Knowledge (XXG)

Syrie Maugham

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428: 255: 530: 272:, curtain design, and the mechanics of traditional upholstery. In 1922 at the age of 42, Maugham borrowed £400 and opened her own interior decorating business at 85 Baker Street, London. As the shop flourished, Maugham began decorating, taking on projects in Palm Beach and California. By 1930, she had shops in London, Chicago, and New York. 279:
in London. For the grand unveiling of her all-white room, Maugham went to the extreme of dipping her white canvas draperies in cement. The room was filled with massive white floral arrangements and the overall effect was stunning. Although she was known for white rooms, her own drawing room was the
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Although she made her fortune and fame with her white décors, by the mid-1930s she had largely given up the white décors to create interiors with baroque accessories and colour schemes punctuated by bright green, shocking pink, and bold reds.
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London: Duckworth. On page 6 the photograph of Syrie Maugham captioned "Syrie Maugham at a luncheon, 22 November 1936" is in fact the photograph of her friend, the opera singer Olga Lynn. This photograph is often thought to be of Syrie
451:). She was 22 and he was 48, and they married soon after. In 1903 they had a son, Henry Mounteney Wellcome. The Wellcomes' marriage was not happy, and Syrie reportedly had numerous affairs, including with the department store magnate 245:
had converted at age 16 to Protestant evangelicalism and believed in daily Bible reading, obedience, strict punctuality and the forgoing of worldly pleasures including drinking (alcohol), smoking and visiting the theatre.
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Her birth name is given as Mary Elizabeth Wellcome in the immigration and naturalization files of ellisisland.org, wherein she is listed, along with her mother, then Syrie Wellcome, on the 21 July 1916 manifest of HMS
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Maugham charged high prices and could be very dictatorial with her clients and employees. She once told a hesitant client, "If you don't have ten thousand dollars to spend, I don't want to waste my time."
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In the 1910s, Maugham began her interior design career as an apprentice under Ernest Thornton-Smith for a London decorating firm, learning there about the intricacies of furniture restoration,
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Maugham popularised mirrored screens, indirect lighting, and plump furniture upholstered in white. She preferred wood furniture to be pickled or stripped, painted, or finished with a secret
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Maugham's daughter Liza married in 1936, and the London house Maugham decorated for her was among her best work. After finishing it, she sold her own house and travelled to India with
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After Maugham closed her New York shop in 1932, someone suggested that Rose Cumming fill the gap and design white furniture of her own. "No," Cumming said, "white was always Syrie's."
491:, although he was predominantly homosexual and would spend much of his marriage apart from his wife. They divorced in 1929. Her divorce settlement from Maugham was their house at 213 238:
children, and his wife, Sarah Louise "Syrie" Elmslie. Gwendoline was the eldest girl in a family of six. As an adult, she preferred to be known by her last christian name (Syrie).
427: 1092: 727: 347:"to paint the Black Hole of Calcutta white". Maugham continued decorating, but had already completed her most famous and successful work. Her clients included 1097: 1087: 1082: 1038: 1009: 915: 400: 1072: 287:, a society resort in northern France. The salon was decorated entirely in shades of beige, relieved only by pale pink satin curtains. 983: 165: 1041: 1024: 615: 581: 33: 959:
Plunket, Robert. "Syrie's Turn: Once, everyone read W. Somerset Maugham. But now his late ex-wife is the one selling books",
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Adler, David; Thorne, Martha; Chicago, Art Institute of; Architecture, Kisho Kurokawa Gallery of (1 January 2002).
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remembered leaf-emerald wallpaper, magenta cushions, and Schiaparelli pink. In this period Maugham worked with
752: 510:, Maugham virulently criticised his former wife, which caused a public outcry. After Maugham's death in 1965, 1077: 231: 464: 452: 471:, in 1915, she was given Wellcome's surname. Wellcome then publicly sued for divorce, naming Maugham as 632: 1062: 1057: 759: 334: 262: 242: 224: 181: 901: 484: 460: 128: 781: 679: 571: 448: 212: 269: 503:, and 2,400 pounds a year for her and 600 pounds a year for Liza. Syrie Maugham died in 1955. 1034: 1020: 1005: 979: 921: 911: 878: 838: 814: 640: 611: 605: 577: 543: 416: 388: 376: 364: 330: 905: 808: 463:. Eventually, after some years of separation, she became pregnant with Maugham's only child, 511: 412: 356: 300: 949:
Lambert, Elizabeth (2000). "Syrie Maugham. Famously White Rooms for An English Innovator".
