Aldous Bertram’s Expat Aesthetic

A Southern gentleman by way of Britain, U.K. expat Aldous Bertram has many talents. He’s a designer, author, and painter, whose work appears in the Chairish Art Gallery at Bergdorf Goodman. He recently debuted a collection of mirrors with Fleur Home (shoppable on Chairish) and a book on Chinoiserie. Currently based in South Carolina, he has an expert’s eye for historical detail and an artist’s keen sense for color and pattern. Here, he shares his Charleston-meets-Chinoiserie aesthetic along with a few of his Chairish favorites.

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You’re known for joyful interiors that draw on British and historical design sensibilities. Tell us a bit about that. What are some of the ways you bring joy to spaces?

A lot of it is through color and pattern, particularly the mixing of many colors that wouldn’t necessarily be an obvious combination. This can also be through accessorizing. I love bright pops of color provided by stick candles, marbled paper objects, ceramic citrus fruits, and of course those immensely charming paper geraniums from The Green Vase.

Tell us about your approach to vintage and antique finds. How does that come into play when it comes to layering patterns, colors and styles? How do you like to incorporate vintage/antiques?

Other than a dramatic bed canopy, it is hard to create a memorable interior without using antique pieces, precisely for the reason that they tend to be unusual or even unique. I love the feeling of effortless age conveyed by a beautifully toned wooden chest of drawers or display cabinet. I hate to use the phrase ‘brown furniture,’ because really what we are looking it is a polished specimen wood, or lovingly carved oak piece. Whole genres in decorating such as British Colonial, Swedish/Gustavian, and English Country House, are impossible to create with using antique pieces, or copies of them crafted traditionally. The Swedish painted look, bleaching wood, or applying lacquer are great ways to update old things and give them a new life and vibrancy.

You just came out with your book, Dragons and Pagodas: A Celebration of Chinoiserie. Tell us about the book, how your love for Chinoiserie developed, and what you want our audience to know about Chinoiserie and your book.

My book is a passion project that I have longed to produce ever since I did a PhD on the subject of Chinese influence on English gardens at Cambridge University. It is a light-hearted history of Chinoiserie and its pervasive and long-lasting influence on Western art and architecture, showcased through 200 exquisite photographs. I did the watercolor illustrations for the front cover and chapter headings to add to the artistic charm of the book. The subject matter has so much more depth and history than is normally understood, and I hope I have inspired people to learn and collect more, and decorate fearlessly in an inventive way, for Chinoiserie is truly about having fun and throwing out the rule book.

You have a fantastic line of mirrors via Fleur (available on Chairish). Your pieces are bright, fun with historical nuances. Tell us how this came about and what inspired you?

I connected with Natalie Erwin, the wonderful owner of the brand, through mutual friends. We are both artists who recognised that we could create a collection that would push the company in a slightly different direction from previous collaborations. I was inspired by architectural elements from England to Italy and Morocco, which I adapted into mirrors that are so much more than looking glasses. The scale and coloring of the mirrors allows them to lead an interior scheme and inspire thoughts of distant places and times.

You’re based in Charleston, which has become a real hotspot for design. With your British background and now your Southern roots, what would you say are some trademarks of the Charleston or Southern style that you’ve adopted?

Like many good English homes, lots of old Charleston houses benefit from decorative possessions that have been collected over a long period of time. They also might have historic paneling on their walls, and interesting moldings, which requires a more nuanced understanding of paint colors and finishes. I am completely obsessed with all the white wooden columns that adorn the exteriors of southern homes, mostly from or modeled after the Georgian period, which I love and which is shared by Britain and America. Chippendale railings, such as those all over the University of Virginia and incorporated into many southern staircases, never fail to charm. 

LIFESTYLE

Favorite small museum? In the U.K., the most astonishing number of classical, architectural and Grand Tour objects are amassed in the Sir John Soane Museum in London, which is a must-see. In the U.S., I absolutely love the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA, which has a remarkable collection of Chinese Export porcelain, and even boasts an entire ancient house imported brick by brick from rural China with the most incredible craftsmanship.

Favorite Instagram accounts to follow? @jepsolell for grand interior photography, @cabanamagazine for unique and collected historic interiors, @stylebeatblog for the latest design trends.

Favorite hostess (or thank you) gift? A copy of Dragons & Pagodas of course!

Favorite flower? As an adoptive Charlestonian, I have to say that nobody gets more joy from the Camellias than me.

Favorite entertaining essential? I personally am an aspiring recluse and therefore do not entertain! But when I am invited to somebody else’s home, I think candlelight has to be the most appealing element.

Lead Image: Interior Design by Aldous Bertram, Photo by Peter Murdock.