GATSBY is in the house; a look at Chez Jay.

Gatsby's mansion was inspired by Long Island's majestic estates

Update -1/23/2014: Now that Catherine Martin has received an Oscar nomination for both the costume and production designs for last year's Great Gatsby, I'm republishing this post as a mini-refresher course on why the work deserved the recognition. This piece was originally published on 4/3/2013.

Oh, Wow! Architectural Digest has an article on GATSBY, including gorgeous images of the extraordinary sets designed by Baz Luhrman's wife and long-time collaborator, production and costume designer, Catherine Martin. According to AD, Martin's designs for the residence were based on the great early-20th-century houses of Long Island’s North Shore—places like Oheka Castle, La Selva, and Beacon Towers. While GATSBY was shot in Australia, Martin and Luhrman toured Long Island's Gold Coast for inspiration.

 

Beacon Towers, Long Island

Oheka Castle

“Looking at images of Beacon Towers, there’s something that gives it the feel of the Disneyland castle, and Baz referenced that—the idea that Gatsby was building a fantasy,” Martin says.

St Patrick's Seminary, Manly, Australia

Adding ivy

For the exterior shots of Gatsby's estate, I wanted to show you how how Martin transformed the former St. Patrick’s Seminary in Sydney, a stunning example of Gothic revival, into the dazzling Gatsby mansion. I found the two above images, which aren't part of the AD article to show you. As you can see the roof line of the real structure (Above, left) is completely different from the final -and dazzling - cinematic image shown at the top of the page.  AD reports that those stunning Disney-esque turrets were added digitally while fake ivy was actually applied to the first two floors.  In the image (Above, right), a crew member works from a crane, doing just that.
Did you notice the fountain in front of Gatsby's place?  It doesn't exist in front of St. Patrick's
and was constructed in the courtyard for the film. I don't see the palm trees in 'real life' at all; they may have been physically removed unless the effect was done digitally; hard to say at this point.

You can check out the entire article here  

Don't you love Daisy and Tom's sitting room? It's a cross between European Deco and Hollywood Regency. That gorgeous rug is one of a series of deco inspired rugs designed by Catherine Martin for the film; apparently the talented designer is well known in Australia for her rug and wallpaper designs.
Her collection, CM Deco Rug Collection, in collaboration with
Designer Rugs is due out June 6th.

You can see all the designs at Martin's web site talk about brilliant cross-merchandising!

I'll be cross-posting this to my Gonzo for Gatsby page where I'm gathering all the GATSBY goodies I can find; including an upcoming look at the costumes coming out of the collaboration between Prada and Martin.
That's Martin (L)standing in front of one of her wallpaper designs.
If you want to check out the original inspiration up close and in person, visit Discover Long Island; you can even request a free travel guide to start planning your trip.