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The Great Lady Decorators: The Women Who Defined Interior Design, 1870–1955
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Syrie Maugham was born in England on 10 July 1879. She was the daughter of
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of the 1920s and 1930s who popularised rooms decorated entirely in white.
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Maugham's glamorous rooms influenced almost every designer, particularly
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Maugham is best-remembered for the all-white music room at her house at
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The photograph from Richard B. Fisher's book is reproduced on page 165.
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in Sussex, creating what has been described as "the only complete
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Petkanas, Christopher. "High Gloss", New York Times, April 2010.
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Gwendoline Syrie Maud Wellcome (née Barnardo). Photo from 1901.
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With a picture of Syrie Maugham by Cecil Beaton on the cover.
782:"Syrie Maugham Famously White Rooms for an English Innovator" 1033:. Preface by Camilla Chandon. New York: Acanthus Press. 978:. San Francisco, Calif.: Fehrman Books. pp. 18–29. 680:"Design Legends: Syrie Maugham | Architectural Digest" 211:; 10 July 1879 – 25 July 1955) was a leading British 570:
Fehrman, Cherie; Fehrman, Kenneth (1 October 2009).
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Also well-known was Maugham's salon in her villa at
174: 155: 88: 80: 68: 45: 23: 607:The Secret Lives of Somerset Maugham: A Biography 1031:Syrie Maugham: Staging the Glamorous Interior 974:Fehrman, Cherie; Fehrman, Kenneth R. (2009). 910:. New York: Simon and Schuster. p. 255. 810:David Adler, Architect: The Elements of Style 8: 1042:Syrie Maugham. Creating Glamorous Interiors. 411:, Scottish home of Christopher Tennant, 2nd 514:wrote in rebuttal a defence of her called 31: 20: 896: 894: 1093:English people of German-Jewish descent 946:. London and Chicago, pp. 793–796. 631:Petkanas, Christopher (28 April 2010). 555: 877:. London: W.H. Allen. pp. 63–64. 16:British interior decorator (1879–1955) 199: 7: 976:Interior Design Innovators 1910–1960 702: 700: 673: 671: 669: 667: 665: 663: 661: 599: 597: 595: 593: 573:Interior Design Innovators 1910–1960 565: 563: 561: 559: 401:Margaret Campbell, Duchess of Argyll 1098:People of Sephardic-Jewish descent 753:"Pair of Champagne Standard Lamps" 280:only all-white room she ever did. 166:Elizabeth Hope, Baroness Glendevon 14: 1088:English people of Italian descent 610:. Random House Publishing Group. 311:house ever created in Britain." 604:Hastings, Selina (25 May 2010). 528: 144: 115: 1083:English people of Irish descent 944:Encyclopedia of Interior Design 479:Marriage to W. Somerset Maugham 140: 111: 50:Gwendoline Maud Syrie Barnardo 1: 835:Historic Environment Scotland 196:Gwendoline Maud Syrie Maugham 1029:Metcalf, Pauline C. (2010). 1017:The Scandal of Syrie Maugham 875:The scandal of Syrie Maugham 459:, and the bisexual novelist 303:on the decoration of James' 992:Fisher, Richard B. (1978). 780:Lambert, Elizabeth (1999). 1114: 1073:English interior designers 732:Metropolitan Museum of Art 423:Marriage to Henry Wellcome 1015:McKnight, Gerald (1980). 873:McKnight, Gerald (1980). 813:. Yale University Press. 