Who picked greatest interiors of the past century? Meet Billy Norwich
When I heard that a book was coming out this month billing itself as the definitive collection of the world’s most fabulous home interiors of the past century, thoughts smashed up in my head like a threecar pileup: How could one ever pick? Who could pick? And how soon could I get a copy?
An advanced copy of “Interiors: The Greatest Rooms of the Century” (Phaidon, May 22) recently landed on my doorstep. It is the fanciest book I have ever put my hands on. And, at $79.95, perhaps the most expensive. (Amazon has it for $49.95.) Between its padded velvet embossed covers — which come in Midnight Blue, Merlot Red, Saffron Yellow or Platinum Gray — lies a who’s who of the decorating world.
The compendium features more than 400 rooms, including those of fashion designers Bill Blass, Pierre Cardin, Gianni Versace and Coco Chanel; artists Pablo Picasso, Georgia O’Keefe and Frida Kahlo; and the work of legendary interior designers Elsie de Wolfe, Billy Baldwin and Nancy Lancaster. Homes range from lavish chateaux to pieds-à-terre, dating from 1901 to now.
Following the likes of Phaidon’s “The Art Book” and “The Fashion Book,” of which 2.5 million copies have been sold worldwide, the new compendium is to interior design what these books are to art and fashion, so says the publicity sheet.
In other words, this is house candy at its most delicious, tailor made for voyeurs like me. The book is sitting on my coffee table like a box of fancy truffles.
But who could pick? William Norwich is who. A fixture in the New York world of design and fashion, Norwich, known as Billy, has been on the international style scene since the 1970s. After writing a style column for the New York Post, Norwich has worked as an interior design and fashion editor for Vogue alongside Anna Wintour and as style editor for the New York Times before becoming a book editor at Phaidon a few years ago.
I got him on the phone and peppered him with questions:
Q
Just the thought of identifying the greatest interiors of the century sounds impossibly daunting. How did you do it?
A
When we decided we wanted to do this, I free associated for a weekend, and came away with 900 interiors. That was too many for a book where everyone gets a page. So we started whittling.
Then it became a question of getting photos and permissions. We needed high resolution photos, which weren’t always available, especially of the older homes. Some permissions we couldn’t get. Some photographers wanted too much money for their images. The process took 39 months. The final book has 415 rooms, and I still think we left a few out.
Q
Who didn’t want to be in?
A
Marie Kondo declined to be in book; maybe she thought the idea too cluttered. Amy Sedaris also declined. I wanted to include American designer Michael Taylor, but we couldn’t get the photos.
Q
Do you have a favorite room?
A
I do. It’s a Paris apartment, and the home of a friend, designer Carolina Irving (page 225). I love this room because it’s so personal, and such a beautifully composed mix of ideas.
Q
Why four different colored covers?
A
That was a risk, and it was our CEO’s idea. I wasn’t so sure, but he wanted to give consumers a choice.
Q
I got Midnight Blue because I wanted to put the book on my coffee table, and the other colors wouldn’t have gone with the decor. Is that too low brow?
A
Not at all. It’s practical. I haven’t gotten my copy yet, but it will be Platinum. Syndicated columnist Marni Jameson’s At Home column is published here weekly. Contact her at marnijameson.com. To see all of Jameson’s columns, go to mercurynews. com/author/marnijameson/. Jameson is the author of four home and lifestyle books, including “Downsizing the Family Home — What to Save, What to Let Go.”