[Watercolor Courtesy Showcase House of Design for the Arts]
It’s the last weekend you can experience the 2023 Showcase House, the Stewart House, is designed by Marston and Maybury, one of Pasadena’s most celebrated architectural partnerships.
“The Stewart House takes you back to the days of gracious architecture and quintessential showcase with over 11,000 square feet of living space sited on two acres of carefully landscaped and exquisitely manicured grounds,” a release announcing the sale of tickets said.
Featured in 1983 as the 19th Pasadena Showcase House of Design, the Steward House is revisited this year, a property stewarded by the same family for nearly 40 years, to reintroduce this “majestic estate to a new generation.”
In January, the Pasadena Showcase House for the Arts, which organizes the annual exhibit, announced Matt McIntyre as the Benefit Chair for the 58th Pasadena Showcase House of Design.
He is the first male member to serve in the position in the organization’s 75-year history.
“When asked to take on this role, I felt that it was quite an honor,” he said. “Pasadena Showcase is such a big part of the community and I want to see its continued success for many years to come.”
A member of Pasadena Showcase since 2018, McIntyre has taken on various board positions and was also part of the Benefit Leadership Team for the 2022 Showcase House. He said he is very excited to be able to present Stewart House, a 1933 grand colonial estate.
“It’s truly a quintessential Showcase House and just breathtaking in its grandeur,” McIntyre said. “The estate is iconic and the grounds are just exquisite so it’s a very compelling property.”
Approximately 32 interior and exterior designers have been selected to participate in this year’s Showcase House.
“The distinguished estate leaves a striking first impression with an expansive verdant lawn, circular driveway, and iconic portico. An elegant foyer with a Georgian staircase greets visitors upon entry, leading to a stately living room with fireplace and a bright, airy sunroom overlooking the rear gardens.”
“The entertaining space continues with an impressive gallery bar adjoining a warm paneled library as well as a formal dining room.”
The main floor includes a large butler’s pantry and morning room, an open kitchen and family room, a laundry room, and two guest bathrooms. The second floor comprises four bedrooms and three bathrooms, each with wide vistas of the grounds, and a spacious primary suite with fireplace and French doors that lead to a generous veranda.
A large guest house with recreation and media room, a four-car garage, pool, changing rooms and pool cabana, and an enclosed tennis court are part of the estate. The grounds showcase a variety of themed gardens, including an Asian garden, vegetable garden, rose garden, a children’s play garden, and a café terrace.
One of the highlights of Stewart House is the vast collection of sculptures and statues ornamenting the property.
The land was part of Lucky Baldwin’s Rancho Santa Anita in the days of the great ranchos, and later served as a flourishing orange grove. Arthur Stewart and his wife Ruth Nicholson Stewart received the land as a wedding gift from W.L. Stewart, Arthur’s father and president of Union Oil Company. They built their home at a cost of $13,000 – a large amount for a new house during the Great Depression – and lived there with their two young daughters. They led a quiet country life, with a stable and corral at the back of the property where the girls kept a horse.
Nearly a century later with detailed improvements, expansions, and magnificent landscape developments, it’s now hard to believe this estate was once the home for a quiet, country life.
For admission to the Pasadena Showcase House of Design, prime admission tickets are priced at $50, for admission between 9:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
Regular admission, at $40, is from 1:30 to 4 p.m. Happy Hour admission is $35, from 4 p.m. up to closing.
Groups of nine or more enjoy a 10-percent discount, reduced service fees, and payment flexibility. Contact the organizers to make a reservation and arrange a payment schedule.
For any questions, contact tickets@pasadenashowcase.org or call (626) 606-1600, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. seven days a week.