439:with her father, she met 415:, who hated the existing 30: 461:William Somerset Maugham 457:Percy Desmond Fitzgerald 162:Henry Mounteney Wellcome 37:Syrie Maugham, photo by 942:Banham, Joanna (1997). 516:A Case of Human Bondage 435:In 1901, on a visit to 453:Harry Gordon Selfridge 432: 265: 1004:. Rizzoli, New York. 499:, fully furnished, a 430: 257: 227:, the founder of the 1000:Lewis, Adam (2010). 951:Architectural Digest 786:Architectural Digest 760:Arts Council England 684:Architectural Digest 678:Lambert, Elizabeth. 419:style of the house. 225:Thomas John Barnardo 186:Sarah Louise Elmslie 182:Thomas John Barnardo 143: 1917; 114: 1901; 709:Old-House Interiors 506:In his 1962 memoir 487:married in 1917 in 485:W. Somerset Maugham 483:Syrie Wellcome and 241:Syrie's Irish-born 129:W. Somerset Maugham 637:The New York Times 449:Burroughs Wellcome 433: 407:. She redecorated 266: 213:interior decorator 1068:English designers 1039:978-0-926494-07-7 1010:978-0-8478-3336-8 961:Sarasota Magazine 917:978-0-671-50581-3 707:"Syrie Maugham". 576:. Fehrman Books. 544:Interior designer 447:(his firm became 417:Scottish Baronial 389:Clare Boothe Luce 365:Elsa Schiaparelli 331:Jean-Michel Frank 263:Paul César Helleu 193: 192: 84:Interior designer 1105: 989: 930: 929: 898: 889: 888: 870: 864: 856: 850: 849: 847: 845: 831: 825: 824: 804: 798: 797: 795: 793: 777: 771: 770: 768: 766: 757: 749: 743: 742: 740: 738: 726:O'Hanlan, Sean. 723: 717: 716: 704: 695: 694: 692: 690: 675: 656: 655: 653: 651: 628: 622: 621: 601: 588: 587: 567: 538: 533: 532: 512:Beverley Nichols 413:Baron Glenconner 357:Oveta Culp Hobby 203: 148: 146: 142: 119: 117: 113: 75: 59: 57: 35: 21: 1113: 1112: 1108: 1107: 1106: 1104: 1103: 1102: 1048: 1047: 986: 973: 970: 968:Further reading 953:, January 2000. 939: 934: 933: 918: 900: 899: 892: 885: 872: 871: 867: 857: 853: 843: 841: 833: 832: 828: 821: 806: 805: 801: 791: 789: 779: 778: 774: 764: 762: 755: 751: 750: 746: 736: 734: 725: 724: 720: 706: 705: 698: 688: 686: 677: 676: 659: 649: 647: 630: 629: 625: 618: 603: 602: 591: 584: 569: 568: 557: 552: 534: 527: 524: 481: 445:pharmaceuticals 425: 405:Stephen Tennant 369:Edward Molyneux 277:213 King's Road 252: 221: 189: 170: 151: 150: 147: 1929) 138: 134: 131: 121: 118: 1915) 109: 105: 102: 73: 64: 61: 55: 53: 52: 51: 41: 26: 17: 12: 11: 5: 1111: 1109: 1101: 1100: 1095: 1090: 1085: 1080: 1078:Maugham family 1075: 1070: 1065: 1060: 1050: 1049: 1046: 1045: 1027: 1013: 998: 990: 985:978-0984200108 984: 969: 966: 965: 964: 963:, 2006, v. 10. 957: 954: 947: 938: 935: 932: 931: 916: 890: 883: 865: 851: 826: 819: 799: 772: 744: 728:"Edward James" 718: 715:(5): 44. 2009. 696: 657: 623: 616: 589: 582: 554: 553: 551: 548: 547: 546: 540: 539: 523: 520: 480: 477: 465:Mary Elizabeth 441:Henry Wellcome 424: 421: 361:DeWitt Wallace 349:Wallis Simpson 345:Elsie de Wolfe 335:Frances Elkins 327:Elsie de Wolfe 251: 248: 220: 217: 191: 190: 188: 187: 184: 178: 176: 172: 171: 169: 168: 163: 159: 157: 153: 152: 136: 132: 127: 126: 125: 124: 107: 103: 100:Henry Wellcome 98: 97: 96: 95: 92: 90: 86: 85: 82: 78: 77: 76:(aged 76) 70: 66: 65: 62: 49: 47: 43: 42: 36: 28: 27: 24: 15: 13: 10: 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 1110: 1099: 1096: 1094: 1091: 1089: 1086: 1084: 1081: 1079: 1076: 1074: 1071: 1069: 1066: 1064: 1061: 1059: 1056: 1055: 1053: 1043: 1040: 1036: 1032: 1028: 1026: 1025:0-491-02761-3 1022: 1018: 1014: 1011: 1007: 1003: 999: 995: 994:Syrie Maugham 991: 987: 981: 977: 972: 971: 967: 962: 958: 955: 952: 948: 945: 941: 940: 936: 927: 923: 919: 913: 909: 908: 903: 897: 