Robert Denning

Denning about 2002

Robert Denning (13 March 1927 – 26 August 2005) was an American interior designer whose lush interpretations of French Victorian decor became an emblem of corporate raider tastes in the 1980s.

Sourced

• Cooking is like decorating — it never bores me.
  • "Denning's Pot-au-Feu – A decorator indulges his passion for cuisine bourgeoise", by Suzanne Hart, House & Garden, March 1992

• Having people be impressed with a house is not a compliment. You don't want them to say, 'What a place!' You want them to sit down and enjoy it.
  • Suzanne Stephens, "Florida Renaissance — Italianate Splendors Enrich A Villa in Naples", Architectural Digest, October 2000, v. 57 #10, pp. 284-298.

• Never put sofas against wall.
  • Patricia Volk, "The Sweet Smell of Excess", The New York Times (October 8, 2006; retrieved October 4, 2007).

• No white anything (except sheets).
  • Patricia Volk, "The Sweet Smell of Excess", The New York Times (October 8, 2006; retrieved October 4, 2007).

• Texture and pattern should function as a surprise.
  • Patricia Volk, "The Sweet Smell of Excess", The New York Times (October 8, 2006; retrieved October 4, 2007).

• We were about ways to show money.
  • Patricia Volk, "The Sweet Smell of Excess", The New York Times (October 8, 2006; retrieved October 4, 2007).

• I don't like bare floors.
  • Cynthia Zarin, , "The More the Merrier — Robert Denning's Extravagance of Color and Pattern", Architectural Digest (April 2002), v. 59 #4, pp. 146-152.

• Everything is really about lighting.
  • Cynthia Zarin, , "The More the Merrier — Robert Denning's Extravagance of Color and Pattern", Architectural Digest (April 2002), v. 59 #4, pp. 146-152.

• Appearance is everything. I find that a view is secondary. Even in those apartments on the East River, it's dull, looking out at those little boats.
  • Cynthia Zarin, , "The More the Merrier — Robert Denning's Extravagance of Color and Pattern", Architectural Digest (April 2002), v. 59 #4, pp. 146-152.

• I'll be dragged from the last room I do, screaming, 'More!'
  • Cynthia Zarin, , "The More the Merrier — Robert Denning's Extravagance of Color and Pattern", Architectural Digest (April 2002), v. 59 #4, pp. 146-152.

• A la Rothschild, a style I define as many good things used irreverently.
  • Aileen Mehle, "Manhattan Grand Luxe — Richly Appointed Rooms For Collectors", Architectural Digest (September 1994), v. 51 #9, pp. 126-176.

• Find the ideal in something not ideal.
  • House & Garden (July 1991), p. 120.

• I'll accept commissions from anyone who isn't frightened by my proposals.
  • The AD100 Architectural Digest (January 2000), v. 57 #1, p. 48.