Learning to See: Bringing the World Around You Into Your Home [Hardcover]

Vicente Wolf (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 14, 2002

Acclaimed as one to the country's top one hundred interior designers by both Metropolitan Home and Architectural Digest, Vicente Wolf is the uncontested master of cool, luminous rooms that combine strength and sensuality. From a rich but disciplined palette of materials, he creates a signature minimalism that is simple, handsome, and eminently comfortable. In Learning to See, Wolf shares the secrets of his alchemy, insights into a design process that he says starts with taking his traveler's eye into every environment. If you, like he, can simply transfer the special excitement and intense sensations you feel when you are in nature or when you first encounter something exotic to the way you want to feel on entering a room for the first time, you can learn to see. With incisive text and more than one hundred sixty photographs, Wolf walks you through this process. While providing step-by-step instructions on such practical matters as how to create floor plans, treat windows, arrange furniture, hang pictures, use flowers and mirrors and other accents, he helps instill confidence to trust your own aesthetic inspiration.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...readers will no doubt approach their own rooms with fresh eyes." -- Interior Design

"Full of simple, yet rich interiors...the book teaches valuable lessons in creating spaces with soul." -- Elle Décor

About the Author

Vicente Wolf was born in Cuba and came to the United States with his family when he was fifteen. The work of his internationally renowned design firm has been featured in magazines such as Architectural Digest, Elle Decor, House Beautiful, Metropolitan Home, and House & Garden. He lives in New York City.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Artisan (October 14, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1579652174
• ISBN-13: 978-1579652173
• Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 10.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #161,768 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #61 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Interior Design > Decoration & Ornament

More About the Author

Vicente Wolf has been at the top of the Manhattan design industry for over 35 years. From the spacious light-filled loft in New York City where his company is headquartered, Wolf and his team build on his passion for design that's guided by integrity and simplicity. He maintains this focus throughout his many creative endeavors: photography, art collection, interior design and global travel.
Wolf's portfolio offers the ultimate global aesthetic, from multinational conglomerates to private homes, from hotels and restaurants to product design.


Hotels
* The Ayya Hotel, New York
* The Lorien Hotel & Spa (a Kimpton Hotel), Alexandria, Virginia
* Luxe Hotel, Beverly Hills, California
* Westin Hotel Executive Suites, New York

Product
* Baccarat - Currently Baccarat's only US designer, Vicente's Latitude collection of crystal vases, bowls and candleholders with Baccarat exclusively for Neiman Marcus was launched in fall of 2008.
* Sherle Wagner - Designed and developed custom fixtures and hardware specific to the project (15 Union Square West). Only outside designer to have ever worked with Sherle Wagner.
* Tufenkian - Designed ultra-luxurious carpets for retail and wholesale distribution both by Tufenkian and VW Home.
* Kravet - Designed high-end fabrics for retail and wholesale distribution both by Kravet and VW Home.
* Ralph Pucci - Designed select pieces to be included in Pucci's 2007 collection, which includes several dining tables, sofas and coffee tables.
* Niedermaier - For over 17 years Vicente has designed and produced pieces for distribution by this elite furniture distributor.
* Henredon Furniture - The Vicente Wolf Collection of upholstery and case goods.
* Sasaki - China and Flatware design for the luxury brand.

Restaurants
* Convivio. Restaurant in New York City (formerly L'Impero)
* L'Impero Restaurant in New York City - winner of the 2003 James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Restaurant Design
* Alto Restaurant in Manhattan
* Bedell Cellars Winery and guest cottage on Long Island's North Fork
* The Diego restaurant at the MGM Hotel in Las Vegas
* The SW at Steve Wynn's W Hotel in Las Vegas

Retail
* L*S store in Hong Kong
* The Andrew Fezza company offices and showrooms
* The Registry stores in Chicago
* The executive offices of J Records for Clive Davis

Apartment Buildings
* 15 Union Square West, New York
* 301 East 61st Street, New York
* Place 57, New York


Private Golf Clubhouse
* Liberty National Golf Club, Jersey City, New Jersey

Wolf's list of residential interiors is equally expansive and includes homes in the United States and abroad in France, Israel, Japan, Saudi Arabia and Sweden.

