ROOMS WITH A SEASIDE VIEW
Nick Voulgaris III rolled out the welcome mat at Saks Fifth Avenue for the launch of his new coffee table book “The Seaside House: Living on the Water” ($55 at www.rizzoliusa.com) – an inside look at resplendent waterfront homes steeped in the panoramic beauty of Newport, Nantucket, Provincetown, Sag Harbor, Fire Island, and the Hamptons, among others. The festivities were hosted by Saks fashion director Roopal Patel alongside Martha Stewart (who had provided the book’s foreword) and attended by fashion and shelter luminaries including fashion designer Dennis Basso, Burberry’s George Kolasa, and Elle Décor’s Cynthia Frank.
Complemented by 150 photographs from acclaimed lensman Douglas Friedman, the book captures in equal measures the elegant and lived-in aspects of these contemporary beach houses and traditional cottages. The author details each property’s impeccable interior designs and décor by Steven Gambrel, Martyn Lawrence Bullard, Celerie Kemble, and Ken Fulk, distinctly individual while revealing an underlying through-line composition that not only accommodates the outlying patios and gardens but brings everything into perfect harmony with the land and sea. Mr. Voulagris’ introductory ruminations on the motley idylls of the coastal life prompt reminiscences of sun dappled summers with ice cream cones and kayaks, of churning waves and the keening of gulls. And having summered on Shelter Island NY with some frequency since he was a child, Mr. Voulgaris knows whereof he writes.
His first book “Hinckley Yachts: An American Icon” was conceived after his purchase and restoration of a 1968 Hinckley Bermuda 40 yawl. He then cast anchor for “The Seaside House”, and enlisted Mr. Friedman, whose handsome trademark 70s stache appears with near regularity as his work in the glossiests of the glossies. Other formative attachments apparently continue to motivate many of Mr. Voulgaris’ varied ventures. In 2013, he acquired another fixture from his childhood – Kerber’s Farm (est 1941) – to avert its fall into inexorable disrepair, or worst redevelopment into condos. He has since gradually restored the property to provide organic produce, Kerber’s Farm-branded baked goods, jams, and even raw honey from its own beehives. Today, Mr. Voulgaris (along with English Lab Charlie) divides his time between homes in Oyster Bay and Manhattan, from which he makes the train commute to the farm in Huntington to oversee daily operations. He is also finishing work on two upcoming books.
Images: COVER – © The Seaside House: Living on the Water by Nick Voulgaris III, Rizzoli New York, 2017
INSIDE BOOK All photography © Douglas Friedman EVENT images by Getty for Saks Fifth Avenue
