'LarsenWorld' Documentary Highlights Jack Lenor Larsen And His LongHouse Reserve in East Hampton

After living in small, circular African dwellings known as Round House for several years, textile designer and landscaper Jack Lenor Larsen sought expansion and space for more art, people and light. Searching for inspiration during his many trips to Asia, he fell in love with Ise Grand Shrine in Mie, Japan. The 7th century Shinto architecture shrine became the basis for what would become Mr. Larsen’s next home, LongHouse.

The development of LongHouse, the life of Mr. Larsen and more are the subjects of “LarsenWorld: LongHouse in East Hampton,” directed by Susan Wald and Edgar Howard. After a year of production with the cooperation of Checkerboard Film Foundation, a New York-based nonprofit that documents American artists, the 23-minute documentary will premiere at Guild Hall in East Hampton on Friday, June 23.

“I’ve always been a Japanophile,” Mr. Larsen said in the documentary.

Mr. Larsen and his architect, Charles Fornberg, completed LongHouse in 1992. The result was a spacious, airy home influenced by traditional Japanese design and modernized by Mr. Larsen’s contemporary accents.

Inside his home, Mr. Larsen proudly displays his collection of furniture by Wharton Esherick, a sculptor who worked primarily with wood to create furnishings. “We have the second largest collection of Wharton Esherick here, he was a most important furniture maker in America in the 20th century,” Mr. Larsen noted.

Mr. Larsen also exhibits glass sculptures created by American artist Dale Chihuly, a longtime colleague and friend of his. A work from Mr. Chihuly’s famous “Basket” series is one of Mr. Larsen’s favorites, and he considers it the best piece he has ever done.

Extending his extensive sculpture collection to his 16-acre garden, known as LongHouse Reserve, Mr. Larsen displays works by a variety of artists such as North Haven’s Eric Fischl, whose piece “Tumbling Woman,” a sculpture he created in response to 9/11, is featured. “I chose tumbling, which is a more horizontal kind of motion and something that feels more unweighted, unanchored, uncentered,” Mr. Fischl said in the documentary.

Another artist included in the short film is Grace Knowlton, who features her large spheres constructed of piles of rod bent in circular shapes, which are then welded together and slathered in concrete.

Even Yoko Ono’s work has made an appearance at LongHouse Reserve. Her “Wish Tree” has been on display since 2007, as well as her sculpture “Play It by Trust,” a life-size chess set with a twist. “It’s a game of peace, not war; there is no distinction between one’s queen and another’s,” Mr. Larsen commented.

Among the other artists whose work is represented in the garden are Willem de Kooning, Tony Rosenthal, Bryan Hunt, Marko Remec, Ronald Bladen, Ilya and Emilia Kabakov.

Mr. Larsen has horticulturalist Alex Feleppa to assist him with maintaining the garden in a way that highlights the sculptures and architecture within it.

“The chief gardener and I make a great team. I point and he cuts,” Mr. Larsen said. “Our motto here is ‘elegance usually arrives from subtraction.’ It’s not what you add, it’s what you take away that brings out beauty.”

“LarsenWorld” also discusses how his textile work has complemented architectural designs throughout the world, such as Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, the First Unitarian Church of Rochester and Pennsylvania Kaufmann Residence Fallingwater. His textiles have enhanced the architecture of many buildings by adding color, brightness and light.

Mr. Larsen also often incorporates aspects from his garden into his textile work.

“I noticed that red leaves, maples and such, were really green at the same time,” he recalled. “Could I do that in textiles? It worked wonderfully well in both fabrics and in carpets. It had a Renaissance-like quality that I had never achieved before.”

In addition to frequent exhibitions, LongHouse Reserve provides educational programs and encourages schools to visit and tour the garden. The reserve also provides community service and internship opportunities, and hosts a Student Annual, where students who have toured the reserve can display their own works inspired by their visit. Mr. Larsen seeks to not only provide an art experience at LongHouse, but an educational one as well.

“He lives and breathes his philosophy,” said Smithsonian Design Museum director Caroline Baumann of Mr. Larsen. “People talk about Jack as a master craftsman, a master of textiles, a master collector, a master landscaper … I like to just say Jack is the master.”

“LarsenWorld: LongHouse in East Hampton” will premiere Friday, June 23, at Guild Hall at 8 p.m. followed by a conversation with Mr. Larsen, filmmakers and artists. For tickets visit give.guildhall.org