Majorca [antikvár]

The Balearic Islands are easily overlooked on a Enropean map - you may have to spend a little lime searching for them. Yet these small islands share an impressively strong identity, and each one can also claim a distinctive character of its own. This is due as much to the islanders themselves as to the great number of immigrants from the Spanish mainland and all over the world. In general, those who have chosen to live here are not Robinson Crusoes who have just drifted ashore by accident. Mostly they are well-traveled, cosmopolitan people who have consciously decided to set down their suitcases and create their own private paradise. This was confirmed for me when I headed back to Ibiza two years ago, having not been there for more than twenty years. My friend Bruno Reymond, who had successfully switched from "gray Paris to the sunny islands," invited me to stay and managed to convince me that here, there was enough rich material for a book. He was right. The owners of the houses in this book, many of whom have dared to break away from lives elsewhere, are a fascinating group. They seem to feel free to live out their fantasies through their homes, whether they have restored an old building, had a new house designed, or even built one with their own hands. These very personal homes freely mix possessions gathered from many far-flung places: furniture bought on trips to Asia, India, Cuba, or North Africa; local crafts and antiques; and ethnic items from the local hippie mai-kels. As the end product of many style decisions, these homes reveal much about their owners' true nature. Often their beauty results more from an abundance of creative energy than a huge amount of money. Finally, please note that the pictures in this book reflect real-life situations; I have certainly not attempted to improve upon reality by using stylists or larger-than-life flower compositions. I'm very grateful to have been able to both photograph and enjoy these "private worlds."