Designing Paradise: Juan Montoya


Book Description

Interior-design legend Juan Montoya takes us on a tropical adventure with his recent breathtaking seaside residential projects. No typology lends itself more naturally to Juan Montoya's creative impulses than tropical residences. There is such a sense of appropriateness to place in the architecture and interiors that our assumption that the designer's stylistic affinity is somehow inborn becomes inescapable. In this book, the reader will visit Montoya-designed residences that occupy ravishing sites in Punta Mita (Mexico), Cap Cana (Dominican Republic), Miami Beach, Fisher Island, and other idyllic oceanfront locales. As much as these homes are escapist fantasias, they are also inextricably rooted to their geographic location and their regional culture. And while their sense of luxury is palpable, so is their lack of pretension, the practicality that makes them functional for the families who reside there, and their resilience to the natural conditions in which they are found. Luxuriate in open-air pavilions with endless views of sea and sand, on sweeping terraces with glimmering pools and dramatic sunsets, and in sumptuous interiors with blue-and-white tiles, intricate beadwork, global textiles, and thatched roofs. This book is a must-have for interior designers, owners or potential buyers of seaside property, and armchair travelers who relish an escape to paradise.




La Formentera


Book Description

In the 1970s, renowned interior designer Juan Montoya lived on La Formentera, a Balearic Island off the Mediterranean coast of Spain. Later, near Garrison, New York, Montoya acquired land and built his place of solace, his own La Formentera. He fulfilled his dream of a property that could evoke the same majesty of that island’s rocky terrain, without the Mediterranean climate. The retreat is made up of an elegantly simple Japanese-style house and 100 acres of pristine landscape, shaped by Montoya himself. Setting out on the paths, one encounters massive stone sculptures, an inviting pool complex, and rustic shelters made of rough stone. A rushing brook runs through the property, and empties into a lake with a small island where thousands of daffodils bloom in the spring. La Formentera is the perfect refuge for Montoya, whose credo is, “I want to be surrounded by beauty and creativity.” Photographer Eric Piasecki has captured that beauty and creativity inherent to this unique place in all seasons—from the deep greens of summer, to the golden leaves of fall, to the pristine snow drifts of winter, to the first blush of spring. Karen Bloch's engaging text tells the remarkable story of the property, as well as the great pleasure it gives Juan Montoya and all who visit there.




Interior Design Master Class


Book Description

With one hundred essays from one hundred interior designers, spanning stylistic genres from classic to modern, on subjects as varied as "Collecting," "White," "Portals," and "Layering", this book highlights the knowledge, experience, expertise, insight, and work of established design legends, as well as members of the new guard, spanning over four decades of work. Unique in the quality of its contributors, this book will be a landmark publication in the field, helpful and inspirational for the home decorator, as well as students of design and design professionals. Poised to become the essential book on design, Interior Design Master Class collects the expertise and knowledge of the best interior designers working today. Opening Interior Design Master Class is like sitting down to the best dinner party you’ve ever attended. A classic in the making, the book features one hundred essays by America’s top designers—from established design legends to members of the new guard—that explore in detail the process of designing a home, from the fundamentals to the finishing touches. Grouped by theme, the subjects range from practical considerations (Bunny Williams on "Comfort," Etienne Coffinier and Ed Ku on "Floor Plans") and details (Victoria Hagan on "Light," Rose Tarlow on "Books") to inspiration (Jeffrey Bilhuber on "America" and Charlotte Moss on "Couture") and style (Kelly Wearstler on "Glamour," Thomas O’Brien on "Vintage Modern"). Each piece is paired with images of the designer’s work to illustrate the principles being discussed, annotated with informative captions.Unique in the quality of its contributors, this is a book that readers will refer to again and again for advice and inspiration, an invaluable resource for practical tips and thought-provoking design. Select Contributors and their Topics: Vicente Wolf on Teachers; Barry Dixon on Relationships; Barbara Barry on Awareness; Amanda Nisbet on Intuition; Madeline Stuart on Trends; Suzanne Tucker on Archaeology; Bobby McAlpine on Intimacy; Stephen Sills on Aspirations; Mark Cunningham on Symmetry; Richard Mishaan on Portals; Campion Platt on Proportion; Cindy Smith and Jane Schwab on Editing; Juan Montoya on Scale; Amy Lau on Commissions; Suzanne Kasler on Style; Thomas O’Brien on Vintage Modern; Alan Wanzenberg on Modernity; Alexa Hampton on Tradition; Kelly Wearstler on Glamour; Anthony Baratta on Exuberance; Tom Scheerer on Luxury; Suzanne Rheinstein on Nuance; Timothy Corrigan on Welcoming Spaces; Bunny Williams on Comfort; Miles Redd on Reinvention; Martyn Lawrence Bullard on Sex; Mario Buatta on Color; Darryl Carter on White; Alessandra Branca on Red; Alex Papachristidis on Layering; Victoria Hagan on Light; Thad Hayes on Quality; Kathryn Ireland on Textiles; Windsor Smith on Communication; Nancy Braithwaite on Collecting; Kathryn Scott on Patina; Timothy Whealon on Antiques; Rose Tarlow on Books; Thomas Jayne on Provenance; Emily Summers on Sourcing Furniture; Thomas Pheasant on Inspiration; Sandra Nunnerley on Jazz; Penny Drue Baird on Paris; Jeffrey Bilhuber on America; Robert Couturier on Fashion; Ann Pyne on Poetry; Alan Tanksley on Destinations; Charlotte Moss on Couture




