Collection Inspiration
The alluring combination of old Hollywood history and my obsession with this by-gone property is the inspiration for the candle series.

In 1919, the property was acquired by Russian born silent screen actress Alla Nazimova as her residence. Alla was known as the star of the film Thousand Moods! With the arrival on scene of sound technology, Alla knew that the era of silent movies was a wrap; she also knew that with her heavy Ukrainian accent that her days on the silver screen were numbered. With forward-thinking business savvy, she took every penny in her possession and transformed her palatial home into a hotel by adding 25 villas on the grounds. Alla launched the go-to hotel for entertainers in 1926!

Known as The Garden of Allah, it was located at the intersection of Sunset & Crescent Heights Boulevards. For artists and entertainers looking for a place that always had a party…the search was over. A locale for excess and those seeking Hollywood connections, folklore has it that you could see Marlene Dietrich swimming al naturelle every time she stayed there.

In the late 1920s on a typical day at the hotel, you may have seen F. Scott Fitzgerald at a corner table scribbling notes for his latest literary masterpiece, or you might catch a glimpse of Greta Garbo walking to her favorite garden villa, and Humphrey Bogart might have been perched on his favorite bar stool sipping scotch. The stories go on and on…until the hotel was demolished to put up a strip mall a few decades later.

The Rotating Vessels in the CollectionThe various rotating vessels that I source for my salute to this historic hotel are reminiscent of the eclectic candle holders that were used in the hotel’s lounge during its heyday!