Anouska Hempel

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_030

5/29/14

c o l e pa r k

4:26 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_031

3/27/14

2:19 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

the house as a mirror to the world

cole park is a country house like no other. for thirty years the home of Anouska Hempel and her husband, Sir Mark Weinberg, it is a ravishing yet intricate composition of extraordinary harmony. You will want to dwell on every detail, each room as meticulously thought out as a Covent Garden set by theatre designer Julia Trevelyan Oman. The most magical time to arrive is after dark in winter. The drive begins as a simple farm track across a field. Towards the far side, lines of smooth tree trunks loom into view in the headlights. Suddenly, you are driving along a perfectly formed avenue of ever more impressive length. Teasingly, there is no sign of a house at the end. Amidst the enveloping darkness, lights glimmer faintly some way to the right. A small rond-point looms ahead and it is evident that, like a chateau in Normandy, a second perfect avenue leads at right angles to the house.

You are at the gates of a classical house islanded in a square moat, complete with a formal courtyard in front. Swooped baroque gates of silvered oak glide open and the house greets you. Trees around the courtyard are softly lit. Candles

Many country house entrance halls have a spartan quality with little more

glow in every window. As you step through the front door there is an immediate

than plain wooden chairs ranged around the walls. Here, you step immediately

sense of welcome, the light of candles reflected in mirrors and glazed screens.

into an inner sanctum, where comfortable sofas and chairs stand close to a blazing fire. The house is the more inviting as every door is open, providing

At dusk a light in every window makes the house warm and welcoming

Above left: Beyond the formal gravel of the entrance courtyard is a glimpse of lawns Above: The maturing trees of a closely planted avenue are kept apart to allow a blade of light to streak into the far distance

vistas through to a red-curtained study ablaze with light and a dimly lit dining room in shades of green.

The dominant note is a strong architectural discipline, an eye for satisfying

The view from the bridge across the moat to

shape, symmetry and carefully framed vistas. With this comes a decorator’s

the front entrance. The grass circle is given

preference for infinite subtleties in shades of colour and texture, and a collector’s

interest with distinctive mushrooms of box

love of exotic objects arranged in amusing and theatrical ways. Anouska Hempel talks of layering. At Cole Park the layers have a complexity that in many ways exceeds anything that has gone before. She is the conductor of a symphony in which the craftsmanship and decorative effects play an equal role with the furniture and objets d’art. Many decorators who love flamboyant objects go for a romantic, even Byronic, disarray. Here there is an almost military desire for clean lines and crisp angles all overlaid with such a love of enrichment that the eye constantly dances around the room trying to absorb it all.

The layering is the result of Hempel’s enthusiasm for collecting on her travels, combined with the furniture made for the rooms by her long-standing joiner-cum-cabinetmaker, Paul Carter. The brilliance of it all is that very little is fixed. She describes it as ‘a hall without walls’. The whole elaborate box of tricks could be quickly packed up and taken away. It is like a three-dimensional chessboard, an assembly of satisfying shapes – cubes, cylinders, spheres – placed symmetrically or in carefully ordered series.

The irregular shape of the hall troubled Hempel from the start. The staircase was not aligned with the front door. The chimneypiece was not centred. The wall opposite was awkwardly stepped forward three times presumably because 30

030-071 AH Cole Park i4.indd 30

c o l e p a r k 31

anouska hempel

30/05/2014 15:36

030-071 AH Cole Park i4.indd 31

30/05/2014 15:36

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_030

5/29/14

c o l e pa r k

4:26 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_031

3/27/14

2:19 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

the house as a mirror to the world

cole park is a country house like no other. for thirty years the home of Anouska Hempel and her husband, Sir Mark Weinberg, it is a ravishing yet intricate composition of extraordinary harmony. You will want to dwell on every detail, each room as meticulously thought out as a Covent Garden set by theatre designer Julia Trevelyan Oman. The most magical time to arrive is after dark in winter. The drive begins as a simple farm track across a field. Towards the far side, lines of smooth tree trunks loom into view in the headlights. Suddenly, you are driving along a perfectly formed avenue of ever more impressive length. Teasingly, there is no sign of a house at the end. Amidst the enveloping darkness, lights glimmer faintly some way to the right. A small rond-point looms ahead and it is evident that, like a chateau in Normandy, a second perfect avenue leads at right angles to the house.

