This property, Four Fountains, has a very interesting history. It was built as an arts center by Lucien Tyng and wife Ethel in 1928. Houses of the Hamptons says, “Peabody, Wilson & Brown designed this unusual compound, which the Tyngs offered to the community as a venue for art exhibits, concerts, films, and fundraisers, as well as for performances by the Hamptons Players.” That’s why it has a living room that’s 40′ by 40′ with a 20′ ceiling–it was used as a theater and gallery. Later, the house was owned by Archibald Brown, the architect who designed it, and wife Eleanor Brown, who headed the legendary decorators McMillan. Speaking of legendary designers, Sister Parish decorated the house when it was owned by William Paley of CBS and his well-known socialite wife Babe. The house has been owned by Bruce Bockmann, a former managing director of Morgan Stanley, and his wife for the past twentysomething years. It’s repped by Tim Davis at Corcoran.
The compound, set on 6.7 acres, includes a main house, caretaker cottage, greenhouse, garages, pool with pool house and its own pond. There are ten bedrooms and eight baths in all, with 9000 square feet of space. The beautiful grounds were landscaped by the famous mid-20th century garden designer Russell Page, and are still a favorite stop on garden tours. (We absolutely love the rill, below.)
As for the price, we don’t know. The property was marketed in fall 2015 asking $35 million. Now it’s spring 2018 and the ask is….$35 million. This is striking us as high, especially given the fussy, old school Park-Avenue type interiors. Young masters of the universe don’t want French furniture and Chippendale mirrors. If staged with midcentury and contemporary looks, the property would be more likely to sell, we think. What say you?
For more, click here. 660 Halsey Neck Lane, Southampton
