Sothebys to Offer the Personal Collection of Interior Designer Mario Buatta – Barron’s

The late interior designer Mario Buatta's personal collection will be offered at Sotheby's in January. Courtesy of Sotheby's; Getty Images

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More than 1,000 items from the personal collection of the late New York interior designer Mario Buatta, who was known for bringing English countryside style to Manhattan homes, will be offered at Sothebys in January 2020.

A selection of furniture, fine art, and decorative objects from Buattas former apartment on Manhattans Upper East Side, as well as another one of his homes, the William Mason House, a historic gothic-style house in Thompson, Conn., will be sold from Jan. 23 to 24, with estimates ranging from $500 to $50,000.

Many pieces have long been exhibited in showhouse rooms and shelter magazines over the years, according to Sothebys.

Born on Staten Island, New York, Buatta attended Cooper Union and the Parsons School of Design, both in Manhattan. He opened his own interior design firm in 1963 at age 28 and was reputed to reinvent the English Country House style for high-profile clients such as Henry Ford II, Barbara Walters, Malcolm Forbes, and Patricia Altschul, among others, Sothebys said.

In 1985, Buatta was tapped to decorate Blair House, the official White House guest residence. In 2001, he decorated pop singer Mariah Careys Manhattan triplex in gold, peach, and silver tones, along with flashes of crystal. The project was featured in Architectural Digest in 2001.

Buatta died in 2018 at age 82 in New York.

The auction will be timed during the Winter Show, formerly known as the Winter Antiques Show, which Buatta chaired for many years.

His personal collection includes English and Chinese export porcelain; English pottery and Dutch Delft; English enamels, silver, and glassware; English and Continental furniture, as well as an ensemble of fine art, featuring his well-known collection of dog paintings.

Highlights will be open to public view beginning Jan. 16 in Sotheby's galleries in New York.

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Sothebys to Offer the Personal Collection of Interior Designer Mario Buatta - Barron's