French Interior Style, Antique Collector Diogene's and D. Home
Each Saturday I focus on a different artist that I admire. From potters to painters, chefs to collectors, seamstress to songwriters, lifestyle to lovers… anyone who set the paintbrush, pastry brush, hands and heart on fire to create.
Those who inspire art to flow where it may…. My friend Diogenes and his vast collection of French Antiques.
While in Pasadena for SpellBound, Diogenes, a faithful blog reader of Tongue in Cheek, wrote and asked if we could meet. Without hesitation I said yes! We set up a date, and he wrote, "I'll pick you up in front of the hotel, at 10:30, in a black car."
Before skipping out to meet Diogenes and his partner D., the women gathered at Spellbound asked me if I knew this man "Diogenes"? I shook my head yes, "Well, through the blog I do, but in person — no."
They thought I was a bit mad, not to give it a second thought, to leave the hotel in a strange man's car. Though one thing I have learned from blogging is that if anyone takes time to read my blog, and wants to meet me… then I figure we must be kindred spirits.
At 10:30 sharp a black car pulled up in front of the hotel and two men got out… Instantly, I knew we were going to have a wonderful day. It felt like I had been friends with them all my life.
Diogenes said we had our day planned and away we went.
First stop… after we passed the boulevard of the stars, was an Auction House that Diogenes and D frequent. Everyone knew them. The auction house was stuffed silly with French antiques. I felt right at home with Louis This, Napoleon That, King So and So, Belle Epoque Clocks ticking and Diogenes and D..
Diogenes and D's style is exquisite, not a hair out place, masculine, classic, over sized paintings paired with gilded mirrors, Marie Antoinette worthy sconces, tied in with French antique wonders mixed with the perfect blend of contemporary art.
As you know I have the brocante bug which is a side kick illness to French antique collecting bug. Diogenes loves French antiques so much so that I thought maybe his middle name was Louis, he has the bigger bug badly!
Collected antiques in Diogene's Home.
As I walked around admiring the French Antiques I scratched my head wondering why I never thought to go to the French Auctions... Hello Ding Dong!
Diogenes has been to France many of times, and the antique markets he knows by heart.
Kindred spirits I tell you.
After the auction house we drove by amazing homes along the hillsides of Los Angeles. Later we stopped for lunch at Kings Road Restaurant.
I am not a coffee drinker, coffee never tastes as good as it smells. Though my sixth sense told me I should follow Diogene's lead. I ordered a Vanilla Cafe Latte. OH MY GOD! I would fly back to Kings Road Restaurant for another everyday if I could.
Just thinking about it my mouth is watering. Crazy.
We had a fabulous lunch, and talked constantly about anything and everything. Diogenes asked me if there was anything I wanted to see or do in Los Angeles before we continued on the planned adventure. I said I wanted to see his home! So off we went to see his home.
I imagined my friends back at SpellBound shaking their heads at me, "Crazy girl going to a stranger's home!"
Diogene and D share a lovely home, well appointed, antiques to awe at yet feel comfortable next to. They shared their stories of how they collected the pieces near and far, from San Francisco to Paris, how they transported and placed them in their home. Those of us who like interior design find talking about the process exhilarating. Each piece collected has a story, and the story is part of the colorful journey of collecting.
Long crystals hang from a bronze chandelier… found in Paris.
French antiques, reflected in a mirror of Diogene's dining room.
Large French antique sconces, side by side to a shadowy painting of pine trees.
Hints of black with flickers of gold sang well against the white painted and mirrored walls. The previous home owner use to work with mirrored glass. When he sold his home to Diogene and D., he left the one of kind pieces to them.
At the Auction House Diogenes and D. admired a bronze statue among many, later at their home I could see it fitting in well.
Against a mirrored wall to give the small dining room a larger fell, a French antique commode sat, with a large painted piece in an antique frame on top of it. Given that the original piece of modern art would have cost two arms, one leg and two earlobes, Diogene was inspired to paint the painting himself. I wonder why none of my inspiration pumped out a piece of art? I love how he mixed modern with antiques, a design quality I admire, though am hopeless at accomplishing.
Diogene and D will have to come visit me!
Thank you Diogenes and D for the fantastic tour of Los Angeles area, the lovely lunch, the beautiful tour of your home, the vanilla cafe latte, the best ever margarita's at El Coyote(!!!) and for your friendship, thank you for the wonderful day together!
Tell me did you buy the statue or the large "grise" horse-track art??
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