You are at the gates of a classical house islanded in a square moat, complete with a formal courtyard in front. Swooped baroque gates of silvered oak glide open and the house greets you. Trees around the courtyard are softly lit. Candles

Many country house entrance halls have a spartan quality with little more

glow in every window. As you step through the front door there is an immediate

than plain wooden chairs ranged around the walls. Here, you step immediately

sense of welcome, the light of candles reflected in mirrors and glazed screens.

into an inner sanctum, where comfortable sofas and chairs stand close to a blazing fire. The house is the more inviting as every door is open, providing

At dusk a light in every window makes the house warm and welcoming

Above left: Beyond the formal gravel of the entrance courtyard is a glimpse of lawns Above: The maturing trees of a closely planted avenue are kept apart to allow a blade of light to streak into the far distance

vistas through to a red-curtained study ablaze with light and a dimly lit dining room in shades of green.

The dominant note is a strong architectural discipline, an eye for satisfying

The view from the bridge across the moat to

shape, symmetry and carefully framed vistas. With this comes a decorator’s

the front entrance. The grass circle is given

preference for infinite subtleties in shades of colour and texture, and a collector’s

interest with distinctive mushrooms of box

love of exotic objects arranged in amusing and theatrical ways. Anouska Hempel talks of layering. At Cole Park the layers have a complexity that in many ways exceeds anything that has gone before. She is the conductor of a symphony in which the craftsmanship and decorative effects play an equal role with the furniture and objets d’art. Many decorators who love flamboyant objects go for a romantic, even Byronic, disarray. Here there is an almost military desire for clean lines and crisp angles all overlaid with such a love of enrichment that the eye constantly dances around the room trying to absorb it all.

The layering is the result of Hempel’s enthusiasm for collecting on her travels, combined with the furniture made for the rooms by her long-standing joiner-cum-cabinetmaker, Paul Carter. The brilliance of it all is that very little is fixed. She describes it as ‘a hall without walls’. The whole elaborate box of tricks could be quickly packed up and taken away. It is like a three-dimensional chessboard, an assembly of satisfying shapes – cubes, cylinders, spheres – placed symmetrically or in carefully ordered series.

The irregular shape of the hall troubled Hempel from the start. The staircase was not aligned with the front door. The chimneypiece was not centred. The wall opposite was awkwardly stepped forward three times presumably because 30

030-071 AH Cole Park i4.indd 30

c o l e p a r k 31

anouska hempel

30/05/2014 15:36

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30/05/2014 15:36

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34

030-071 AH Cole Park i4.indd 34

5/28/14

4:24 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_034-035

5/28/14

4:24 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

c o l e p a r k 35

anouska hempel

30/05/2014 15:36

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30/05/2014 15:36

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34

030-071 AH Cole Park i4.indd 34

5/28/14

4:24 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_034-035

5/28/14

4:24 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

c o l e p a r k 35

anouska hempel

30/05/2014 15:36

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30/05/2014 15:36

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4/2/14

11:38 AM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_144-145

4/2/14

11:38 AM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

Above and opposite: A pair of free-standing lattice screens creates the sense of a room within a room. Note how reflected daylight turns black surfaces to white Narrow but inviting gangway stairs recall those that enter the tail of a large aeroplane

144

140-147 AH La Suite West.indd 144

anouska hempel

l a s u i t e w e s t 145

30/05/2014 15:54

140-147 AH La Suite West.indd 145

30/05/2014 15:54

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_144-145

4/2/14

11:38 AM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_144-145

4/2/14

11:38 AM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

Above and opposite: A pair of free-standing lattice screens creates the sense of a room within a room. Note how reflected daylight turns black surfaces to white Narrow but inviting gangway stairs recall those that enter the tail of a large aeroplane

144

140-147 AH La Suite West.indd 144

anouska hempel

l a s u i t e w e s t 145

30/05/2014 15:54

140-147 AH La Suite West.indd 145

30/05/2014 15:54

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_150-151

5/22/14

1:02 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_150-151

5/22/14

1:02 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

Digital rendering of the hotel’s dramatic position level with the rainforest canopy, eighty-five metres above the beach

Digital rendering of the Beach Club set fifteen metres above the beach with a thirty-five-metre-long swimming pool surrounded by timber sundeck. On the first floor is a panoramic restaurant and bar

Above: A tall pivot door stands open at a right angle, revealing a view to the terrace beyond

Floor-to-ceiling glass walls and thrusting terraces bring guests to eye-level with the rainforest canopy, with a glimpse of the sea beyond

150

148-161 AH Warapuru.indd 150

anouska hempel

w a r a p u r u 151

30/05/2014 15:57

148-161 AH Warapuru.indd 151

30/05/2014 15:57

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_150-151

5/22/14

1:02 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_150-151

5/22/14

1:02 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

Digital rendering of the hotel’s dramatic position level with the rainforest canopy, eighty-five metres above the beach

