Edith Wharton – the Godmother of interior decoration (Decoration of Houses ) and the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize – built “The Mount” in the Berkshires in 1902. At the time, she was assuredly one of the first women to build her own home.
This beautiful mansion – a National Historic Landmark – is in trouble!
After a major restoration that was completed in 2006, The Mount is nearly in foreclosure! The bank extended the deadline to October 2008 and to date they have raised nearly 1/3 of the $3M needed.
Click here for more information and to donate!
The Edith Wharton Restoration Foundation invited many famous decorators, using Wharton’s principles of design, technique and style to decorate several of the rooms. The decorators include: Geoffrey Bradfield (the Gallery), Lady Henrietta Spencer-Churchill (the Library), Charlotte Moss (the Drawing Room), Bunny Williams (the Dining Room), Libby Cameron (the Main Stair Hall), Thomas Jayne (Mr. Wharton’s Den), and Michael Trapp (the Forecourt and Entrance Hall).
For more:
Click here to visit EdithWharton.Org
Public Radio interview with Dominique Browning on the importance of the Estate.
Bob Vila video tour.
Save the Mount on Slate.com – includes a slideshow
All images courtesy of EdithWharton.org.
I read an interesting New Yorker article recently about this. I think the director spent millions to buy back the original library, hoping to make money by having people adopt a book. It was an excellent idea but I don’t think they made back the money. Too bad.