments2024-03-28T14:29:32.353-05:00Comments on The Devoted Classicist: La Fiorentina Furnishings, Part IIJohn J. Tacketthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17138329330942154191noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-69111332294621906332014-07-10T20:25:55.779-05:002014-07-10T20:25:55.779-05:00Freddy Heineken was Dutch not GermanFreddy Heineken was Dutch not GermanAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09606830017709761051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-19341517057810125892011-09-09T14:23:16.146-05:002011-09-09T14:23:16.146-05:00Aesthete, I know my readers join in my thanks for ...Aesthete, I know my readers join in my thanks for this ownership information. Your comments are greatly appreciated.John J. Tacketthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17138329330942154191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-28998479762499414162011-09-09T13:46:23.113-05:002011-09-09T13:46:23.113-05:00It is also possible that the Heineken heir, Charle...It is also possible that the Heineken heir, Charlene Heineken de Carvalho, and her husband, Michel de Carvalho, own La Fiorentina. She inherited the controlling interest in the beer conglomerate when her father died in 2002. (La Fiorentina is listed in various locations as a Heineken property now.)An Aesthete's Lamenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09620941811191294750noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-28280001593977961562011-09-09T11:40:04.568-05:002011-09-09T11:40:04.568-05:00If I am not mistaken, the present owner of La Fior...If I am not mistaken, the present owner of La Fiorentina is Lucille Heineken (née Cummins), the American-born widow of German beer baron Alfred "Freddy" Heineken, who died in 2002.An Aesthete's Lamenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09620941811191294750noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-59947936975059656802011-09-06T15:40:41.980-05:002011-09-06T15:40:41.980-05:00H.M., there was a series of posts about Le Clos on...H.M., there was a series of posts about Le Clos on The Blue Rembered Hills blog. Photos of the house including the lovely interiors were shown on his September 22, 2010, post: http://thebluerememberedhills.blogspot.com/2010/09/tear-down.html?m=1John J. Tacketthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17138329330942154191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-34084539706314914652011-09-06T15:29:03.006-05:002011-09-06T15:29:03.006-05:00Does the Clos still belong to M. de Givenchy? If ...Does the Clos still belong to M. de Givenchy? If the Lawrences were renting the place furnished from H d G, it would still have all his lovely things!<br />Best<br /><br />Herts ManHerts Mannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-71304091476073458452011-09-06T15:04:08.408-05:002011-09-06T15:04:08.408-05:00TPoC, we can only hope the treasures found a home ...TPoC, we can only hope the treasures found a home with appreciative owners!John J. Tacketthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17138329330942154191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-12932572259958739912011-09-06T14:23:27.209-05:002011-09-06T14:23:27.209-05:00Penelope, you are so right about the photography. ...Penelope, you are so right about the photography. Even if the clients do not want their house published, the photographic record is invaluable. I once had a renovation project in Highland Park, Dallas, that was completely destroyed soon after completion; there were not even snapshots. Thanks for your comments.John J. Tacketthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17138329330942154191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-87146511956729326102011-09-06T10:54:33.952-05:002011-09-06T10:54:33.952-05:00I agree with Mr. Worthington. It's hard to fat...I agree with Mr. Worthington. It's hard to fathom parting with everything, most especially the VDT watercolor and the Cole Porter chair.The Peak of Chichttp://www.thepeakofchic.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-71576903476161929552011-09-06T07:51:14.233-05:002011-09-06T07:51:14.233-05:00Diane, Harding Lawrence died in January, 2002, at ...Diane, Harding Lawrence died in January, 2002, at their house in Mustique of pancreatic cancer according to a NY TIMES article which said they also had a residence in London. The obituary also mentioned former ownership of La Fiorentina. A 2001 NY TIMES article about the auction that was mentioned in a previous post, said the Lawrences decided to sell as they no longer entertained on a large scale and were renting Le Clos Fiorentina, a smaller cottage that had been Rory Cameron's home after the sale of the main house to the Lawrences.John J. Tacketthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17138329330942154191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-63033522354039643912011-09-06T01:30:26.684-05:002011-09-06T01:30:26.684-05:00I wonder the exact same thing. Twenty years ago.....I wonder the exact same thing. Twenty years ago.......I swam out to the point.....(can you imagine.....I did!) to see if I could see the staircase.....if I could see this iconic house...(my darling husband thought I might drown!)! I treaded water for an hour!<br /><br />I have no idea who could have bought this house and disposed of all of its contents. <br />It makes me sad...that house and its contents have formed my taste for my lifetime.<br /><br />another age is ascending......or descending! Who knows??!?<br /><br />How lucky we all are that such wonderful photographs were taken of this lovely house.......that we can all see....and our children......and grandchildren. It is not lost. Thanks to photography!<br /><br />Such a house!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-50227294914139967672011-09-06T00:35:36.110-05:002011-09-06T00:35:36.110-05:00Hi John-
Love your devoted and sensitive coverag...Hi John-<br /><br /><br />Love your devoted and sensitive coverage of La Fiorentina, the most legendary.<br />I think the reason the couple gave it up...well, Mary did...was that Harding died, was it not? He has been gone for a long time and I imagine that was the reason. Life moved on.<br />John-would be honored to be included on your blog roll...I am adding you to mine. Love your erudition.<br />Cheers, DIANE <br />THE STYLE SALONISTE<br />http://www.thestylesaloniste.com/Diane Dorrans Saekshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02259292681678952448noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-62932967094375204962011-09-05T23:53:45.464-05:002011-09-05T23:53:45.464-05:00Toby, I do not understand it either. And that is ...Toby, I do not understand it either. And that is one reason behind doing this post, hoping the answers will come to light. Many thanks for your contributions.John J. Tacketthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17138329330942154191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-55141791922215451302011-09-05T21:53:39.883-05:002011-09-05T21:53:39.883-05:00Having read all of your posts on the subject,
and ...Having read all of your posts on the subject,<br />and realizing the sheer breadth and scope of the<br />auction, a question lingers and nags at me:<br />What possessed the Lawrences to part not only<br />with the villa, but with their possessions lock<br />stock and barrel? Seriously, it is beyond my<br />comprehension. Every stick of furniture, evidently,<br />was unsentimentally left behind. But what I cannot fathom<br />is the selling of loved paintings, watercolors, drawings~<br />in short, those things that "travel" with families~along<br />with everything else. There's something utterly perverse<br />about it, particularly when one considers the intimate<br />friendship of Billy Baldwin with the Lawrences, whom<br />he considered Dream Clients. Am I missing something<br />here? Mary's recent dwellings were shown in the big<br />book on David Mlinaric, so plainly she's "moved on".<br />Yet would it have killed her to keep that charming<br />watercolor by Van Day Truex?Toby Worthingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05887066048372484464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-42596691101813806182011-09-05T20:17:24.250-05:002011-09-05T20:17:24.250-05:00H.M., it was my understanding that only the exteri...H.M., it was my understanding that only the exterior was protected. There's hope that one of The Devoted Classicist readers will have information on the current status of La Fiorentina.John J. Tacketthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17138329330942154191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4390485471778959088.post-45064856432430832062011-09-05T18:41:55.104-05:002011-09-05T18:41:55.104-05:00Weren't the interiors were listed ? What happe...Weren't the interiors were listed ? What happened to the Dining-Room murals and Battersby work, surely they just wantonly destroyed?<br /><br />Hertes ManHertes Mannoreply@blogger.com