Keith Irvine: A Life in Decoration

Irvine is known worldwide as an originator of the English country house look—a look not inherited, the decorator points out, but invented in the twentieth century. His characteristic played-down grandeur assembled great art, architecture, and furniture with knowledge, originality, and even drama; the resulting interiors represent the layering of life as it happens. Among his signature touches are an authoritative use of antiques of all eras, exquisite painted effects, rare scenic wallpaper, faded old carpets (his favorites are those that "look as though they may be in their last week"), spirited English and French chintzes, and loads of busts and books ("one can never have too many!").

Irvine fills this volume with fascinating stories, both personal and professional. He describes in detail the design process and decorative elements of houses and apartments in Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Florida, and especially his adopted home of New York; his renowned clients include Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Katharine Graham, Rex and Mercia Harrison, Joan Kennedy, and Seward and Joyce Johnson. Spicing the stories of each design is learned commentary on antiques, fabrics, and historic and contemporary decorating techniques. Finally, the decorator presents his most personal projects, those designed for his own family: an apartment in New York City and a country house in the Harlem Valley of New York State. There Keith Irvine’s romantic, neoclassic ballroom mirrors—both in fact and in spirit—his life in decoration.