Digital rendering of the Beach Club set fifteen metres above the beach with a thirty-five-metre-long swimming pool surrounded by timber sundeck. On the first floor is a panoramic restaurant and bar

Above: A tall pivot door stands open at a right angle, revealing a view to the terrace beyond

Floor-to-ceiling glass walls and thrusting terraces bring guests to eye-level with the rainforest canopy, with a glimpse of the sea beyond

150

148-161 AH Warapuru.indd 150

anouska hempel

w a r a p u r u 151

30/05/2014 15:57

148-161 AH Warapuru.indd 151

30/05/2014 15:57

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_176

4/2/14

11:37 AM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_177

5/29/14

4:47 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

The fashion of the 1990s and the 2000s was for ever more opulent marble

Three giant black drum lampshades, three black

hotel bathrooms. Here, there is a new chic with grey walls and grey slate. The

bowls and three white Lutyens window motifs

strictest geometry prevails. Goodbye to the rounded forms of the traditional

contrast with the calculated asymmetry of the

baths and basins, which have been with us since Victorian times. Instead there is

reception desk and its bold cantilever

the perfectionist discipline of the ruler and the set square. Line is all. The bath is generous in length with stone edging to match the walls. Carefully hidden lights illuminate the base and the edges of the glass doors, which are translucent and not hinged but pivoted.

Louvred shutters all at exact right angles to the

Designers everywhere are challenged by long hotel corridors and here they

Cupboard doors often deaden the walls of hotel rooms, so much so that some

windows echo the formality of the furniture and

repeat around the atrium. Hempel’s solution is to go with the grain and to turn

hotels now go for hanging racks. Here Hempel gives wardrobes a new sense of

the length to advantage by creating strongly marshalled vistas. The walls are

style with glass doors backed by her trademark handwritten indentures with

jet black but skirtings and cornices are recessed with bands of glowing light

their beautiful calligraphy: ‘Guests love them,’ I was told. On the shelf above

emanating from a hidden source. Doors have metal panels like lift doors –

the hanging spaces are neatly lined boxes for storage – like smart hatboxes with

a visual game creating surprise as they open.

leather side straps.

The apartments vary in size but are all intended to provide the spaciousness

In the apartments that overlook the atrium, total privacy can be provided by

demanded in the international market, which is often difficult to achieve in

electronic blinds. On request, windows onto the atrium can be opened and the

European cities. The choice begins with studio apartments facing onto the atrium.

louvred outer shutters closed.

Each one offers a sense of arrival and the fun of exploring the unpredictable. Just

The showpieces are the penthouse apartments, which have roof terraces

as the appeal of traditional French hotels often lies in matching the patterns

looking out over the roofs of Mayfair and the lofty trees of Hyde Park. These

of curtains, wallpapers, upholstery and bed covers, here black bed covers are

apartments are very large with three or four bedrooms, sitting and dining rooms

matched by black bedbacks rising to the ceiling, with bedside tables as black as

and a cinema room. They are made all the more stylish by the use of enfilades

lacquer and black drum lampshades.

along window walls, creating framed perspectives. Cleverly placed mirrors

sunken floor

176

174-187 AH Grosvenor House.indd 176

anouska hempel

g r o s v e n o r h o u s e a p a r t m e n t s 177

30/05/2014 16:03

174-187 AH Grosvenor House.indd 177

30/05/2014 16:03

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_176

4/2/14

11:37 AM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_177

5/29/14

4:47 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

The fashion of the 1990s and the 2000s was for ever more opulent marble

Three giant black drum lampshades, three black

hotel bathrooms. Here, there is a new chic with grey walls and grey slate. The

bowls and three white Lutyens window motifs

strictest geometry prevails. Goodbye to the rounded forms of the traditional

contrast with the calculated asymmetry of the

baths and basins, which have been with us since Victorian times. Instead there is

reception desk and its bold cantilever

the perfectionist discipline of the ruler and the set square. Line is all. The bath is generous in length with stone edging to match the walls. Carefully hidden lights illuminate the base and the edges of the glass doors, which are translucent and not hinged but pivoted.