Residential Projects include
* The Manhattan apartment of choreographer Twyla Tharp
* The California home of Nely Galan, former president of Telemundo Communications and founder of gaLAn Entertainment
* The Richland Plantation in Natchez, Mississippi
* The Manhattan apartment and Westchester guest house of Clive Davis
* Swedish residence and Long Island home for Mr. and Mrs. George David
* The Manhattan apartment of the Prince and Princess von Furstenberg
* The New York City apartment of Mr. and Mrs. Michael Lynne, president of New Line Cinema
* The New York City apartment of Mr. Carl Bernstein
* The New York apartment of Matthew & Susan Blank, president of Showtime TV Networks
* The Manhattan apartment of event designer Preston Bailey
* The Connecticut home of mannequin designer and art gallery owner, Ralph Pucci
* Dancer Shelley Washington's New York apartment

Further projects span the realm of design and Vicente is a sought-after public speaker, having lectured in South Africa, Japan, Canada, Dubai and Australia. He also teaches an annual course through Parsons School of Design in the Dominican Republic. Wolf was featured in Absolut Vodka's 'Absolute Design' campaign.

VW Home is the luxury showroom where Wolf displays his line of fabrics, lighting, upholstery and case good pieces, a collection of sterling silver flatware, antique furniture, accessories and bed linens that he handpicks while traveling the globe. The showroom also offers interior design services, utilizing products selected and designed by Wolf.

Architectural Digest included Wolf in their "AD 100" and he was also named one of the top 100 designers by Metropolitan Home's "Design 100". House Beautiful named Wolf one of the 10 most influential designers in the United States and Interior Design Magazine inducted him in its "Designer Hall of Fame". He has received the Pantone Color Award and, in 2009, Wolf was named one of the "Top 20 Designers of the past 20 Years" by Traditional Home and was honored as the "Design Icon of 2009" at the Las Vegas Market in September.

Wolf has published two books, Learning to See (Artisan, 2002) and Crossing Boundaries: A Global Vision of Design (Monacelli Press, 2006), that focuses on the many design inspirations found throughout the world - through the eyes of a traveler. He is currently working on his third book, set to be released in Fall, 2010.

For more, point your browser to www.vicentewolf.com or visit his well-read blog at www.vicentewolfblog.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars top of the list for new design books, January 12, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Learning to See: Bringing the World Around You Into Your Home (Hardcover)

This book isn't just another decorating book; it has a strong point of view-that of a design expert, Mr. Wolf-and that's why I like it so much. True, his interior design work tends to be more contemporary than traditional and his color palette is definitely subtle, but the book is packed with helpful tips and information for everyone who is interested in design and in putting together a home that is both chic and inviting. Unless you are looking for layers of chintz and lots of ruffles, you, too, can be inspired by Wolf's eclectic take on decorating and his deft mix of antiques and modern pieces. Plus, this book is a must-read for all who think they might like to become an interior designer, as Mr. Wolf describes his own career path-arriving in the States from Cuba as a teenager and making his way into the design world with a few quirky twists and turns.
Vicente Wolf's text is engaging, his photos are terrific, and his rooms are compelling. I loved the book so much, I bought several to give as presents.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars LEARN TO SEE, April 8, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Learning to See: Bringing the World Around You Into Your Home (Hardcover)

Yes, this is Vicente Wolf's vision, and not mine. Where he uses white and beige I use red and brown. I did, however, learn to see. This book is not about learning to decorate. What this man can do with a candlestick, a bowl, a whatnot and a tray is incredible. This book may not change the way I decorate my house in terms of paint and drapes, but it has changed the way I view my "things" and how I arrange them to convey their beauty and importance to me. Look past the beige! Reviewers, take another look at your book.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars No stale minimalism here..., September 1, 2004

By 

MissTish64 "EAC" (Upstate NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Learning to See: Bringing the World Around You Into Your Home (Hardcover)

This is my favorite design book at the moment. Mr. Wolf's rooms combine antiques with more contemporary pieces in a light, refreshing fashion that, as he stresses in the text, will not lock you in to a defined style. His examples of flexible design show you how to add, subtract, or highlight pieces to reinforce a particular mood. These are not rooms meant to be designed once and remain stagnant, they embrace change. There is a lot of effort placed on highlighting the furniture (yes, lots of white and ecru) and creating interest through contrasts in texture and finish, not through pattern or color. Admittedly, it took me several times through the book to fully appreciate it. As other reviewers have said, if you are into chintz, florals, matched sets of furniture and red, forget it. If you have kids running around in the living room with chocolate all over their hands, you might cringe at all the light colors, but you may still appreciate his design ideas. I did not find the rooms too minimal or cold, as other reviewers did, but as I said, if you are into English Country, you will be bored. If you aim for an elegant, refined, refreshing and light mood in your home, consider this book.