When completed in 1926, the Filoli Ballroom was the final flourish of the House. Letters and telegrams had been flying back and forth for two years between Agnes Bourn and artist Ernest Peixotto as they mused over the marble mantle, the crystal chandeliers, the perfect shade of green, and the monumental scenes of the Bourns’ Irish estate at Muckross that Peixotto would paint for the walls. When their vision finally came to life, the Ballroom sparkled under the glow of electric candles – the light reflecting off crystal, gilt, and marble decor.
Nearly a hundred years later, the once-gleaming room was dingy, damaged, and covered in a fine layer of soot. The evidence of a century’s worth of revelry! It was up to Filoli’s Collections team to take on the estate’s most significant restoration project to date.
“You have caught the most wonderful part of that wonderful bit of the world, the sky.”
—Agnes, in a 1925 letter to Ernest Peixotto, admiring the freshly completed Muckross canvases
After months of careful assessment, Filoli’s Ballroom was a hive of activity during the summer of 2024 as conservators from Oakland’s Preservation Arts worked from the floor to the ceiling. Such a major restoration would never have been possible without the generosity and passion of our donors.
Your support allowed us to:
- Repair the cracking plaster in the crown molding
- Refresh the walls with a new coat of their unique blue-green paint
- Repair and restore the marble trompe-l’oeil baseboards
- Re-gild the 24-karat gold leaf trim
- Clean and restore the enormous Peixotto wall canvases
- Remove the soot and tarnish from the marble fireplace and its bronze accents
Filoli was shaped by Agnes’s vision, and this ambitious preservation project honors her legacy by returning the Ballroom to its original splendor. Thanks to our donors, including a very generous donation from The Wollenberg Foundation, Filoli will continue to inspire future generations through the joy of music and gathering in this exquisite space. Under careful stewardship, the many resources invested in the Ballroom in 2024 will continue to have an impact for the next hundred years.
Did You Know?
A surprising historic detail was hidden under the yellowed varnish of the baseboards. Beneath the weathered layers, a signature was revealed. One of the original artists had left their mark, disguised within the veins of the faux marble!