Louvred shutters all at exact right angles to the

Designers everywhere are challenged by long hotel corridors and here they

Cupboard doors often deaden the walls of hotel rooms, so much so that some

windows echo the formality of the furniture and

repeat around the atrium. Hempel’s solution is to go with the grain and to turn

hotels now go for hanging racks. Here Hempel gives wardrobes a new sense of

the length to advantage by creating strongly marshalled vistas. The walls are

style with glass doors backed by her trademark handwritten indentures with

jet black but skirtings and cornices are recessed with bands of glowing light

their beautiful calligraphy: ‘Guests love them,’ I was told. On the shelf above

emanating from a hidden source. Doors have metal panels like lift doors –

the hanging spaces are neatly lined boxes for storage – like smart hatboxes with

a visual game creating surprise as they open.

leather side straps.

The apartments vary in size but are all intended to provide the spaciousness

In the apartments that overlook the atrium, total privacy can be provided by

demanded in the international market, which is often difficult to achieve in

electronic blinds. On request, windows onto the atrium can be opened and the

European cities. The choice begins with studio apartments facing onto the atrium.

louvred outer shutters closed.

Each one offers a sense of arrival and the fun of exploring the unpredictable. Just

The showpieces are the penthouse apartments, which have roof terraces

as the appeal of traditional French hotels often lies in matching the patterns

looking out over the roofs of Mayfair and the lofty trees of Hyde Park. These

of curtains, wallpapers, upholstery and bed covers, here black bed covers are

apartments are very large with three or four bedrooms, sitting and dining rooms

matched by black bedbacks rising to the ceiling, with bedside tables as black as

and a cinema room. They are made all the more stylish by the use of enfilades

lacquer and black drum lampshades.

along window walls, creating framed perspectives. Cleverly placed mirrors

sunken floor

176

174-187 AH Grosvenor House.indd 176

anouska hempel

g r o s v e n o r h o u s e a p a r t m e n t s 177

30/05/2014 16:03

174-187 AH Grosvenor House.indd 177

30/05/2014 16:03

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_206

5/29/14

4:49 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

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4/1/14

2:14 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

The house is conceived as a progression from dark to light, with a luminous ivory-white main bedroom suite. The floor is laid with large squares of white Carrara marble set in a diamond pattern. The same satin fabric is used for the window and bed curtains. The four-poster bed is inlaid with mother-of-pearl to match the favourite chest of the owners

In the all-white guest bedroom, white bed curtains are complemented by white porcelain and seating

206

196-209 AH Vaduz.indd 206

anouska hempel

v a d u z h o u s e 207

30/05/2014 16:09

196-209 AH Vaduz.indd 207

30/05/2014 16:09

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5/29/14

4:49 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_207

4/1/14

2:14 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

The house is conceived as a progression from dark to light, with a luminous ivory-white main bedroom suite. The floor is laid with large squares of white Carrara marble set in a diamond pattern. The same satin fabric is used for the window and bed curtains. The four-poster bed is inlaid with mother-of-pearl to match the favourite chest of the owners

In the all-white guest bedroom, white bed curtains are complemented by white porcelain and seating

206

196-209 AH Vaduz.indd 206

anouska hempel

v a d u z h o u s e 207

30/05/2014 16:09

196-209 AH Vaduz.indd 207

30/05/2014 16:09

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_216-217

210-251 AH Addison Road.indd 216

4/1/14

2:17 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

30/05/2014 16:18

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_216-217

210-251 AH Addison Road.indd 217

4/1/14

2:17 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

30/05/2014 16:18

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_216-217

210-251 AH Addison Road.indd 216

4/1/14

2:17 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

30/05/2014 16:18

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_216-217

210-251 AH Addison Road.indd 217

4/1/14

2:17 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

30/05/2014 16:18

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_272-273

4/1/14

9:56 AM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_273

5/22/14

1:16 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

Place settings for an al fresco lunch beneath the awnings over the stern, which form a shaded sitting and dining area.The table is in two parts, which join up to seat a party when friends moor nearby Opposite: Looking out to the pine-clad slopes around the great bay south of Gรถcek, studded with islands and promontories

272

268-285 AH Beluga.indd 272

anouska hempel

02/06/2014 12:37

268-285 AH Beluga.indd 273

30/05/2014 16:25

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_SP_272-273

4/1/14

9:56 AM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

XY2901_AnouskaHempel_UK_273

5/22/14

1:16 PM

Black Yellow Magenta Cyan

Place settings for an al fresco lunch beneath the awnings over the stern, which form a shaded sitting and dining area.The table is in two parts, which join up to seat a party when friends moor nearby Opposite: Looking out to the pine-clad slopes around the great bay south of Gรถcek, studded with islands and promontories

272

268-285 AH Beluga.indd 272

anouska hempel

02/06/2014 12:37

268-285 AH Beluga.indd 273

30/05/2014 16:25