"A 2003 Home article followed art gallery owner Laurie Frank as she hosted one of her renowned dinner parties at her Whitley Heights home. Sixteen months later, an electrical fire nearly destroyed the house. Take a peek into the rebuilt residence, filled with handcrafted artistry."
1. Although the structure was largely rebuilt and many of the belongings inside were lost, today the house still feels infused with a deep sense of the past. Says Frank: "The history of this house means everything to me." 
2. When the front door opens, shafts of light sweep across the floor like the hands of a host welcoming guests inside. The door design, which Frank created, is echoed in other doors in the house as well as the railing on the balcony. 
3. Frank, owner of Frank Pictures Gallery, treats her home as an extension of her space at Bergamot Station in Santa Monica. The house is an art-filled wonder, with intriguing pieces such as this painting by Qingnian Tang in the stairwell connecting the main floor to the bedrooms upstairs.
4. Signed gelatin prints by the legendary Horace Bristol line a wall in the sitting area off the kitchen. The photographs date from 1932 to 1956 and circle the globe, from downtown Los Angeles to Mt. Fuji. Centered on the wall is a flat-screen TV that Frank often tunes to a black-and-white movie. The film-strip-like photograph to the far left is by Elizabeth Lennard.
5. As Frank began collecting furniture for her house, she stored pieces in her art gallery. The item that garnered the most attention: this hand-made chest, which she describes as "completely bizarre" and says is her favorite piece of furniture. Above it hangs another one of Malone Mills' prints of ethereal beauty.
6. Daddy takes a breather on the living room's hand-scraped teak floor. The painted and mirrored silhouettes on the walls are more works by Qingnian Tang from his "Life" series. The golden piece hanging to the left is by Laddie John Dill and now carries a sooty patina from the fire that lends a surprising and remarkable beauty. The light fixtures, one of Frank's budget savers, are from Pottery Barn.
7. A 2003 Home cover story followed Laurie Frank as she prepared and hosted one of her renowned dinner parties at her Whitley Heights house. Sixteen months later, an electrical fire in the kitchen led to extensive water and smoke damage that required the structure to be taken down to the studs. Here, she stands in her rebuilt dining room next to her long Guatemalan altar table, salvaged from the fire and refinished, and antique ballroom chairs. 
8. A 200-year-old carpenter's table stands as the kitchen island. On the wall: a chromogenic print by Malone Mills.
9. Frank had the salvaged Moroccan window frames and doors in storage, and after the fire she intended to use them as windows and doors in the rebuilt house. When officials from the Historic Preservation Overlay Zone nixed that plan, Frank decided to use them as cabinet and closet doors instead. 
10. Mario, the beloved bighorn sheep that has been with Frank for 20 years, came through the fire just fine -- though he's still a little smoky.
Forrás: Los Angeles Times
