Within the pages of Jane S. Day’s stunning new book FROM PALM BEACH TO SHANGRI LA, produced in association with the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach, you’ll find an in-depth expose of the legendary 20th century architect Marion Sims Wyeth’s most notable structures, including Marjorie Merriweather Post’s former home Mar-a-Lago, and Doris Duke’s Shangri La.
Lesser known but equally noteworthy residences such as Hogarcito and La Claridad, among others, are also chronicled in this first-ever retrospective volume of Wyeth’s exceptional work.
Refined proportions, a sense of grandeur, and unapologetic excess combine to define Wyeth’s métier. His tropical architectural vernacular produced, “a kind of home design that takes the standard fixtures of paradise—palm trees, ebullient fountains, glistening pools and gardens, views of the sea—and mixes them with a dash of the exotic—a Moorish-style balcony or doorway, Venetian archways, fanciful courtyards in the Spanish style, and spiraling staircases in stone and iron.”
With copies of original plans and elevations throughout, as well as early black-and-white photography, Day’s book enlightens the reader about Wyeth’s seminal structures with historical provenance and contemporary photography. It is that rare tome that’s both scholarly and visually captivating; it will serve to inspire architects and interior designers working in tropical locals–and beyond–for generations to come.
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From Palm Beach to Shangri La: The Architecture of Marion Sims Wyeth
By Jane S. Day in association with the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach