A bed upholstered in python skin and covered with a shaved mink blanket; brilliant red poppies gracing a Fornesetti vase—these are the sort of daring, eclectic details that have garnered Martyn Lawrence Bullard multiple design awards, and a place on Architectural Digest’s Top 100 and Elle Decor’s "A" List of the World’s Top 25 Interior Designers. His romantic and exotic interiors have appeared in over 700 publications, attracting a devoted clientele, including Cher, Kid Rock, Edward Norton, and Aaron Sorkin. Tamara Mellon, CEO and founder of Jimmy Choo, who tapped him to design her own home and corporate headquarters, dubbed him "Decorator to the Stars."
Lawrence Bullard seems to be everywhere, doing everything. Earlier this year he was featured on Bravo’s reality series Million Dollar Decorators, and last month he became a spokesman for Jaguar’s XJL. Over the past five years, he’s launched an exhaustive array of product lines, from scented candles to furniture, cleaning products to rugs and artisanal fabrics.
With such diverse interests, Lawrence Bullard’s passion for the flea market hunt comes as no surprise. VandM caught up with the omnipresent designer on the eve of the publication of his first book Live, Love & Decorate (Rizzoli), to get his thoughts on design, flea markets and what currently excites him.
Martyn Lawrence Bullard Design
8101 Melrose Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90046
323-655-5060
www.martynlawrencebullard.com
HOW DID YOU START OUT?
My father, who explored a wreck off the Gibraltar coast for Spanish treasures, encouraged my early love of antiques by suggesting I browse the shops. At 12, I started going to flea markets collecting sliver spoons and old plates. I went on to buy and sell, upgrading to better objects.
YOUR BEST FLEA MARKET DISCOVERY?
I found a 1930s clip brooch that turned out to be the real thing—diamonds. The purchase price was five pounds which I then sold for 5,000—about $7,000.
DESCRIBE LONDON VS. U.S. FLEA MARKETS.
There is an empire worth of items dating back to the seventeenth century available at any London flea market. America is a younger country so there is more memorabilia sold. Art Deco, Americana and Japanese exports from the 1920s and 1930s are standouts.
FAR LEFT: In the Mexican villa of an American producer and entrepreneur, Lawrence Bullard combined lighting, upholstery and wallpaper in shades of blue with a collection of oversized seashells and corals.
LEFT: In Cheryl Tiegs’s Bel Air home, a portrait of the supermodel by Andy Warhol in her bedroom; the stone mantel is fashioned from the window casing of a demolished bank.
RIGHT: Lawrence Bullard combined art, furnishings and fabrics from a variety of cultures and periods to create a breakfast nook for himself in the Hollywood Hills.
WHAT ARE YOU BUYING NOW?
The 1960s and 1970s especially Italian, with studio art glass from Venini in Murano at the top of the list. From America, sculptural metal furniture from Paul Evans and decorative objects from Curtis Jere.
YOUR MOST SUCCESSFUL CHALLENGE?
The green room backstage at the Shrine Auditorium for the 2009 Emmy Awards. I envisioned an Arabian Nights theme hanging a 36-foot tent from the ceiling with interior mirrored panels. Never having worked on a sound stage, I was not familiar with the complex technology, but the stagehands solved the problems quickly and efficiently.
BEST WAY TO CREATE AN ECLECTIC STYLE?
Think adventurously. Oscar Wilde said: "All beautiful things belong to the same age."
TEXTURED VS. PATTERNED FABRICS:
Texture is the basis, but pattern and color are equally important.
WALLPAPER:
In England wallpaper is a traditional dècor feature, but has been out of favor in decorating circles in the U.S. Thankfully there is a return to recognizing its aesthetic value to enhancing a room. Remember, interiors need to breath, so select a small space such as an entryway, powder room or dining area.
DESIGN STYLE AT HOME?
I restored the Villa Swanson in the Hollywood Hills, an Italianate-styled house once owned by Rudolph Valentino and Gloria Swanson. My home is where I experiment, mixing in contemporary and traditional pieces. The artwork too reflects eclecticism, juxtaposing seventeenth century ancestral portraits next to paintings by Jean-Michel Basquiat and Andy Warhol.
IDEAL DINNER MENU?
Macaroni and cheese topped with truffles. A good white wine is a crisp Pinot grigio; for reds Santa Margherita Chanti or Sassicaia.
DESIRED POSSESSIONS?
A Caravaggio painting speaks to me—and a beach house.
COLLECTING NOW?
Recent buys are photographs that catch my eye (and of course finances permitting).
DESIRED CLIENT?
Lady Gaga.
WHAT’S NEXT?
Work on a fly-fishing ranch in Montana and restoration of a seventeenth-century castle in Umbria.
BOOK COVER: © Martyn Lawrence Bullard, Live, Love & Decorate, Rizzoli New York, 2011.
ALL OTHER PHOTOS: © Tim Street-Porter
MARTYN’S PICKS
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$36,000 -
contact dealer -
$22,000
