International studio . nal builder, per-haps a year ago, hefelt the responsibil-itj-—the artistic re-sponsibil ity—towhich he also tooktitle, and decided toseek council with oneof the most eminentarchitects beforetouching a stone ofthe old building. Heengaged a local archi-tect to make draw-ings of the house,just as it stood whenhe took title. Hetook the drawings to the office of Messrs. Carrere & Hastings and laidbefore Mr. Carrere the whole matter of restoringthe house and grounds. He was delighted whenhe found Mr. Carrere enthusiastic over what hetermed a gem in architecture. The foremost t
International studio . nal builder, per-haps a year ago, hefelt the responsibil-itj-—the artistic re-sponsibil ity—towhich he also tooktitle, and decided toseek council with oneof the most eminentarchitects beforetouching a stone ofthe old building. Heengaged a local archi-tect to make draw-ings of the house,just as it stood whenhe took title. Hetook the drawings to the office of Messrs. Carrere & Hastings and laidbefore Mr. Carrere the whole matter of restoringthe house and grounds. He was delighted whenhe found Mr. Carrere enthusiastic over what hetermed a gem in architecture. The foremost thought in making the additionsand improvements to this old house was to avoidthe present-day tendency of bringing it up todate. Of course, it would be a very simple mat-ter to tear the building to pieces, but to bring unityof design, harmony of color, and, above all, sim-plicity out of the whole required the services of ascholar well versed in such matters. In otherwords the tendency of the present day to apply. ENTKAM i: LM ?tlressmaking methods to the decoration of thebuilding was to be strictly avoided. It was anarchitectural problem and not one of papering,painting and furnishing. In casting about for the right man to restore thehouse, the owner learned that William IVancklynParis, of Xew York, had given much time and con-sideration to just such matters. He had recentlyreconstructed the interior of the great auditoriumof the First Presbyterian Church at Watertown,and his frescoes had been done with such markedsimplicity, taste anddignity that therewas scarcely anyneed of lookingfurther and to was entrustedthe task of restoringthe Sterling Houseto a consistently Co-lonial state. After diagnosingthe commission to doover the house as acase of an orphan ofnoble lineage turnedaway from good ten-dencies by en\-iron-ment and the spiritof the times, the artistevolved a plan where-by the good featuresof the old should bepreserved and thebad features of thenew eliminated
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Keywords: ., bookcentury180, booksubjectart, booksubjectdecorationandornament