895: 891: 886: 880: 876: 869: 866: 862: 855: 852: 840: 836: 830: 827: 822: 816: 812: 811: 803: 800: 788:(31 December) 787: 783: 776: 773: 761: 754: 748: 745: 733: 729: 722: 719: 714: 710: 703: 701: 697: 685: 681: 674: 672: 670: 668: 666: 664: 662: 658: 646: 642: 638: 634: 627: 624: 619: 617:9780679603719 613: 609: 608: 600: 598: 596: 594: 590: 585: 583:9780984200108 579: 575: 574: 566: 564: 562: 560: 556: 549: 545: 542: 541: 537: 531: 526: 521: 519: 517: 513: 509: 504: 502: 498: 494: 490: 486: 478: 476: 474: 473:co-respondent 470: 466: 462: 458: 455:, Brig. Gen. 454: 450: 446: 442: 438: 429: 422: 420: 418: 414: 410: 406: 403:and the Hon. 402: 398: 397:Lynn Fontanne 394: 390: 386: 382: 378: 377:Mona Williams 374: 370: 366: 362: 358: 354: 353:Marie Tempest 350: 346: 341: 338: 336: 332: 328: 323: 321: 316: 312: 310: 306: 305:Monkton House 302: 301:Salvador Dalí 298: 294: 288: 286: 281: 278: 273: 271: 264: 260: 256: 249: 247: 244: 239: 237: 233: 230: 226: 218: 216: 214: 210: 206: 202: 197: 185: 183: 180: 179: 177: 173: 167: 164: 161: 160: 158: 154: 130: 123: 122: 101: 94: 93: 91: 87: 83: 79: 71: 67: 48: 44: 40: 34: 29: 25:Syrie Maugham 22: 19: 1030: 1016: 1001: 993: 975: 960: 950: 943: 906: 874: 868: 860: 854: 842:. Retrieved 829: 809: 802: 790:. Retrieved 785: 775: 763:. Retrieved 747: 735:. Retrieved 721: 712: 708: 687:. Retrieved 683: 648:. Retrieved 636: 633:"High Gloss" 626: 606: 572: 515: 508:Looking Back 507: 505: 482: 434: 385:Bunny Mellon 373:Edward James 342: 339: 324: 317: 313: 297:Edward James 293:Cecil Beaton 289: 282: 274: 270:trompe-l'œil 267: 240: 222: 208: 204: 195: 194: 74:(1955-07-25) 72:25 July 1955 60:10 July 1879 39:Cecil Beaton 18: 1063:1955 deaths 1058:1879 births 902:Morgan, Ted 689:22 November 650:22 November 501:Rolls-Royce 493:King's Road 469:Rome, Italy 393:Alfred Lunt 322:technique. 207:, formerly 1052:Categories 937:References 926:1036531202 884:0491027613 820:0300097026 765:15 October 737:15 October 536:Art portal 489:New Jersey 381:Babe Paley 320:craquelure 309:Surrealist 285:Le Touquet 229:Barnardo's 81:Occupation 56:1879-07-10 792:13 August 645:0362-4331 236:destitute 997:Maugham. 904:(1980). 844:28 March 522:See also 518:(1966). 437:Khartoum 409:The Glen 367:, Capt. 259:Drypoint 209:Wellcome 205:Barnardo 156:Children 907:Maugham 497:Chelsea 232:charity 175:Parents 149:​ 137:​ 133:​ 120:​ 108:​ 104:​ 89:Spouses 63:England 1037:  1023:  1008:  982:  924:  914:  881:  861:Baltic 817:  643:  614:  580:  333:, and 250:Career 243:father 756:(PDF) 550:Notes 219:Birth 139:( 135: 110:( 106: 1035:ISBN 1021:ISBN 1006:ISBN 980:ISBN 922:OCLC 912:ISBN 879:ISBN 846:2019 815:ISBN 794:2016 767:2023 739:2023 691:2016 652:2016 641:ISSN 612:ISBN 578:ISBN 299:and 234:for 145:div. 116:div. 69:Died 46:Born 261:by 201:née 1054:: 1019:. 920:. 893:^ 837:. 784:. 758:. 730:. 713:XV 711:. 699:^ 682:. 660:^ 639:. 635:. 592:^ 558:^ 495:, 475:. 399:, 391:, 387:, 383:, 379:, 375:, 371:, 363:, 359:, 355:, 351:, 337:. 329:, 141:m. 112:m. 988:. 928:. 887:. 863:. 848:. 823:. 796:. 769:. 741:. 693:. 654:. 620:. 586:. 395:/ 198:( 58:) 54:(

Index


Cecil Beaton
Henry Wellcome
W. Somerset Maugham
Elizabeth Hope, Baroness Glendevon
Thomas John Barnardo
née
interior decorator
Thomas John Barnardo
Barnardo's
charity
destitute
father

Drypoint
Paul César Helleu
trompe-l'œil
213 King's Road
Le Touquet
Cecil Beaton
Edward James
Salvador Dalí
Monkton House
Surrealist
craquelure
Elsie de Wolfe
Jean-Michel Frank
Frances Elkins
Elsie de Wolfe
Wallis Simpson

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