An inspiring tome on the work of interior designer Chester Jones is just out. The Interiors of Chester Jones features more than a dozen of his interiors, ranging from a studio in Notting Hill to an alpine chalet – in all of them he has achieved a layered look, ‘neither new or old’, a personal and easy to live in home for his clients.
A very simple, quiet environment was created in this bedroom – ‘almost monastic’ is how the client described it – with no curtains, just shutters. The window joinery, architraves and skirting are painted a soft blue. A striped carpet by Chester Jones’ wife Sandy Jones picks up the colour scheme perfectly. Copyright Chester Jones / David Montgomery.
In this traditional Hampstead house, Chester Jones had to strike a balance between the outstanding architecture of the rooms and the contents planned for it. He achieved this by placing in it paintings and furniture of compatible weight and scale (although entirely different in style). The huge painting by Mimmo Paladino is even larger than the room’s dominant central wall panel. Copyright Chester Jones / Jan Baldwin
In these rooms for a guesthouse in the South of France, Chester Jones has created a holiday spirit by using festive colours and mid-twentieth century furniture. Charlotte Perriand’s lights are scattered over the wall , and a painted tin mobile slowly moves in the space above. Copyright Chester Jones / Mark Luscombe-Whyte
A recent portrait of Chester Jones by Ben Jones.
This sumptuous book gives us an insight into Chester Jones himself – a former architect and managing director of Colefax & Fowler – and the thinking behind the many (and varied) interiors he has created since establishing his own studio in 1990. The book explores every aspect of the design process, from Jones’ sympathetic treatment of a building’s structure to his consideration (all-important in his view) of how a house is used and how it may need to evolve to meet a family’s changing requirements.
Featuring in-depth case studies, the book reveals Jones’ encyclopaedic knowledge of antiques and modern art, his distinctive use of textiles, furniture and lighting, as well as giving inspiration and clever ideas for anyone to follow.
The Interiors of Chester Jones by Henry Russell by Merrell Publishers, £40