Rooms to Inspire by the Sea


Book Description

A collection of color photos showcases homes in such beach areas as Southern California, Florida, the Hamptons, Puerto Vallarta and the Bahamas.




The Latin American Ecocultural Reader


Book Description

The Latin American Ecocultural Reader is a comprehensive anthology of literary and cultural texts about the natural world. The selections, drawn from throughout the Spanish-speaking countries and Brazil, span from the early colonial period to the present. Editors Jennifer French and Gisela Heffes present work by canonical figures, including José Martí, Bartolomé de las Casas, Rubén Darío, and Alfonsina Storni, in the context of our current state of environmental crisis, prompting new interpretations of their celebrated writings. They also present contemporary work that illuminates the marginalized environmental cultures of women, indigenous, and Afro-Latin American populations. Each selection is introduced with a short essay on the author and the salience of their work; the selections are arranged into eight parts, each of which begins with an introductory essay that speaks to the political, economic, and environmental history of the time and provides interpretative cues for the selections that follow. The editors also include a general introduction with a concise overview of the field of ecocriticism as it has developed since the 1990s. They argue that various strands of environmental thought—recognizable today as extractivism, eco-feminism, Amerindian ontologies, and so forth—can be traced back through the centuries to the earliest colonial period, when Europeans first described the Americas as an edenic “New World” and appropriated the bodies of enslaved Indians and Africans to exploit its natural bounty.




A House by the Sea


Book Description

“America’s reigning queen of decorating.” —Southern Living “One of America’s premier interior designers.” —Garden Design Author and renowned designer Bunny Williams has been at the top of the interior design world for more than 40 years. Here she invites readers to explore La Colina, her lovely Caribbean retreat tucked into lush, tropical gardens by the sea. Williams writes “We knew we wanted a house where we would really live outside, a house where the ocean breezes would blow through, and a house that would be a place in which we could gather our friends and family and entertain easily.” The book explores every facet of the beautiful property located in the Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic—from outdoor rooms and garden plantings and design to the delightful, island-living luxury of the villa’s interiors, furnishings, and collections. Woven into each chapter are essays written by friends who have visited the property: Gil Schafer details the villa’s architecture Page Dickey tours the gardens Roxana Robinson offers a peek at a weekend stay Angus Wilkie discusses the delights of collecting Jane Garmey revels in the pleasures of cooking, food, and friends Let trailblazer and tastemaker Bunny Williams, a member of the Interior Design Hall of Fame, take you on a personal tour of this special home. In her introduction, she writes that her aim was to have this book “feel like a visit to our island retreat.” You’ll see in this lavish coffee table book filled with photographs, story, and advice that she succeeded.




Innovating for the Middle of the Pyramid in Emerging Countries


Book Description

Explains how firms innovate for the new and growing middle classes in emerging economies, i.e. the middle of the pyramid.




Don't Try This at Home


Book Description

Step into the booth. Check your judgments at the curtain. Close your eyes. Listen: you can hear the voices of the visitors who sat here before you: some of the most twisted, drug-addled, deviant, lonely, lost, brilliant characters ever to be caught on film. What do you have to offer the booth?




Tony Duquette's Dawnridge


Book Description

Designer Tony Duquette’s legendary Dawnridge, located in Beverly Hills, is one of the most creatively designed private homes in America. Built in 1949 by Duquette and his wife, Elizabeth, the original structure was a modest 30 x 30 foot box. Hutton Wilkinson purchased the home following Duquette’s death in 1999, and he has since breathed new life into the estate, broadening the property, adding houses of his own design, and incorporating remarkable objects designed and created by the Duquettes. Written by Wilkinson, Tony Duquette’s Dawnridge chronicles the luxe and historic home’s transformation. The book is organized by the three main houses, and Wilkinson elaborates on the spectacular design elements in each room and shares the stories behind the spaces. Tim Street-Porter’s photographs show both the original and redesigned rooms.




Juan Montoya


Book Description

Colombian interior designer Juan Montoya is known for reintroducing sophistication and charm into the demanding world of design. His work reflects a vast knowledge of world culture and is always influenced by his signature use of space. The rich photography in this monograph surveys 37 of Montoya's international projects, from private residences and large commercial corporations to beautiful country houses and haciendas.