Quote:
Originally Posted by ProphetM
"If you don't go blind immediately, you'll wish you had."
|
If the furnishings shown in the photo (page 1933) are typical of the Phyllis Morris "look," I'll chime in and agree that the style is definitely NOT Hollywood Regency but might politely be described as "Brothel Baroque." A Hollywood Regency designer wouldn't set foot inside the Phyllis Morris store. I agree with tovangar2 that as long as there is a market for the Phyllis Morris style, more power to her. Go Phyllis.
In the 1980's, my sister and I were driving along La Brea (I think) near 3rd Street, and our attention was caught by a large furniture store. We went inside and what we saw will never be forgotten. The "esthetic" (or aesthetic) of the ENTIRE store was "whorehouse rococo." There were mostly elaborate bedroom and living room tableaux with huge, ornately-carved furniture sets swathed in crimson, canary yellow and royal purple Velvets, Lurex, and Brocades. The light fixtures and all accessories were uniformly as over-the-top as possible, lots of swirls and curlicues, and of course tassels, swags, and poufs galore. Sis and I kept looking at each other like "is this for real??" Quite bizarre.
Does this sound familiar to anyone? What WAS that place? Obviously they must've had a sizeable customer base in order to have such a big store with a large inventory.
Also brings to mind the "Tamara Bane Gallery" on Melrose not far from Fairfax. I don't know if it still exists. It was a large and prosperous-looking gallery filled to the brim with huge "aggressively sexual" paintings of women, most of them either nude with spike heels or in various kinds of bondage outfits.
I wonder if Anna Nicole's favorite designer, Bobby Trendy, with his signature turquoise and pink fur pillows and leopard-print throws is still around?
To paraphrase the New York columnist, "only in L.A., kids. Only in L.A."