Past Perfect (richard Shapiro Houses And Gardens)

By (author) Shapiro Richard; By (author) Rus Mayer; Edited by Morgan, Mallery Roberts; Photographs by Schmidt Jason
Short description/annotation
A legendary designer demonstrates the alchemy required to create a home that seems cultivated over many generations.
Description
Renowned designer and antiques dealer Richard Shapiro devotes his first book to the art of creating refined, cultivated spaces that transport their inhabitants to a heritage of distant lands and past epochs. Designers and home owners who wish to endow homes with authentic European charm and character will be inspired by Shapiro''s gift for creating genuine Old World savoir faire. The book focuses on the two much-imitated homes and gardens of Richard Shapiro, which provide a wealth of inspiration and a broad array of examples related to living graciously with antiques, decorative painting and other finishes, and marrying centuriesold building materials with new construction. Shapiro shares ideas from his work as a designer as well as lessons learned from years of collecting and selling antiques and fine art. As a manufacturer of furnishings with a distinctly European sensibility, he also brings to bear a thorough knowledge of production processes and finishing techniques that simulate authentic Old World archetypes. With exquisite new photography, the book also functions as a master class, filled with illustrations and takeaways for readers, offering practical ideas and creative inspirations for imbuing a home with a romantic mood and a timeworn sensibility.
Review quote
"The brand new and highly coveted book - Past Perfect: Richard Shapiro Houses and Gardens is an exquisite monograph documenting renowned interior designer Richard Shapiro''s two magnificent homes in California. . . The gorgeous images shared by Shapiro give both practical ideas and creative inspirations for all."
-CALIFORNIA HOME + DESIGN

"Richard Shapiro has mastered the art of crafting refined, cultivated spaces that transport their inhabitants to distant lands and past epochs. . . With breathtaking new photography, [Past Perfect] functions as a master class, offering practical ideas and creative inspirations for channeling the glories of the past to enrich the present." 
-GEORGIA TIMES-UNION
Biographical note
Richard Shapiro is the principal of his own design firm, Studiolo, an artist, a collector, and an antiquarian. The West Coast editor of Architectural Digest, Mayer Rus was formerly the design and culture editor of Los Angeles Times Magazine, design editor of House and Garden, and editor in chief of Interior Design magazine. Mallery Roberts Morgan is a design writer and curator based in Los Angeles.