Overview
The former estate of philanthropist Christel DeHaan has been reimagined as a first-of-its-kind design and hospitality destination.
The spectacular Palladian-inspired villa presents one of the largest assortments of luxury home furnishings in the world – seamlessly integrating collections from RH Interiors, contemporary, modern, and outdoor with rare art, antiques, and artifacts from across the globe.
The experience includes a dramatic lakeside restaurant, luminous wine bar, and RH Interior design studio.
RH Indianapolis, the gallery at the DeHaan estate – a magnificent 151-acre property which RH has fully opened to the public for the first time – represents the latest physical expression of the brand and the only design gallery in the region with an immersive hospitality experience, including a dramatic restaurant, wine bar, and terrace that open onto a 35-acre private lake, lush formal gardens, and vast forest landscape.
Set within a spectacular villa spanning more than 60 rooms and 42,000 square feet, this one-of-a-kind design and dining destination presents artistic installations showcasing one of the largest fully integrated assortments of luxury home furnishings, lighting, textiles, and décor in the world – with expansive spaces devoted to RH interiors, contemporary, modern, and outdoor.
Reflecting the brand’s increasing influence as a thought leader, placemaker and international arbiter of taste and style, RH Indianapolis will also include an RH interior design studio, providing an unprecedented level of professional design services.
An elegant juxtaposition of past and present, relaxed and refined, Linden House will be thoughtfully reimagined with great respect for its original vision as a prestigious private residence. Over the last decade, RH Chairman and CEO Gary Friedman has revitalized several other landmark buildings across the United States and Europe – including RH San Francisco, the gallery at the historic Bethlehem Steel Building; RH Chicago, the gallery in the historic Three Arts Club; RH Boston, the gallery at the Historic Museum of Natural History; and RH England, the gallery at the Historic Aynho Park.
Arriving to Linden House from the south, visitors will proceed down a decomposed granite drive flanked by a double linden allée that opens onto the forecourt with its oval fountain and formal gardens. Here, they will discover one of the most accurate Palladian villas ever built in the United States – a study of balance, harmony, and perfect proportions, the core pillars of the RH design ethos.
Designed in the style of 16th-century Italian renaissance architect Andrea Palladio, the monumental structure features a portico with ionic columns surmounted by a projecting pediment.
Adjoining the main house are two wings with curved loggias that form a flowing crescent to envelope the forecourt’s center fountain. Creating a rhythmic repetition of forms, the lake takes a similar shape on the north side of the villa. Barrel-shaped terracotta roofs provide a textural counterpoint to Venetian plaster sheathed limestone, while a panoply of chimney towers speak to the warmth of numerous fireplaces within.
Passing through bespoke hand-forged iron doors, visitors will first encounter an elegant, curved foyer – the opening salvo in a dramatic sequence of rooms that heighten the spatial experience with grand interior vistas. Signature stylistic elements include groin- and barrel-vaulted ceilings, low-relief pilasters, and semi-circular and shallow arches. Here, the villa’s material palette is also introduced, including floors of Italian travertine and paneled doors of solid black walnut handcrafted in Paris.
To access the beautifully appointed private rooms and suites on the upper level, guests will ascend an elliptical floating stair of stacked St. Germain French limestone. At once solid and ethereal, the elegant structure rises nearly 30 feet to culminate in a domed ceiling.
Anchoring the main house will be the dining room. Aglow in natural light emanating from a wall of soaring windows and fluted pilasters, this dramatic restaurant features a 27-foot groin vaulted ceiling, Italian Merino wool velvet banquette seating and a stunning lighting installation by acclaimed Los Angeles-based master glass designer Alison Berger. An evocation of rain, the piece is composed of 210 pendants, each a drop of blown glass that majestically cascades through the space. With French doors of solid sustainable mahogany and glass framing picturesque views of the lake, guests will enjoy a thoughtfully curated menu featuring the freshest ingredients from select sources, simply and elegantly prepared.
The menu features starters, salads, sandwiches and mains – including the RG signature grilled avocado finished with crème fraîche, chives, and a quenelle of caviar, classic 1950s-style Caesar salad and organic rotisserie chicken – as well as an elevated take on enduring favorites such as lobster rolls in toasted brioche buns with drawn butter, the RH burger, and charred ribeye steak.
In the west wing, a luminous calacatta-gold marble wine bar will serve exceptional champagnes and wines from around the world for visitors to enjoy in adjacent lounge seating or while exploring the rest of the estate, including limited production offerings from Napa Valley’s renowned small vintners.
Artistic lifestyle installations featuring RH collections by internationally renowned designers will be found throughout both the east and west wings. And in the east wing, the former billiard room will now play host to the RH interior design studio – an interactive creative space providing an unprecedented level of professional design services with a private presentation room, state-of-the-art technology, and design libraries showcasing a vast assortment of textiles, furniture, and lighting finishes.
Designed to take in transcendent countryside views, guests will find the lake terrace just north of the main house. Influenced by the great classical gardens of Europe, this immersive destination will encompass a series of intimate RH outdoor lounge spaces defined by a layered composition of parasol trees, sculptural evergreens, and French limestone fire tables. Here, the central axis that defines the estate is released at radiating steps that gently descend into the lake to create a stunning vanishing point.
The west gardens, with their rhythmic progression of geometric topiaries and chanticleer pear trees, will feature additional RH outdoor collections.
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