The villa ''Le Trident'' is a

Modernist Modernism is both a philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new forms of art, philosophy, an ...

villa built by the American architect

Barry Dierks Barry Dierks (1899 – February 20, 1960) was an American architect of the Modernist movement. He was active in France, principally on the French Riviera from 1925 to the 1950s. Biography Son of W. C. Dierks, managing director of C. C. Mellor pi ...

(1899-1960) for himself and his partner, Colonel Eric Sawyer on the ''pointe de l’Esquillon'' in

Théoule-sur-Mer Théoule-sur-Mer (; Occitan: ''Teula de Mar'' or simply ''Teula''), popularly known as Théoule, is a resort village in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. It lies to the east of the ...

Alpes-Maritimes Alpes-Maritimes (; oc, Aups Maritims; it, Alpi Marittime, "Maritime Alps") is a department of France located in the country's southeast corner, on the Italian border and Mediterranean coast. Part of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, it ...

on the

French Riviera The French Riviera (known in French as the ; oc, Còsta d'Azur ; literal translation " Azure Coast") is the Mediterranean coastline of the southeast corner of France. There is no official boundary, but it is usually considered to extend fro ...

. From the moment of its creation in 1925, this villa aroused the interest of cultivated Riviera society, which was searching for new talent. In a few years, Dierks became one of the most sought-after architects on the

Riviera ''Riviera'' () is an Italian word which means "coastline", ultimately derived from Latin , through Ligurian . It came to be applied as a proper name to the coast of Liguria, in the form ''Riviera ligure'', then shortened in English. The two areas ...

, where he built his reputation. The guestbook of the villa includes such dignitaries of Riviera society as

Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...

Somerset Maugham William Somerset Maugham ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German un ...

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...

and the

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

and

Duchess of Windsor Wallis, Duchess of Windsor (born Bessie Wallis Warfield, later Simpson; June 19, 1896 – April 24, 1986), was an American socialite and wife of the former King Edward VIII. Their intention to marry and her status as a divorcée caused a ...

History

In 1925, the 26-year-old Dierks and his partner, Eric Sawyer (banker and ex-officer in the British army) decided to move to the South of France. Their choice brought them to the

, a decision justified by Dierks’ profession and the growing construction demands by rich Americans in this region. At

, in the

, they discovered an isolated site on a small peninsula on the ''pointe de l’Esquillon'' with an inaccessible cove and private beach. This promontory on the sea provided a view that extended to the Bay of Cannes, the

Massif de l'Esterel The Massif de l'Esterel (Occitan Provençal: ''Esterèu''; English: Esterel Massif) is a Mediterranean coastal mountain range in the departments of Var and Alpes-Maritimes on the French Riviera. Neighbouring cities are Mandelieu-la-Napoule and ...

, and ''cap Roux''; to the south, the view extended to

Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...

. Dierks, who had solid training in architecture and belonged to that generation of designers who adhered to the

movement,François Fray, conservateur du patrimoine, "La clientèle de l’architecte Barry Dierks sur la Côte d’Azur", in ''Situ, revue des patrimoines'', n°4, ministère de la Culture, mars 2004
read on line
(page consulted April 29, 2011) built the villa in this style, which

later characterized as "impossibly beautiful".Elizabeth Stribling, ''One of the Riviera’s most outstanding waterfront properties'', sales announcement on stribling.co
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(page consulted April 29, 2011) ''Le Trident'' became both his residence and studio as well as the best example of his work. Being well accepted by Riviera society, Dierks and his partner, who lived openly together, became “the darlings of the Riviera”Peter Conradi, "The ritzy Villa Le Trident", ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'', 6 July 2008
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(page consulted April 29, 2011) and received many commissions. Today, there are 102 listed constructions by Dierks’ for clients ranging from

Paul-Louis Weiller Paul-Louis Weiller (September 29, 1893, Paris - December 6, 1993, Geneva) was a French industrialist and philanthropist. Biography From a Jewish Alsatian family, Weiller was the son of the industrialist and politician Lazare Weiller (1858–1928 ...

to the

marquess of Cholmondeley Marquess of Cholmondeley ( ) is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1815 for George Cholmondeley, 4th Earl of Cholmondeley. History The Cholmondeley family descends from William le Belward (or de Belward), the f ...

, and from

Louis II, Prince of Monaco Louis II (Louis Honoré Charles Antoine Grimaldi; 12 July 1870 – 9 May 1949) was Prince of Monaco from 26 June 1922 to 9 May 1949. Early years Born in Baden-Baden, (Germany), he was the only child of Albert I, Prince of Monaco (1848–1922), a ...

Maxine Elliott Maxine Elliott (February 5, 1868 – March 5, 1940) was an American actress and businesswoman. Early life Born Jessie Dermott on February 5, 1868, to Thomas Dermott, a sea captain and Adelaide Hill Dermott, she had a younger sister, actress G ...

and General Catroux. Most of his clients became his friends and were frequent guests at ''Le Trident''. In 1956, Dierks’ leg was amputated following an illness. He died on February 20, 1960, with Eric Sawyer surviving him until 1985. Sawyer bequeathed the villa to his nephew, whose children put the property up for sale in 2008 for a price of .

Description

The villa was designed to follow the topography of the land with the house being accessed by some thirty steps below street level. The entry is on the same level as the bedrooms; the reception rooms and terraces are located on the level below. According to François Fray, cultural curator, most of the houses designed by Dierks followed this schema. ''Le Trident'' features façades of white

intonaco Intonaco is an Italian term for the final, very thin layer of plaster on which a fresco is painted. The plaster is painted while still wet, in order to allow the pigment to penetrate into the intonaco itself. An earlier layer, called arriccio, is ...

and roof terraces. Besides the salon, the dining room, loggia, and service areas there are seven bedrooms and five bathrooms that combine to create a living area of . Several pieces of furniture were designed by Dierks that include bookcases and a large table covered with

shagreen Shagreen is a type of rawhide consisting of rough untanned skin, historically from a horse's or onager's back, or from shark or ray. Etymology The word derives from the French ''chagrin'' and is related to Italian ''zigrino'' and Venetian '' ...

Protection

The villa ''Le Trident'' is located at 8 impasse Renoire in

. The structure receives no protection under the ''Monument historique de France'' nor is it listed in the Inventaire général du patrimoine culturel (official listing of heritage sites in France).

History

Description

Protection

Notes and references

See also