Garden in Hell

Diana Vreeland

Billy Baldwin sketch

The Divine Miss V, London play

Sarah Jessica Parker, ode to D.V. for Harper's Bazaar mag

Diana Vreeland, (1903-1989) was a noted columnist and editor in the field of fashion. She worked for the fashion magazines Harper's Bazaar and Vogue and the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. By 1955 the crowd was dining at the Vreelands' new apartment at 550 Park Avenue. Diana Vreeland had Billy Baldwin decorate her apartment. The living room was bloodred; as Diana announced: "I want this place to look like a garden, but a garden in hell." Scarlet chintz covered with brilliant Persian flowers cloaked the room. Red carpeting spread over the floors of the living room and hallway. As Vreeland pointed out, "Red is the great clarifier -- bright and revealing. I can't imagine becoming bored with red -- it would be like becoming bored with the person you love." Be sure to check out her book.

image via: harpers bazaar