Honoring Paul R. Williams in the house he designed
In a small room off the entry of the Chi Omega sorority house in Los Angeles, Abby Rose created a space that honors Paul R. Williams, the architect who designed the house in 1929. The room borrows from one of his most famous projects, the Beverly Hills Hotel, with its original Martinique banana leaf wallpaper, its signature pink, and a daybed custom made by Architexture.
Who was Paul R. Williams?
Paul Revere Williams (1894 to 1980) was one of the most prominent architects in Los Angeles in the 20th century, and one of very few Black architects working in the country at the time. In 1923 he became the first Black member of the American Institute of Architects. In 1957 he became the first Black architect named a Fellow of the AIA, and in 2017 the AIA awarded him its Gold Medal, its highest honor.
He was also a gifted draftsman. Because many white clients in the 1920s were uncomfortable sitting beside a Black man, Williams taught himself to sketch upside down, so a client sitting across the desk could watch the drawing come together right side up.
His name is on some of the best known homes and buildings in Southern California, and on this sorority house too.
Why the Beverly Hills Hotel?
In the 1940s, Williams redesigned the Beverly Hills Hotel and added its Crescent Wing, completed in 1949. That era gave the hotel the pink, green, and white look it is still known for, including its famous banana leaf wallpaper, Martinique, designed by Don Loper.
Because the house and the hotel share an architect, the hotel was a natural reference for a room dedicated to him. Anyone who has walked through the hotel will recognize it right away.
What’s in the room
- Original Martinique wallpaper covers the back wall, the same banana leaf design the hotel is known for. The window shades are Martinique too.
- Banana leaf throw pillows came from the gift shop at the Beverly Hills Hotel.
- Hotel pink on the surrounding walls is matched to the hotel itself. “We even went to the hotel for brunch on their patio with fan decks to match the precise pink color,” Abby says.
- Woven rattan sconces flank the wallpaper, with a matching rattan table lamp beside the daybed.
- Framed Beverly Hills Hotel photographs fill the side wall, next to a striped director’s chair.
- A white hexagon tile floor keeps the room crisp and bright.
- A framed bio of Williams is in the works, so the room can tell his story to everyone who passes through the entry.
A custom daybed that doubles as a sofa
The seating is a daybed that Architexture custom made for the room. Most of the time it works as a sofa, and when the house needs an extra place for someone to sleep, it works as a bed. Its light, neutral upholstery lets the Martinique wallpaper do the talking. Learn more about custom upholstered furniture made to fit the room.
The awning that isn’t really there
Look up and you’ll see a pink and white striped awning over the wallpapered wall. It isn’t fabric. “The awning above the wallpapered wall is actually trompe l’oeil,” Abby says. It was painted by Claire Ouimet of Artful Finishes, a faux artist Abby works with.
Trompe l’oeil is French for “fool the eye”: painting so realistic it reads as a real object. Here it gives a small room the feel of a striped poolside cabana without a single bracket or yard of canvas.
See the rest of the Chi Omega house
The Paul Williams room is one part of a larger project. Abby also designed the entry, living room, TV room, fireplace, dining area, and patio, including bold graphic wallpaper in the entry, easy clean performance fabrics in the living room, and coral and blue in the TV room. See the full project on the Chi Omega sorority house portfolio page, and learn more about our residential design services.
Visit the Woodland Hills showroom
Have a room with a story to tell? Come see fabrics and wallpaper in person at the Architexture showroom, 21410 Ventura Blvd in Woodland Hills, open Tuesday to Saturday, 11 AM to 4 PM. Or call 818-760-3399.