A passion for plasterwork

No 631, Llangyfelach Road, Swansea The home of Royston Jones and Fiona Gray An unassuming house reveals a marvellous and unexpected secret. John Goodall enjoys a rich collection of neo-Classical decorative plasterwork lovingly created by the present owners

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THE frontage of a terraced house can be a deceptive thing. From the outside, No 631, Llangyfelach Road on the outskirts of Swansea, built in 1910, is not a house that would naturally catch the eye (Fig 8). It is built of brick, two storeys high and two window bays wide, with a low-pitched slate roof. The upper floor is pebbledashed and the window frames are of plastic. Step through the front door, however, and any expectations you may have had will evaporate in amazement and delight.

Inside is a whole series of ornate neo-Classical interiors executed in proportion to the spaces, which is to say somewhere between rooms on the grand scale and a dolls’ house. Imagine yourself, perhaps, as Gulliver stepping into Belfaborac, the palace of the Emperor of Lilliput. These remarkable interiors are the creation of the owners of the house, Royston Jones and Fiona Gray, and they reflect a shared enthusiasm for—and a deep knowledge of—the architecture and decorative art of late-18th-century England.

Mr Jones's lifelong enthusiasm for architecture is derived from his connection to some of the grand estates in west Wales. His own childhood, however, was spent in Suffolk and, as a foster child, he spent a great deal of time at Heveningham Hall. This fired a particular enthusiasm for the work of George III's favourite architect, James Wyatt and, over time, he has amassed an archive on the superlative interiors of the house. After studying art at Lowestoft, Mr Jones moved to the London College of Fashion. There, he fell seriously ill and it was during his recovery that he began his much more academic research into architecture and made his first models. Later, he met Miss Gray, to whose organisational abilities and emotional support he attributes all his success.