The Dining Room Of Chateau Solevig from Jansen: Acanthus Press

Maison Jansen was just about the most haute of Paris based decorating housing in the 20th century with a client list that ranged from the Duke and Duchess Of Windsor to the President and Mrs. John F Kennedy to the Shah of Iran. And obviously if you were a client of theirs, your decorating budget tended to be on the far end of the no-limit scale with awe inducing spectacle a key ideal for your interiors. So what's modern or relevant about that? The work of Gaston Schwartz who became the President of Jansen in1928 is . He's the one responsible for the decoration of that eccentric concept: a modern country house reveling in Arte Moderne glamour.
The house in question, Chateau Solveig in Switzerland looms incongrously in Jansen oevure in that it departs radically from the firm's solidly traditional aesthetic. Chateau Solevig's interior is a beautifully contained exploration of what was then modern, played out in decadently luxurious materials. There was tons of mirrored glass veneering, a dramatic foyer in matching bronze panels and a three story central staircase of white marble with hand railings and balusters of clear crystal.

Jansen: James Archer Abbot: Acanthus Press

My favorite room is the dining room with charteuse lacquered walls and pilasters of mirrored glass etched with stylized grapevines, a clever refraction of late 18th century Directoire painted paneling. As design goes, its a timely reminder that geometric and simple didn't always mean cold and dull and that before Corbusier won the war, the French tradition of interior opulence kept evolving right up until the late 30's. That is before WWII brought that to a sharp stop. There's a brilliant monograph out on Jansen via Acanthus Press by James Archer Abbot. For anybody who apreciates a good room, its a must-buy.