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Real Estate

On the Market: A Westport home for the art and nature lover

Meg Barone

WESTPORT - The antique Italianate manor house at 77 Morningside Drive South stands as a monument to art, architecture, nature and the ability to raise the concept of entertaining to an art form.

This is definitely the home for the art and nature lover, the person who appreciates architecture and history, and those with a desire for entertaining. You can't just let the stunning and cavernous restored party barn sit idle, nor this impressive reinvented and expanded 19-room house for that matter.

77 Morningside Drive South, Westport Franton Court was the name given to this Greens Farms estate by one if its owners, Hilla Von Rebay, a German baroness and artist from the Bauhaus period, and a co-founder of the Museum of Non-Objective Art, the precursor to the Guggenheim Museum in New York City. According to material provided by the listing agent the house was so named to honor Von Rebay's parents, Franz and Toni. That material also said Von Rebay worked with architect William Muschenheim to convert the barn into an art studio and artists' quarters. Many of her famous friends and collaborators created artwork there.
AlanBarry / Contributed photo

77 Morningside Drive South, Westport

Franton Court was the name given to this Greens Farms estate by one if its owners, Hilla Von Rebay, a German baroness and artist from the Bauhaus period, and a co-founder of the Museum of Non-Objective Art, the precursor to the Guggenheim Museum in New York City. According to material provided by the listing agent the house was so named to honor Von Rebay’s parents, Franz and Toni. That material also said Von Rebay worked with architect William Muschenheim to convert the barn into an art studio and artists’ quarters. Many of her famous friends and collaborators created artwork there.

Gourmet kitchen in the main house at 77 Morningside Drive South, Westport.
Alan Barry / Contributed photo

Gourmet kitchen in the main house at 77 Morningside Drive South, Westport.

“Celebrated artists Wassily Kandinsky, Fernand Léger, Marc Chagall and even (architect) Frank Lloyd Wright were frequent visitors, to name-drop just a few. And who can blame them? The remarkable design and cunning craftsmanship give the impression that this is no mere house but, perhaps, a work of art,” according to the agent.

 

 

Formal living room with dramatic fireplace mantel at 77 Morningside Drive South, Westport. And they were inspired by this house and its attractive grounds, which adjoins a protected eight-acre parcel, managed by the Aspetuck Land Trust. The nature preserve was once part of this estate and served as Von Rebay's arboretum and bird sanctuary. For the Sherwood family, owners of the property in the mid-1880s, this estate was a working onion farm.
AlanBarry / Contributed photo

Formal living room with dramatic fireplace mantel at 77 Morningside Drive South, Westport.

And they were inspired by this house and its attractive grounds, which adjoins a protected eight-acre parcel, managed by the Aspetuck Land Trust. The nature preserve was once part of this estate and served as Von Rebay’s arboretum and bird sanctuary. For the Sherwood family, owners of the property in the mid-1880s, this estate was a working onion farm.

77 Morningside Drive South, Westport This property also accommodates athletic and recreational pursuits. It features a resurfaced tennis court, Gunite in-ground swimming pool, a pool house with a full bath and its own laundry, and a two-bedroom refurbished guest cottage with an attached carriage barn with four bays. The party barn features a full kitchen as well as a sleeping loft, bedroom, and two baths. One open
AlanBarry / Contributed photo

77 Morningside Drive South, Westport

This property also accommodates athletic and recreational pursuits. It features a resurfaced tennis court, Gunite in-ground swimming pool, a pool house with a full bath and its own laundry, and a two-bedroom refurbished guest cottage with an attached carriage barn with four bays.

The party barn features a full kitchen as well as a sleeping loft, bedroom, and two baths. One open “room” in the barn contains a wood floor with a colorful hand-painted pattern; reminiscent of the many renowned artists who spent time there and the colorful gatherings they must have had. There are five doors leading to a wraparound deck.

 

77 Morningside Drive South, Westport Inside the main house, which some records claim was built in 1900, there is a seamless mélange of Italianate and Bauhaus styling, creating a unique interior. The dramatic interior begins right from the center hall foyer, which features white and black checkerboard marble tile. As a unifying element, the same tile pattern is repeated in the kitchen. Among its many features within the 7,135 square feet of living space are the full-length, double leaf casement windows; ten fireplaces - including one with a stand-out mantel in the formal living room, a large terrace off the living room, a wet bar, built-ins, and a wine cellar.  
Contributed photo / Alan Barry

77 Morningside Drive South, Westport

Inside the main house, which some records claim was built in 1900, there is a seamless mélange of Italianate and Bauhaus styling, creating a unique interior. The dramatic interior begins right from the center hall foyer, which features white and black checkerboard marble tile.

As a unifying element, the same tile pattern is repeated in the kitchen. Among its many features within the 7,135 square feet of living space are the full-length, double leaf casement windows; ten fireplaces - including one with a stand-out mantel in the formal living room, a large terrace off the living room, a wet bar, built-ins, and a wine cellar.