Bayou Bend was always more of an antique and art exhibit space than a home. Early 20th-century philanthropist Ima Hogg (1882–1975) worked with architect John Staub (1892–1981) on the design of a mansion to sit on a 14-acre site in Houston’s River Oaks community. It would showcase her extensive collection of primarily 17th- to 19th-century American antiques, Native American art, and works by famous painters and sculptors.
The mansion’s design reveals elements of early (1830–1860) southern plantation architecture, including essentials of neoclassical, 18th-century Georgian, and Spanish Creole style. Construction on the mansion began in 1927 and was completed the next year. Houston landscape architect Ruth London (1892–1966) designed Bayou Bend’s East Garden; the Houston-based landscape firm Fleming and Sheppard designed the Diana Garden and the north terrace.
Hogg donated the mansion, its contents, and the grounds and gardens to the Houston Museum of Fine Arts in 1957 but continued living at the estate until 1965. The principal rooms in the center of the house include the dining room, entryway, and bedrooms, which maintain the character of Hogg’s original décor. The museum currently houses collections of American furnishings, silver, ceramics, and paintings, in excess of 4,700 items.
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Deena Bouknight
Author
A 30-plus-year writer-journalist, Deena C. Bouknight works from her Western North Carolina mountain cottage and has contributed articles on food culture, travel, people, and more to local, regional, national, and international publications. She has written three novels, including the only historical fiction about the East Coast’s worst earthquake. Her website is DeenaBouknightWriting.com