Peabody & Stearns and Real Estate! York Hall!!

In keeping with my tradition of highlighting Peabody & Stearns designed homes that are listed for sale, I am pleased to be able to tell you that the Swan Agency has just listed York Hall, located in Bath, Maine, for sale.  It is a wonderful Georgian Revival home, built in 1897 for banker and shipbuilder William Sewall.  Over 7,000 square feet of interior space, with six bedrooms and 5 baths....PLUS the Carriage House (1901) restored and repurposed for office space, on the property.   Don't know what you would do with a library, a reception hall, AND a billiards room?  I'm sure that we could figure that out!!!

Feel free to contact me for more information about York Hall.  Are you in the market to purchase a Peabody & Stearns home?  I would be happy to make arrangements for a showing!  Email me at arobinson@MaineRE.com

(drawing from the Boston Public Library's Peabody & Stearns Collection)

More Photos of Ravenscleft!

Kimberly Swan, President of the Swan Agency Sotheby's International, has just shared some more wonderful photographs of Ravenscleft with me.....and has given permission for me to share them with you!  So, follow this link http://www.ravenscleft.com/ and indulge yourself--wonderful interior and exterior shots.
Thanks, Kimberly!!

RAVENSCLEFT, SEAL HARBOR, MAINE

RAVENSCLEFT is still for sale.....I just saw it advertised in the September issue of Maine Home and Design magazine.
The weblink is
http://www.swanagency.com/IDXDetail.aspx?mlsnum=1023534&city=Mount-Desert&page=1&mlstableid=MREISMEMLSRES&sp=y&segmentid=5023690&uid=94062&htmlfile=http://www.swanagency.com/Search.aspx?segmentid=5023686,property-search.html

Edward Hopper's Maine

Bowdoin College Museum of Art

Brunswick, Maine

July 15-October 16, 2011.

This is a very special exhibition.  Really.  I visited three times in the first three weeks that it was open, and each time I saw something different in the paintings and drawings on display.  Just when you think you know Edward Hopper---Night Hawks, etc., etc.---someone (like Kevin Salatina, Director of the BCMA) does a show that totally expands your perception and understanding of Hopper’s work. 

The first room of the exhibition is given over to 30 oil sketches painted by the artist on Monhegan Island between 1916 and 1919.  They are small—averaging about 9”x12” or so, and at first appear almost lost on the walls of the room.  But don’t let physical size deceive you---these are the artist’s concentrated focus on one theme, and the brushwork and range of color in these paintings is a surprise and a delight.  Who knew that Hopper could do this?  On my first visit, I was tempted to rush by these, but later realized that these are perhaps the most amazing part of the show.  Not to discount the Maine watercolors, large-scale drawings, and Maine-themed etchings.  Two of Hopper’s iconic lighthouse paintings are included as well, and are a treat.  The 30-minute video narrated by Steve Martin is not to be missed.

The exhibition catalogue is exquisite, with luscious enlargements of Hopper’s surprising brush and palette knife work, reproductions of many of the works in the show, and 6 excellent essays. 

The show runs through mid-October, and I know that I will be back several more times, and that with each visit, I will discover something new about Edward Hopper, and the Maine landscape that he captured.  For more information, visit the Bowdoin Museum of Art website:  http://www.bowdoin.edu/art-museum/exhibitions/2011/edward-hoppers-maine.shtml

Janice Chadbourne, Curator of Fine Arts for Boston Public Library

I was saddened to learn of the loss of Janice Chadbourne earlier this week.  She was Curator of Fine Arts for the Boston Public Library for 35 years---she was a knowledgeable, creative, and generous curator and will be greatly missed.  Janice was a great mentor to me in the researching and writing of my Peabody & Stearns book, and I feel a great personal loss.  Thank you to her family for sharing this wonderful woman with me.

Click below for the on-line notice from the Boston Globe:

 http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/bostonglobe/obituary-print.aspx?n=janice-h-chadbourne-hynes&pid=153490147

Savannah Chapter of Victorian Society in America

I was happy to read a note in the Davenport House Facebook page that mentions Peabody & Stearns:  Country Houses and Seaside Cottages, as well as my connection with this wonderful Savannah house museum.  Take a look:  http://www.facebook.com/notes/davenport-house-museum/new-savannah-chapter-for-victorians-forms/10150219238737259?ref=nf

The Davenport House certainly deserves a second look if you are not familiar with it!!

Victorian Society Summer School!

