Ironic coda for the Gilded Age: the Harley J. Earl house in Grosse Pointe Farms is a stately Palladian limestone mansion dating from the latter part of the Gilded Age, but was home to the man who, as GM styling VP from 1938 until 1959, helped define, perhaps more than any other, the visual style of post WWll America, an aesthetic of egalitarian luxury (an oxymoronic notion if ever there was one), planned obsolescence, decorator colors, and a host of other conceits antithetical to the rigorous ideals of those Beaux Arts inspired creators of the Gilded Ages monuments. The world of Mad Men and Populuxe was clearly in charge but Mr. Earl had enough sense to keep his Palladian villa and keep clear of ranch houses.
Posted on: Thu, 31 Jul 2014 02:24:53 +0000