Villa “La Casella” Côte d’Azur

La Casella was designed by Robert Streitz, a disciple of the architect Emilio Terry and was built in 1960.

It is a replica of a neo-classical 18th century pavilion built for Madame de Pompadour in the gardens at Fontainebleau.

The property was purchased by Tom Parr, the then Chairman of Colefax & Fowler in 1984 and he and his partner Claus Scheinert made it their home until Tom died in 2011 and Claus, more recently, in 2015.

Tom was born in 1930 and from his youth was an inveterate traveller, visiting many countries, cities and great houses in Europe.

His social grace gained him an entrée to the grandest and most amusing salons; and it was while visiting the Agnelli family that Tom met the great Sicilian jeweler Fulco, Duke of Verdura, who was to become his companion and influence for many years.

Tom worked for a legion of worldwide clients, from Dame Vivien Duffield to members of the Ford dynasty and also decorated at the world famous Bordeaux vineyard Chateau Latour. Many of his clients became lifelong friends, among them the Duke and Duchess of Beaufort at Badminton, where Tom was to achieve some of his finest decorative work.

Fulco died in 1978 and soon after Tom met Claus Scheinert and they both shared their lives together at La Casella.Together they both created a paradise. Tom focused on the house and his words express his sentiment regarding the decoration. “La Casella is a distillation of everything I have learnt in my 35 years of business. It represents the essence of what I really love, without any compromises”.

The garden at La Casella, under Scheinert’s astute direction, became more structurally ambitious, lusher, and more romantic with every season and has become one of the most renowned gardens in the South of France.