Buckhead manor captures imagination

Home and Garden

Buckhead manor captures imagination

The casual grace of the English manor home on Riverview Road captured business consultant Tim Pearson's imagination at first sight. The Keith Sommerour design was the only house he looked at after arriving in Atlanta from New York in January 1996 to head a locally based consulting company. It was the only one he needed to see.

The casual grace of the English manor home on Riverview Road captured business consultant Tim Pearson's imagination at first sight. The Keith Sommerour design was the only house he looked at after arriving in Atlanta from New York in January 1996 to head a locally based consulting company. It was the only one he needed to see.

"Houses that are wonderfully designed have a lot of appeal to me personally," said Pearson, who was looking for comfort, privacy and quality construction where he could add his personal decorative flair. Designed around an interior courtyard where soothing fountains feed a pristine blue pool, Pearson's white stucco home adds a dash of provincial European flavor to pastoral English styling inspired by the classic lines of Edwin Lutyens.

The home's arched portals, like this one between the kitchen and guest suite, lead fluidly from room to room aided by the home's linear construction. Pearson noted that nearly every room in the house has a water view and a sightline that extends at least two additional rooms deep. "I don't like the sense of being shut in," he said.

After passing through the entry portico and the inviting arched doorway that leads into the house, visitors are greeted by a handsome pair of Marilyn Borglum horse paintings flanking the home's round dining table.

Pearson's cosmopolitan home office upstairs near the master suite attests to the demands of his busy lifestyle. But when he can grab a few precious hours for quiet contemplation, the voracious reader retreats to his private library perched atop the house. There, in a 12-by-12-foot space accessible only by ladder, oversized pillows encourage an afternoon of page-turning pleasure.

The master suite, where hand-crafted Lee Weitzman furnishings are accented in linens of steely silver, is illuminated by a vintage lantern overhead and offers Pearson plenty of room to ramble.

In addition to a roomy master bath styled to emulate a mid-century spa, the ample closet leads to a spacious dressing room with built-in vanity and plantation shutters stylishly hiding stored items from view.

The plantation shutters surrounding Pearson in the large dressing room conceal storage areas. The room also includes a dressing table and a lighted vanity.

Cayenne-hued couches warm the neutral backdrop of the formal living room, where full-length leaded windows overlook the landscaped gardens that replaced a former tennis court.

Pearson engaged landscape architect Joe Gayle to coax an inviting vista from the neglected parcel with native flora. "We spent a lot of time restoring the grounds," Pearson said. This bridge leads to a wooded walking path that ultimately leads up the hill behind the house to a fire pit fashioned from an industrial ruin on the property.

Set amid more than four acres of rolling, wooded terrain fed by five natural springs, the slate-roofed, seven-bedroom home invokes the spirit of Lutyens' famed country estates, but exudes the casual charm of a contemporary vacation resort. "Given the way I make my living, it's a peaceful place to come home to," Pearson said.

The iron handrails on the main staircase were forged by a local artisan at Pearson's request. The dramatic bank of windows flanking the staircase create a linear silhouette of the gracefully ascending steps. The terrace level includes a state-of-the-art home theater with plush leather seating for seven, a billiards room and a well-equipped home gym.

The intriguing stone ball in the courtyard was one of a pair found on the estate when Pearson bought the home. As part of his renovation and restoration of the grounds, he moved this one to a prominent location as a natural inspiration for other design features he incorporated into the house.

This breakfast nook banquette was created by award-winning sculptor and designer Wendell Castle. Nearby, a sleek kitchen accented by Holly Hunt fixtures opens into a casual keeping room accented with items of Pearson's eclectic art collection. The breakfast room displays items from Pearson's collection of pottery and glasswork.

Pearson drew his inspiration for the scrolled ironwork decorating the home's balconies and terraces from the stone balls he found on the property. Here, Pearson looks down into the courtyard from the balcony of the private in-law suite.

These pencil drawings hanging in the master suite were created by Taos, N.M., artist Frank Howell. A larger Howell drawing hangs in the foyer leading to the guest suite.

The terrace-level foyer sculpture was hand-carved by a Maine artist from a single log. Nearby, a pair of New Mexico Native American pots more than 100 years old grace the entrance to the fitness room.

Comfortable chaise lounges line the cabana near the fountain-fed pool. "I've always looked for houses that have a resort-like property," Pearson said. The cabana also includes an infinity-edge hot tub. The property's abundant tree cover provides privacy and an illusion of remove from urban bustle. "Who in the world would know that you're in the middle of Atlanta?" Pearson observed.

Pearson also designed this architectural flourish on the home's exterior. A gas jet inside allows the sconce to combine fire and water for a glistening elemental display.

The keeping room's muted tones allow the beauty of the surrounding forest to add a splash of brightness through the windows.

The arched portal and scrolled lantern over the door add a dash of provincial European flair to the home. The arch motif continues through the interior doorways.

The arch motif and gabled roof are repeated in this gazebo.

In keeping with the metallic motif of the master suite, this guest room is outfitted in gold accents. The wooded privacy of the property eliminates the need for curtains or shades. Pearson prefers an unobstructed view, he said.

Plans are under way to remove the dam that created this lake and restore the stream to its natural course, Pearson said. The lake was part of the property when Pearson bought it.

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The casual grace of the English manor home on Riverview Road captured business consultant Tim Pearson's imagination at first sight. The Keith Sommerour design was the only house he looked at after arriving in Atlanta from New York in January 1996 to head a locally based consulting company. It was the only one he needed to see.

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