Displaying items by tag: historic new england

Steven Favreau’s interiors are far from timid. The leading interior designer’s ability to craft eye-catching spaces that marry the best of contemporary design with classic elements has earned him a reputation as one of the most daring professionals in the industry. His singular style is characterized by a unique mix of contemporary design elements and one-of-a-kind antiques, punctuated by vibrant colors, sumptuous textures, and surprising, often whimsical twists (think ceramic animal heads mounted on a boldly striped wall in an historic New England estate).

A Boston native, Favreau trained in musical theatre and dance at the prestigious Boston Conservatory and studied interior design at New York’s celebrated Fashion Institute of Technology.

Visit InCollect.com to view all of Steven Favreau’s top InCollect picks for a modern interior in a traditional Boston home, including contemporary art, mid century modern furniture, and rare antiques.

Of all the design arts, those dealing with elaborate gardens are the most ephemeral -- dependent as they are on the changing seasons and the boom-and-bust cycles of the economy.

From the Colonial era to present day, New England's great gardens always have been linked to the value of the land from which they spring. Over the years, many have been subdivided for building and housing developments or paved over for parking lots.

The region's rich garden-design history is the subject of "Lost Gardens of New England," a traveling exhibition from the nonprofit Historic New England preservation organization. The exhibit opened Sunday, March 1, (and runs through July 31) at the Lyman Allyn Art Museum in New London.

Thanks in part to a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, Historic New England announces the completion of a digitization project that makes its extensive wallpaper collection more accessible.

For the past two years, Historic New England has been cataloguing and digitizing its wallpaper collection. Now, more than 6,000 samples have been electronically catalogued and are available at WallpaperHistory.org. The collection includes rolled, flat, oversize, and three-dimensional materials, which each require unique handling and digitization methods.

In honor of the statewide celebration – Four Centuries of Massachusetts Furniture – the state’s governor, Deval Patrick, has named September 17, 2013 Massachusetts Furniture Day. A special event will be held in Nurses Hall in the State House in Boston.

Four Centuries of Massachusetts Furniture is the first-ever collaboration between 10 museums and cultural institutions throughout the state that will highlight the area’s furniture making legacy. A series of exhibitions and public programs will explore furniture making from the 1600s to the present day. Participating institutions include the Colonial Society of Massachusetts; Concord Museum; Fuller Craft Museum; Historic Deerfield; Historic New England; Massachusetts Historical Society; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; North Bennet Street School; Old Sturbridge Village; and Peabody Essex Museum; and Winterthur Museum, Garden and Library.

Dennis Fiori, President of the Massachusetts Historical Society and one of the project’s founders, said, “We are honored that Governor Patrick has recognized the Four Centuries of Massachusetts Furniture project with such a wonderful designation. By declaring September 17 as Massachusetts Furniture Day, Governor Patrick is recognizing the truly remarkable legacy in American furniture history that Massachusetts holds, not only as a traditional industry but also as an art form.”

Four Centuries of Massachusetts Furniture will run through December 2014. For more information visit www.fourcenturies.org.