A Seventeenth-Century Reconstruction Joseph Achkar Michel Charriere

 Joseph Achkar 

 Michel Charriere 

"When they saw this four room office suite, the duo rushed off to the historical archives in a flurry excitement – they immediately realized that they were in the process of making a real discovery. And so it was: the building turned to be the Paris home of the Duke de Gesvres, governor of Paris under Louis XIV and first gentleman of the Privy Chamber, who also had a apartment at Versailles. This first floor suite had an equivalent on the ground floor for the lady of the house, as was customary for the time. The House built in 1652 under the Regency not far from Palais Royal (…)  

( … ) The four spacious rooms were designed by Jean Le Pautre, an ornamentalist influenced by Bernini, whom designed the Hotel de Beauvais in the Marais two years later.

They follow the conventional layout: hall, antechamber, baedchamber and cabinet a secluded inner sanctum in which the most private conversations were held and to which only the most selected guests were allowed access. The rooms have small additional chambers opening onto them – dressing rooms , bedrooms with alcoves and an orator, which the interior designers have turned into bedrooms, a kitchen, a bath room and offices."

In World of Interiors October 2005 “Mirrored Glass” by Marie-France Boyer.     

Parisian Interiors

Barbara and René Stoeltie
"Bursting with color and dramatic focal points, these exceptional interiors offer exclusive access into the homes of Pariss finest art and antiques aficionados. The magic of Paris is distinctly captured in its interiors: windows are tall, and rooms have high ceilings with grand architectural details; but the real charm comes in the thoughtfully selected elements that bring those spaces to life. Paris is rife with antique collectors, art historians, architects, and interior designers who dedicate their lives to the contemplation of each element that goes into the ideal interior. Barbara and René Stoeltie invite us inside the private oases of twenty of the citys celebrated interiors gurus, capturing in vivid photographs these havens of perfection, brimming with inspiration for the home. While each interior is distinctly unique, they all draw from a rich historical tradition of decorative arts combined with an instinctive desire to reinvent itself, mixing the best elements from different epochs with contemporary art, bold colors, or surprising pattern combinations. The featured interiors include a wide range of styles and periods, and they offer a rare glimpse inside the Parisian homes of trendsetters such as rocker Lenny Kravitz and former Pierre Cardin designer Pierre Yovanovitch. Jacques Garcias residence is full of eclectic decorating ideas, and his foreword, with its gracious nod to the great Madeleine Castaing, opens this handsome volume."

 A Seventeenth-Century Reconstruction
  38 (10)