“A studly, Bunyanesque figure who showed too much chest and wore an expensive watch on each wrist, Taylor denied himself nothing and thought his clients should do the same.”

The New York Times “T” Magazine ran a wonderful profile of the late great Michael Taylor this weekend, and reminded us of how much more exciting the world of interior design used to be in San Francisco.  While we do have some wonderful designers (David Kensington, Orlando Diaz-Azcuy, Ann Getty, Ken Fulk, etc..) we do have to ask where is the pizazz?

“THE PARTY ROOM that was supposed to be ready for Dede and Al Wilsey’s Christmas cocktail do last year was, at least, ready for this year’s bash Tuesday. The room was designed by the late Michael Taylor.

His kind of a party room has marble floors, a retractable glass ceiling and huge windows that frame the bay view none of us get tired of. Dede had told him she wanted a room that furniture could easily be moved in and out of - which, of course, means the Wilseys now have a 17th century Italian marble coffee table that can be moved, but it takes eight people to do it.” — San Francisco Chronicle, December 11, 1986.”

Above, a 1987 image showing a Michael Taylor design for Al and Dede Wilsey’s Pacific Heights home, as featured in the New York Times. Taylor died of AIDS in 1986, age 59.