CALIFORNIA DESIGN MAXIMALIST LEONARD STANLEY’S COLLECTION OFFERED AT BONHAMS
Leonard Stanley in the 1950s. Stanley’s cottage in Hollywood’s fabled Bird Streets enclave as pictured in Architectural Digest’s November/December 1976 issue. Photography credit: Russell MacMasters.
Antiques, art, design and cultural ephemera from his Maximalist Hollywood Hills home will be offered, most notably from Elsie de Wolfe, Tony Duquette, and Adrian.
Los Angeles – The personal collection of the esteemed California interior designer, Leonard Stanley (1930-2023), will be auctioned at Bonhams on October 24 in Los Angeles. Stanley, a prominent figure in the interior design canon during the 1970s and 1980s, was celebrated for his maximalist aesthetic and avid dedication to preserving the cultural treasures of Old Hollywood.
His Hollywood Hills residence, a striking amalgamation of antiques, art, and design from diverse eras and global origins, was a testament to his distinct personal style. As a decorator, Stanley's design philosophy resulted in extraordinary interiors for his renowned clientele, including Warren Beatty, Jennifer Jones, John Calley, Dennis Hopper, and Eva Gabor. Stanley's legacy spans beyond his design work, with his comprehensive collection of Hollywood studio photography, film stills, set design sketches, and costume designs. Many of these pieces have found their way into prestigious institutions such as The Academy of Motion Picture Art & Sciences in Los Angeles and The Metropolitan Museum in New York City.
Stanley’s Master Bedroom featuring a Tony Duquette custom-designed bed in Architectural Digest’s November/December 1976 issue. Photography credit: Russell MacMasters.
Featured on the cover of Architectural Digest’s November/December 1976 issue, Stanley's home was celebrated by writer Samuel C. Burchell as a "compelling paradox and immense charm,” going on to add, “To say that this is a home of an avid collector is something of an understatement.” His eclectic mix of 18th Century French antiques, Chinese porcelain, Oceanic art, and Italian tapestries, along with a broad array of art spanning the 9th to 20th Centuries surrounded by lush plant life, underlined his passionate collecting habits.
Noted design historian and curator Kohle Yohannan, who was a longtime friend of Stanley, commented: “Leonard had a deep appreciation for historical styles with renewed relevance. Embracing chance, whimsy, and delight in sometimes irreverent juxtapositions, he often arrived at the extraordinary by way of the unexpected, as witnessed in Stanley’s own home—a richly multi-cultural layering of ethnic and thematic motifs that was as visually stunning as it was intellectually engaging.”
Born in Hawai’i, Stanley moved to Los Angeles in 1951 and swiftly became an integral part of Hollywood glamour. He found himself in the midst of the artistic and social echelons of high-profile individuals, such as Tony Duquette, Adrian and Janet Gaynor. Further enriching his design journey, Stanley was the recipient of a travel scholarship from The Elsie De Wolfe Foundation, aimed at promoting the study of decorative art. These experiences and relationships served to deepen his cross-pollinating passions of design and collecting, leading him to amass an extensive archive of Old Hollywood ephemera.
Scrapbooks by Elsie de Wolfe and her Circle.
The auction will feature an extensive archive of Elsie de Wolfe (1865-1950) memorabilia, the most comprehensive ever to come to auction. This includes 35 scrapbooks and photo albums, housing photographs, newspaper clippings, magazine articles, invitations, telegrams, and drawings, offering a rare glimpse into de Wolfe's life.
Circle Of Elsie De Wolfe, Group of Five Scrap Book Albums, second quarter 20th century. Four volumes compiled by Johnnie McMullin (1890-1944) and one volume compiled by Hilda West. Photographs, newspaper and magazine clippings, invitations, telegrams and holiday cards. Estimate: $1,800 – 2,500.
Elsie De Wolfe (1865-1950), Rare and Important Group of Five Photo Albums, second quarter 20th century. Depicting high fashion, significant residences and social events including the Circus Ball, together with a group of four photographs by André Ostier illustrating titled doors of guest rooms presumably within one of Lady Mendl's homes. Estimate: $1,500 – 2,500.
Stanley's passion for Hollywood fashion and costume design is evident in his collection, amassed over years of friendship with celebrated fashion designer Gilbert Adrian (1903-1959). This collection has been documented through Stanley's book "Adrian: A Lifetime of Movie Glamour, Art, and High Fashion" (Rizzoli, 2019). The auction will present the largest private collection known of Adrian’s visual art from the 1920s to 1950s, mostly acquired from the artist’s estate.
Gilbert Adrian (1903-1959), Surreal African Scene. Estimate: $8,000 – 12,000.
Gilbert Adrian (1903-1959), Feeding the Giraffes. Estimate: $4,000 – 6,000.
Gilbert Adrian (1903 - 1959), Strange Africa. Estimate: $4,000 – 6,000.
Additional highlights in the sale:
Richard Pettibone (1938-2024) Roy Lichtenstein, 'Black Flowers', 1961, 1965. Estimate: $20,000 – 30,000.
Richard Pettibone (1938-2024), Andy Warhol, 'Brillo Box' 1964, 1969. Estimate: $18,000 – 25,000.
A Large Chinese Wood Figure of Avalokiteshvara, Ming Dynasty. Estimate: $15,000 – 25,000.
Sir Cecil Beaton (British, 1904-1980), Katharine Hepburn as Coco Chanel, 1969. Estimate: $4,000 – 6,000.
Fulco di Verdura (Italian, 1898-1978), Landscape with Two Figures. Estimate: $2,000 – 3,000.
Fine Serving Bowl, Hawaiian Islands. Estimate: $4,000 – 6,000.
The catalogue on this collection is complimented by an essay from R. Louis Bofferding, the widely acclaimed authority on decorative arts. Available on the sale page here.
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In 2023, Bonhams achieved 14% growth with $1.14 billion in turnover. Recent important auctions and landmark single-owner collections, include the white glove sales of Sir Michael Caine: The Personal Collection, Alain Delon: Sixty Years of Passion; Sir Roger Moore: The Personal Collection; Personal Property of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and The Robert & Jean-Pierre Rousset Collection of Asian Art: A Century of Collecting. Other notable single-owner sales included The Estate of Barbara Walters: American Icon; The Alan and Simone Hartman Collection; The Crown Auction: Props and Costumes and The Claude de Marteau Collection.
Top lots for 2023 include 1967 Ferrari 412P Berlinetta, Sold at Quail Lodge, US for US$30,255,000. Tipu Sultan’s Bedchamber Sword (sold in London for £14m – a world record for both an Islamic and an Indian object); Paul Signac (1863-1935), Sisteron, 1902. Sold for US$8,580,000 (estimate US$4-6 million), and Claude Monet (1840-1926), La Seine près de Giverny, 1888. Sold for US$6,352,500 (estimate US$4-6m), both from the Alan and Simone Hartman Collection; A Gilt Copper Alloy figure of Virupaksha, Central Tibet, Densatil Monastery, Early 15th century. Sold for HK$37.9m (£4,060,326) in Hong Kong. Yoshitomo Nara (born 1959) Three Stars. Sold for HK$36,754,000 (£3,930,914, also in Hong Kong
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