Page 56 - Reside Magazine Premier Central Florida

I n the recollections of those who knew her, the late Yolanda Eleta de Fierro—
cultural patron, avid collector and lifelong lover of the arts—emerges as
the definition of a breath of fresh air. Born in Panama in 1924, she arrived
in Madrid at the end of the 1940s after her marriage to Ignacio Fierro, one
of a family of Spanish bankers and industrialists. In a country still recovering
from the ravages of the Spanish
Civil War, the beautiful Panamanian—
a cultured woman who had been educated
at Stanford University and had an open
mind and cosmopolitan lifestyle—must
have made a striking impression.
The city’s old-fashioned social elite
would have seen in Fierro a model for modern
life, one that would be ref lected in the
characterful mansion she built on Calle de
Serrano, a street long associated with luxury
stores, the Spanish upper class and some of
Spain’s finest homes. Now, a large part of the
house’s collection of furniture and objects is
coming to auction at Sotheby’s Paris in May.
Designed in 1966 by Guillermo de Roux,
a fellow Panamanian, the two-story Serrano
residence not only showcased Neo-Classical
inspiration but set the stage for a meticulously
curated interior. Collaborating closely with
De Roux, Fierro envisioned a space that
would blend elegance with functionality.
De Roux, who studied architecture at Yale,
understood how to combine classical and
modern elements to create a livable home
and space for entertaining.
He was also the person who helped
Fierro design the mansion’s interiors,
interpreting the popular Maison Jansen style,
which Fierro particularly appreciated.
The Paris-based global design firm was
founded in the late 19th century by Dutch-
born Jean-Henri Jansen, but by the 1960s
was led by the French designer Stéphane
Boudin. He garnered international acclaim
for his collaboration with Jackie Kennedy on

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