Call it the Entry or the Foyer. Either way, this area of one’s home could be considered the most vital from a guest’s perspective. It is here that a designer sets the vision for the remaining interior spaces. The old saying, “first impressions…” works perfectly in this scenario.
Recently, while coming up with an overall design plan for a client’s vacation home, we realized that this particular entry had to not only be beautiful…but, it had to “WOW.” So, we commissioned an artist to paint an 8′ x 10′ canvas with a Tuscany scene….
As you can see above, the “after” is certainly spectacular. But to get there, below is a picture of how we first found the entry, a silver, much more transitional finish was applied to the wall and the interior of the dome. The dome had no surround, so was too plain and modern for our client’s design style.
After commissioning the painting, since the wall is curved inward, we decided to install it like wallpaper and add a surround that seemed as if you were looking out a window on the Italian seaside. Our amazing contractor created the surround out of custom styrofoam cuts. Our most talented paint specialist hand made each plaster stone, then finished those and the surround to look like aged architectural ruins. After installing oversized custom lanterns, what a transformation. Here’s a more clean shot, before adding furnishings, plants and a handknotted rug.
For the dome, which was almost 30 feet in the air, we decided to add a surround, which would introduce more dimension, then have our paint specialist create a pallete of oranges, reds, yellows and blacks. It is simply amazing, almost like the sun shining down on the Tuscan vineyards. Here’s a before shot:
Here’s a look at some of the scaffolding.
And, here’s the dome afterwards:
