Sybil Colefax

Sibyl Colefax was a notable English interior decorator [”Colefax and Fowler": the best in English interior decoration” Jones,C: London, Barrie & Jenkins 1989 ISBN 0712620214] and socialite in the first half of the twentieth century [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/homes/design/period_1920s.shtml Influence in 1920s] ] . She was born in Wimbledon into a noted society family [Her uncle was the eminent constitutionalist Walter Bagehot- The Spectator p2713 Oct 1950 ] and lived in Cawnpore until the age of 20 when she went on the Grand Tour. In 1901 she married Arthur Colefax, the MP for Manchester South West. Based in Lord North Street, Westminster they became famous for their high society parties. When she lost her fortune in the Wall Street Crash in 1929 she began a consultancy to advise on interior design. In 1938 she went into partnership with John Fowler [ The Times, Thursday, Sep 28, 1950; pg. 6; Issue 51808; col D Lady Colefax Knowledge Of Art Princess Marthe Bibesco] . During the Second World War she organised a soup kitchen and continued to entertain [The Times, Tuesday, Sep 26, 1950; pg. 6; Issue 51806; col E Lady Colefax A Great London Hostess R.A.B.] . She died on September 22nd 1950 in her London home.

The two women who contributed most to the establishment of interior decoration in the UK were Lady Sybil Colefax and Syrie Maugham. Lady Colefax, a former society hostess down on her luck after the Wall Street crash, created very fussy and chintzy English country home interiors. In 1938 she went into partnership with John Fowler, an expert in eighteenth-century decoration. More success followed as he joined Sybil Colefax. He was 32; she who enjoyed stature as a society hostess was 64. The firm is noted for their English Country House style shaped by Colefax, John Fowler, and Nancy Lancaster. The style combined a respect for tradition with an emphasis on comfort and simplicity. Influence of 18th and early 19th century elements of style are found in their gracious, timeless, and elegant designs. She was known for decorating the houses of her friends in collaboration with certain Bruton Street antique dealers. Her clients were some of the wealthiest people in London. The firm Colefax and Fowler survives today, designing and decorating interiors for the wealthy and famous. Sybil retired from the firm in 1944 due to illness. The financially ailing company was bought by Ronald Tree as a parting gift for his wife Nancy Lancaster after their divorce. Nancy Lancaster, a Virginian whose work is thought of as "English style." She was to teach Fowler much about comfort and scale, "how large houses could be used and enjoyed in the modern world."

Biography

* "A Passion for Friendship" by Kirsty McLeod. Michael Joseph, London, 1991.
* "Great Hostesses" by Brian Masters. Constable, London, 1982.

References