Objekt International

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L I V I N G

I N

S T Y L E

ZEBRAS a t t h e f ro n t d o o r

AQ UA R I VA b y MARC NEWSON T H E G R E AT

OUTDOORS HOUSE M PURE AS ART

P I E RO L I S S O N I ’ S b ou nd l es s s ki l l

N E G R E S C O : timeless beacon in twitter world C H A R L E S G WAT H M E Y

CLASSIC GENEVER EXPERIENCE AT SCHI PHOL AIRPORT

©hansfonk

$ 9.50 us $11.50 can $14.95 australia £ 7.95 uk € 9.90 italy-spain-belgium-france € 12 .20 europe

printed in the netherlands

© I N T E R N AT I O N A L

W E S T C O R N WA L L P A R A D I S E

text: Izabel Spike photos: Hans Fonk

Two small display windows with a door at the centre, in a Above: antique dealer and

narrow street in West Cornwall, Connecticut: that’s all. A peek through the window merely shows a rather crowded space with large tables containing decorative antique items and curios. A few metres from the front door, long goods

garden designer, Michael Trapp, in the conservatory of his antiques paradise.

Beside that: the 19th-century house where he lives and works, seen from the Italianate garden.

trains thunder past, horns hooting, on their way northwards

Adjoining: in the garden there is a swimming pool

over tracks that seems to dissolve gradually in the forest.

that blends into the green surroundings; a real grotto

This is an important link in the antiques route that passes through the region. A well-known spot for lovers of antiques, antique building materials and gardens. It is Michael Trapp’s eclectic Valhalla: pour le plaisir des yeux.

can be found there.

Right: part of Michael Trapp’s living room and kitchen.

Overleaf At the back of the garden there is a small, dark cottage with an interior reminiscent of a still-life.

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Above and below: the miraculous little rooms in Michael Trapp’s West Cornwall house.

Visitors move from one pleasurable surprise to the next - objects, small and large, stacked literally up to the ceiling.

Below right: the living roomkitchen belonging to the antique dealer and garden designer.

Right: the garden contains a grotto, entirely in appropriate to the Italianate setting.

Overleaf

e building, with its converted garage, is almost invisible in the surrounding profusion of greenery. Little on the exterior suggests that this is the domicile of a celebrated interiors trendsetter. Yet a large international clientele is drawn to this delightful spot (provided they are good at reading topography!). It is the home base of antique dealer, garden and interior designer, Michael Trapp, in the small town of Cornwall in Connecticut state and not far from New York. It is one of the ‘mustdos’ along the famous antiques route that runs through the state. e unremarkable door, with two small windows on either side overflowing with objects and curios heralds a spontaneous eruption of creativity. e house contains a cluster of small spaces and a conservatory - all filled with antique and old architectural elements, unusual textiles, fossils, chairs, sofas and tables. How it all got there is less important than the way everything is combined - tastefully and amazingly eclectically.

ese festive visual treats include an Italianate garden complete with a real grotto, pond and summer-house and form the setting of Trapp’s operating base: where he works as a garden and interior designer. e garden clearly is Italian-inspired. From the semi-circular conservatory you enter the top section with, as its main features, a rectangular pond, conifers and a small fountain which hide much of the house from view. Steps lead down to the lower areas, dominated by a swimming pool which has been taken up naturally into its surroundings.

Right beside the pool is a real grotto, containing a table with a large mirror behind it. e furniture is, without a doubt, ‘natural’, with, in contrast, a crystal chandelier surrounded by dried plants suspended from the ceiling. e lower part of the garden contains a cottage, the interior of which is reminiscent of a still-life. e visitor will be overwhelmed - both here and in the house itself - by the profusion of details he encounters.

The front door opens into a space that is dominated by a large table laden with a unique collection of antique objects and curios.

Trapp uses the antique architectural elements and objects, as well as unique textiles he collects from all over the world to create timeless decors - both in his own house and for his clients whose homes he furnishes from top to toe.

Enthusiasts from the United States and far beyond manage unerringly to find Trapp’s eclectic Valhalla.

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