Tuesday, January 05, 2010

At first, I had very little furniture, so I used my moving boxes as coffee table and would put up a grand decor out of scratch to entertain friends and improvised a tent as a guest bedroom when they stayed overnight or visited me from abroad. In time, I purchased from the flea market a massive 1930's mahogany double desk and far to much stuff too, but the lamp on the desk and the high narrow painting are reminiscent of my former life as a painter. I burned this painting last week. ah! ah! The photo on the left is a portrait of your humble servant taken in New York at that time. God, it looks like a century ago. The nautical family flag is all that is left from my ukrainian grand father's steamship "Iolanda". The New York Yacht club has a model of her. Its an interesting story which you can read about here. My former entry calls for this one. As I started to work on a somewhat regular basis for Condé Nast, I moved in April 1992 to a studio on the much sought after and elegant rue Guynemer along the Luxembourg garden. It was a strike of luck really. The place was a large high ceiling single room and a spacious kitchen decorated in the 70's. I kept the place for as long as I could afford it. It would not last more than three years but that is another story...

10 comments:

P.Gaye Tapp at Little Augury said...

without sounding-fawning-god, I love it. boxes for tables in that setting-Inspired. A large desk purchase is always good-mine is 30's French oval partners.Glad I bought it a tight squeeze sizewise and costwise at the time. It always gets comments, even with the clutter! I hope you held on to that. What wonders are the color palette of all the images-which I love-perhaps not glaring-but dynamic.
It is always easier to shed some of our perceived success than we think,True? I did, how liberating to be able to do that and burn that painting. Good all round. gt

Lisa Borgnes Giramonti said...

Ivan, Ivan, your blog transports me to another time and place. I wish I could apply a horn-handled magnifying glass to each of your incredible photos to pore over all the little details. Sigh. I am officially addicted. xx

the.neo.lifestyle said...

Boxes as a table, great idea

Love the style of the pictures.

David

António Erre said...

1- Ivan's trade mark, bohemian cum rare cum arty style;
2- absence of bourgeois or useless objects;
3- what a pitty i wasn't around when gorgeous painting (first i thought it was a tall mirror) was burned because i'll keep it with mine;
4- all that had not kill us gave us strenght.

Irina said...

thank you for sharing these pictures, Ivan. i love to see photos of living spaces the way it is.
a picture of Gagarin is a surprise :-)

IVAN TERESTCHENKO said...

Irina, you have good eyes. Gagarine indeed featured in The Manipulator, a wonderful extra large scale mag from the 80's.

Scott Fazzini said...

.....absolutely stunning. I LOVE the photos of your homes. I LOVE, LOVE your witty and whimsical approach to decorating (i.e. the boxes and tents), and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE all of your furnishings and accessories. I agree with L.B.G.. I, too, want a magnifying glass so that I can peruse every crevice of your beautiful spaces.

IVAN TERESTCHENKO said...

Thanks Scott, Thank you all, how am I going to keep your interest now...

Daniel Shigo said...

What captures my eye in these photographs is the color of the floor which embraces everything in the room. Beautiful!

ii-ne-kore said...

how wonderfully great to see your home. i have to also say i was loving the boxes coffee table. and the guestroom tent - truly inspired! hand me the magnifying glass....