Taste matters

As I said in last week’s column, we have barely scratched the surface as far as the subject of good versus bad taste is concerned. So let’s pick up where we left off.

A guaranteed giveaway to one’s sense of style is the artwork or collection of paintings he/she displays at home. Whether these works of art hang on walls or stand on the floor. For instance, works of a handful of local artists clutter many a home. They scream with wild colors and forms slapped on huge canvases. To my mind, such Picasso facsimiles only create chaos and clutter in one’s living room instead of giving it the needed final touch. Word has gotten around that some of these manufacturers of paintings do house-to-house selling and they’re paid on installment basis.

Somebody wrote to ask if it’s okay to hang portraits or photos of family members in a public area such as the living or dining room. I see nothing wrong with that, as long as it is as nice as an oil portrait by Federico Alcuaz or a pencil drawing by Claudio Bravo perhaps. We went to the house of a Pinoy family in New Jersey, USA and I was scandalized to find at least a dozen huge photographs of all the members of the family, dominated of course by those of the lady of the house. She defensively points out that these portraits are executed on canvas and are therefore, in her opinion, as valuable as a Vicente Manansala original.

Speaking of originals, it’s a lucky guy who had the foresight to collect earlier works of (now) famous artists during the latter’s salad days. But don’t die of envy if you cannot have the originals your friends have. Botanical prints, old maps and other replicas are as significant and can definitely perk up an otherwise nondescript room or corner.

If, as they say, a person’s fingernails are an index of his health and grooming, these horrendous paintings give the guest a loud signal as to the sort of taste the homeowner has. Such an initial impact on a first-time guest will make it difficult for him to appreciate the rest of the house, what with his prejudiced perception.

Curtains can also be a dead giveaway. One reason they’re installed is to afford a home some measure of privacy. In villages where every square meter of space is maximized, one common consequence is you may find your neighbor gawking at you from a higher floor. One sure solution to this is, of course, to put up curtains. This I admonish: the simpler, the better. Don’t insist on copying the elaborate curtains hanging in the mansion of Scarlett O’Hara in Gone with the Wind. Suffer not to be a decoration victim if you live in a tiny bungalow standing on an equally miniscule property.

Don’t judge a book by its cover. Likewise, make sure your house is not judged by its outer appearance. Because when so much borloloy is seen from the outside, the natural reaction is to expect more fireworks as one enters your home. If that curiosity is not satisfied, the guest may feel short-changed. It is wiser, therefore, if the outside is left understated in preparation for the glorious surprises waiting inside.

And now, let me give you some sound advice. Light and sound, if improperly utilized, can give people migraine. Here, subtlety is the operative word. Lighting can make or break a room. Properly distributed and ably controlled in the different areas, lighting can create an atmosphere of magic and romance. I remember making an earlier faux pas in this area when I was much younger. I gave one of those at-home dinners in a brand-new house. Weeks before the big event, I made sure every detail was perfect – or at least that was what I thought. I made sure every painting in the house was bathed with light. I was assured the distribution of the lights was idyllic. However, on the evening of the party, my good friend, the late Chona Recto Kasten, pulled me aside and whispered that I could have used less illumination since all her imagined wrinkles were being betrayed.

As I said, sound is vital, too. Just like lighting, restraint must be exercised here. The volume of music during a house dinner should allow guests to enjoy a conversation. You may have the most sophisticated Bose or Bang & Olufsen sound systems, but you will end up looking tacky if you break your guests’ eardrums with blaring music or sounds.

Now, let’s talk food. Food presentation is as important as the deliciousness of the food being served. A sophisticated hostess would instinctively know the perfect china to use to match the evening’s proposed menu. One can break conventions here provided the result is creatively original. We have seen not a few dinner tables set for dinner where the plates are laid upside down. To this day, I’m not certain as to who the culprit was. Could it have been the maids, just fresh from the barrio, or was it the señora’s idea?

Carafes and dispensers can spell the difference between a gracious and a not-so-gracious hostess. Imagine enjoying a dinner replete with all the trimmings. Then comes coffee or tea. Now, picture Lipton tea bags dumped inside cups of boiling water with the familiar string and label trailing down the saucers. Or imagine a bottle of instant coffee with its imported label intact being handed to you and the hostess telling you to help yourself.

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