Here's the kitchen masonry painted, and now the Pompeii Room is starting to look finished on all three sides (four, if you count the transom). As you can see, the mural turns a corner into the living room, to meet a bookcase.
Because the masonry is rather stylized, I've kept the pediment equally simple, but I haven't decided whether it should be more ornate. On one hand, more detail might be fun, and on the other hand, no amount of detail will make the pediment truly trompe l'oeil because the 3-dimensional door frame is always seen at close range. What do you think — more detail, or leave as is?
Here's the kitchen surround, looking into the living room. As you can see, the kitchen masonry dovetails into the transom, which in turn meets the masonry of the opposite wall.
I've left room for a plaque to go in this space, and it might just be my favorite detail yet. Can you guess what will go here? All will be revealed in the next posting, and I hope you'll join me then!
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Dear Mark, It's all looking so fabulous. I think that a small detail should go inside the pediment. As for the plaque...it will probably be some kind of portrait.
ReplyDeleteDear Gina,
DeleteI will consider putting a detail inside the pediment. It's a pretty shallow space, so that would require the creative juices to flow!
Hello Mark,
ReplyDeleteWe are not sure what to suggest. As you say, detailed might be fun but plain might be best as the door frame is real so any surrounding detail cannot ever be quite integrated fully.
Whatever, it will be such fun to go through that door and enter the Pompeii Room.....rather like Alice entering Wonderland. We rather think that what is served will always have to resemble a Roman feast!
Hello, Jane and Lance,
DeleteI have photographically filled the kitchen door frame with a gray mask because the Pompeii Room currently leads to a galley-like kitchen with white appliances. That breaks the antique mood, as you might imagine! At some point I will want to place a curtain in the door, or create a similar solution.
HI Mark,
ReplyDeleteI hope you're enjoying the weekend. The details are perfect to me and I cannot wait to see what you hang in this special space!
xoxo
Karena
The Arts by Karena
P.S. I tried your tip left on my site and then went to a friends blogroll to see if the update would change; alas no. I am willing to try anything though!
Hi, Karena,
DeleteI'm sorry my solution didn't work, but it was worth a try. I just had breakfast at a dining room that overlooks a small airport. It's fun to have a hearty breakfast and watch the private planes taxi and take off into the blue yonder.
Hello Mark, I agree with some of the other commenters, that the tympanum is looking a little bare. Perhaps not as elaborate as some of the Pompeii details, but it needs a certain something, especially when seen in contrast with the rest of the room. You might have to do something with that switch-plate, too. You could dig up an old cast brass or bronze one which would lend a little weight and dignity. (Not that Pompeii was electrified anyway, unless Eric van Daniken has gotten around to writing about the subject.)
ReplyDeleteOf course, the plaque area will have some bearing on all this, so I am looking forward to see what you have planned for it.
--Jim
Hello, Jim,
DeleteYou get extra credit for using the term tympanum, which is new to me. I'm glad to add that to my lexicon because it's a part of architectural detail that especially delights me! And now we have two votes for detail in the tympanum.
I did consider painting the switchplate to match the wall, but decided against it because I could imagine the paint aging with the wear and tear of daily use. But I will keep myself open to solutions such as those you've suggested. In any event, my hope would be for something that did not call a lot of attention to itself. If you noticed, I did design the block for the switchplate to provide equal space all around the plate.
Hi again, When I mentioned cast brass or bronze, I wasn't thinking of anything ornate, but rather those simple, heavy rectangular plates with the narrow beveled edges, some of which have a great smooth aged patina. (Real bronze would be the best, if you can find it.)
DeleteThe way you have beautifully centered the plate on the stone makes it cry out even more for just the right hardware!
Yes, I now have a better idea of what you have in mind. The current switch has a rheostat, which I use a lot in this room, so the challenge will be to find what you have in mind with that feature, but almost anything is possible through the Internet . . .
DeleteYou could always install a perspex light switch, (wherein the switch is the only obviously visible part of the device), such as those dsiplayed here:
Deletehttp://www.mr-resistor.co.uk/flat-plate-clear-perspex-range
and which are used when there is a wallpaper. If you used any of 30-35 you could make a trompe l'oeil on the other side, and then fill your tympanum, (thanks Jim!) with something that matches.
Thank you, Columnist, for this excellent suggestion! I think the look is museum quality, and I'll definitely look into it. Thank you both!
DeleteDear Mark - I look to your side bar at the image of MY HOUSE: BECOMING NEOCLASSICAL - perhaps you could do something similar to that within the pediment!
ReplyDeleteI have no idea what plans you have for the plaque, but somewhere within the scheme I do think that you should mention yourself and the relevant dates pertaining to the creation of your masterpiece.
Dear Rosemary,
DeleteThe plaque will not have any lettering on it, so perhaps I have not used the proper word for the space to be filled. But you have made me wonder whether there should be a signature of some sort somewhere in the room, perhaps in Latin. I hadn't thought of that, but now you've put it in my head!
WOW, Mark! You've made great progress. Between the holidays and getting the house ready for sale, I've been on a little blog break. The trompe l'oeil stone looks fantastic. I vote more detail!
ReplyDeleteHi, Loi — I know this has been an especially busy season for you! I'm glad you like the masonry, and I'm seeing that the vote is overwhelmingly for more detail. I'm up to the challenge!
DeleteMore!!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Stefan. I'm getting the clear message that more is more!
DeleteI learn so much just reading the comments on each of these posts! You must smile every time you walk by these walls Mark. I will wait with anticipation to see what the plaque will be.
ReplyDeleteHi, Theresa,
DeleteI am enjoying the mural, especially in the evening, when I sit in the living room and read. That's the time of day when I study the progress with an objective eye and see where all the little tweaks need to be made.
What wonderful dedication, Mark. What wonderful work. I am still thunder-struck by all you've accomplished. Gob-smacked, maybe. :) Plain is probably best over the doorway as you're inclined to leave it so. On the other hand, I'd definitely add a small green lizard scampering over the stones, tail askew. There were lizards in Pompeii - no? Just a thought. :)
ReplyDeleteP.S. I think Rosemary's idea is a good one.
Dear Yvette,
DeleteThank you for that encouraging comment. There won't be a lizard in the space we're currently looking at, but I do have plans for one in a different area — interesting that you should mention it! Here in Florida we have geckos (I see them on my porch every day), and I've been thinking of including one.
Great minds think alike, Mark. You must know that. :)
Delete