HAB ITAT
58 CHICAGO | SEPTEMBER 2019
Eventually, in 2012, the couple hired
architect Paul Florian and Goldberg
General Contracting to undertake a two-
year renovation that would touch nearly
every nook and cranny, down to the
plumbing and wiring. “Jay was skeptical
that it would work, but the final composi-
tion is amazing,” says Weber.
Now every exposed beam and cof-
fered wall or ceiling has been stripped
and refinished; each doorknob and hinge
polished or replaced. Dandy’s beloved
Nelson clocks run along the frieze of the
foyer, with its church-like ornateness.
That bearskin rug sits at last under a
glossy Steinway, and each child has
claimed one of the bedrooms.
As for the couple’s prized art collec-
tion? “We spent a year unpacking all
the art we’d been keeping in storage,”
Weber says. “It was like Christmas.” Out
came the Samantha Bittman textiles, the
gradient-painted stack of Styrofoam cups
by Tom Friedman, the William Wegman
photo, the Claes Oldenburg plaster
Vibrant colors animate the dining room, from the
playful Odegard rug to Charles Spurrier’s zany gum
and wood composition on the wall.The master bedroom doubles as a modern
art gallery, adorned with pieces like a Tom
Wesselmann silkscreen and a paintbrush
sculpture by Tom Pfannerstill.wedding cake. A George Nelson bench
and a daring red Odegard rug anchor
the master bedroom, which attaches to
a giant two-vanity bathroom — made by
repurposing two bedrooms. “I keep my
favorite objects in here,” Weber confides.
On the third floor, past a gallery wall,
are the couple’s office and archives,
where they spend much of their time.
Florian created a steel bracket to expand
the grand fireplace (one of the mansion’s
three) to match an enormous sitting nook
carved into the opposite wall. Being a
researcher, Dandy has a spot for every
book he’s collected, either on shelves
or on draft tables set beneath Roman
arches. As in the rest of the home, there’s
no overt matchy-matchiness here.
Weber has a degree in interior design,
but she describes this makeover as a
“very personal renovation, not a design-
er’s vision.” Despite its museum-like
appearance, the home is always filled
with kids or guests. “It’s a place to cel-
ebrate life.” C