TOP: Behind the Saarinen tulip table and chairs in the breakfast area a collection of
framed cartoons is exhibited against a backdrop of kitchen-themed wallpaper
RIGHT: A bright red vase placed in front of a large mirror in an orange frame creates a
note of intense colour in an otherwise black-and-white scheme in the living room; the
lacquer table is a Robert Koo design
extensive photography collection, much of it displayed floor-to-ceiling
in half of what was once a double parlour, has a decided fashion bent;
classic images of supermodels, Jean Shrimpton and Penelope Tree, a
paparazzi snap of Yves Saint Laurent chatting with Diana Vreeland,
comedian, Milton Berle, in sequined drag, William Klein’s photo of a
model smoking through a veiled hat.
Many of the furnishings throughout the house have a runway
connection too, such as the Roubini rugs in the bedrooms from the
debut floor-covering collection by Tuleh designer Bryan Bradley. ‘I
think I was the first person to buy any of them,’ Demsey proudly says
of the carpets, some of which depict curvaceous women in come-hither
poses.
The private spaces are nearly as fashion-centric. The fourth-floor
bedroom occupied by Marie-Helene, the toddler daughter of Demsey
and his former wife, is full of fanciful paintings of elaborately costumed
animals by Mark Gagnon. A drawing by illustrator Ruben Toledo,
102 Bridge for Design December 2015