This week I was a featured speaker at The Victorian Society Summer School program held in Newport, Rhode Island.  It's a wonderful program----10 days of lectures, walking tours, and field trips!  A fabulous experience for adults of all ages.  I attended as a student in 1998, and have been asked twice to come back to lecture on Peabody & Stearns--I NEVER refuse an opportunity to join this group!  We toured a private home designed by Robert Peabody in 1885, and then I spoke on the firm:  "An Architect's Sketchbook" included background information on the partners, an overview of the firm's commissions, and some wonderful sketches and plans and elevations that related to the homes in Newport.  For more information on The Victorian Society in America, check their website, http://www.victoriansociety.org/, and for info on the Summer School program, click http://www.victoriansociety.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=50&Itemid=77.
Newport, Rhode Island is the perfect place to speak on Peabody & Stearns---they had at least 20 summer "cottage" commissions there during the period of 1870-1917, and many of the homes are still extant.  Salve Regina University owns several--Althorpe (now Founders Hall, photo above), Vinland and The Hennery plus farm buildings (now Macaulay Hall, and Stonor and Drexel Halls).  Thank goodness the University is there to be such good a steward of the historic architecture in town.  Check their website http://www.salve.edu/ for more information about their buildings and their programs!  Other Peabody & Stearns designed homes are private homes, and one is an inn and restaurant.

Another Peabody & Stearns house on the market!

I received word over the week-end that Merrywood, in Lenox, was auctioned on Thursday, May 26.  No word yet on the result of the auction proceeding, but you can read Nini Gilder's account at this link to the Berkshire Eagle:  http://www.berkshireeagle.com/ci_18141556?source=most_viewed.  As soon as I know more, I'll give you the rest of the story!!

Peabody & Stearns and Real Estate!

Lots of people ask me if I know of Peabody & Stearns-designed homes that are currently for sale.  Well, of course I do!  And wouldn't I love to have one!  .....  For those of you who are yearning for your own P&S house, I will try to include links to current listings on my blog site from time to time.  Right now I know of at least two homes: 
In Newport, Rhode Island, there is a wonderful home, Honeysuckle Lodge, that is offered for sale.  I first visited Honeysuckle Lodge about 14 years ago, when I was working on my master's thesis.  And, I visited it a couple of weeks ago, with the group from the Peabody & Stearns symposium hosted by the Newport International Tennis Hall of Fame--we had three lectures (I was one of the invited speakers...), had lunch, and then visited three P&S homes in Newport.  The weather was wonderful, for a change, and I think that everyone loved Honeysuckle Lodge the best.  See the listing information on the Gustave White website http://www.gustavewhite.com/..  Listed at $10,900,000, it is an exquisite property, but so very liveable!  Here's their video and presentation materials....  If you buy it, be sure to tell them that I sent you!!  http://www.seetheproperty.com/presentation_v2/presentation.php?order_id=65125&mode=branded&ws=1&from=http%3A//www.google.com/url%3Fsa%3Dt%26source%3Dweb%26cd%3D8%26ved%3D0CEQQFjAH%26url%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.seetheproperty.com%252F65125%26rct%3Dj%26q%3Dhoneysuckle%2520lodge%2520newport%2520ri%26ei%3DkaHdTenIGcH40gH_ibHfDw%26usg%3DAFQjCNGCV-XkpccQdbTXXJ-RsSI9RMTxzw

For those who want a city propety, try the Bradley mansion in Boston:  http://www.thebradley.com/ offered by The Campion Company.  OR, for 22 Irving Street in Brookline....a wonderfully restored P&S home with LOTS of special P&S history....http://www.movoto.com/real-estate/homes-for-sale/MA/Brookline/22-Irving-St-300_71168782.htm.  Offered by Movoto Real Estate.

So, hope that helps all of you looking to buy an authentic Peabody & Stearns designed home.....let me know about others, and I'll be happy to post them!  More info on all of these in future blogs!

Peabody and Stearns: Book Review

I am happy to share a review of Peabody and Stearns:  Country Houses and Seaside Cottages, that appeared in the latest edition of Nineteenth Century, The Magazine of The Victorian Society in America.
I hope that you enjoy!! http://www.docstoc.com/docs/80002130/?key=ZGI4NzFiODQt&pass=NzMxNi00NmMw  For more information about the book, (or to purchase!) feel free to contact me!

We win an award! Peabody & Stearns!!

I am thrilled to be able to report that  my book, Peabody & Stearns:  Country Houses and Seaside Cottages, has been awarded the Henry Russell Hitchcock Award by The Victorian Society in America.  This honor is given to an outstanding book on 19th century architecture.  The presentation will be made at the Annual Meeting of The Victorian Society in America, to be held in Portland, Oregon, the end of May.
While I will be receiving the award, many thanks go out to everyone who helped me research and write this book---as Roxie and Velma say, "We couldn't have done it without you!!"

Other P&S notes:

I will be the featured speaker at the annual meeting of the Radnor, Pennsylvania, Historical Society next month---I am looking forward to returning to the Main Line, and to renewing friendships and acquaintances there.  Of course, there will be a booksigning!! 

AND  please take note of the first ever 1-day symposium to celebrate the architecture of Peabody & Stearns:   http://www.tennisfame.com/node/771 .  This is being held in Newport, Rhode Island, at the International Tennis Hall of Fame, and will include a morning of lectures (including me!!), and an afternoon visiting 3 Peabody & Stearns' designed cottages in Newport.  Visit the linked website for registration information.