Family Memories , Framed
John Grosvenor and Cheryl Hackett love projects . And early American homes . So it was only fitting that they were smitten by Restmere , an 1857 Italianate villa that had seen better days . “ We ’ re very project-driven ,” Hackett says . “ As soon as we saw it , we said , ‘ We ’ ll take it .’”
They found the Middletown estate after the New York Times featured their former “ forever home ” — the 1811 Sherman House in Newport they ’ d renovated — in 2016 . It sold quickly , and the couple soon found themselves in need of a new place to live .
They purchased Restmere in July 2016 . It was one of the first mansions in the area , designed by Richard Upjohn as a summer retreat for Alexander Van Rensselaer . Hackett , an author and writing instructor , dug through letters and historical records , looking for clues about the home ’ s provenance .
Grosvenor , an architect and principal at Newport Collaborative Architects , was raised in an artistic family in Newport . His father , Richard , was an artist who taught for forty years at St . George ’ s School and loved to paint alongside his four children as they grew . Grosvenor and Hackett wanted to fill their home with those happy memories , so the front foyer is lined with a colorful collection of landscapes and buildings , all painted by family members .
A newly renovated basement gallery — nicknamed the “ Brick Gallery Pub ,” a nod to Newport ’ s famed Brick Alley Pub — holds more of Richard ’ s artworks , and John ’ s easel and his father ’ s sit side-by-side in a studio just outside the entrance .
90 RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY l JUNE 2022