The Monroes’ living room is full of family members’ art; Bernadette made the monoprints, titled The Red Water Series, above the fireplace, and their son sculpted the tall wood art piece in the far back corner. Michael, a painter and designer by training, designed the fireplace structure — built by Twisted Metalworks — to hold rectangular wooden art by Dean Pulver, a sculptor and furniture maker in New Mexico. The copper sculpture at left is Movement by Jonathon Bonner.
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A Portrait of Many Artists
Michael Monroe, director and chief curator of Bellevue Arts Museum, and his artist wife, Bernadette, treasure their relationships with family and friends as much as they treasure their art. Impressive pieces from artists—some family, some friends, some icons—line the walls and shelves of the Monroes’ 1,600-square-foot Bellevue home


Dean Pulver made the dyed walnut stools, Africa 1 and Africa 2, used for extra seating. The fertility figures on the fireplace are from India; and the rug is a 1920s kilim from Turkey.


In the upstairs hallway, the Monroes display Journey, a sculpture of twigs, papier-mâché and rocks made by Ian Monroe in his youth. Bernadette drew the black-and-white charcoal art titled Mystic Dance Series.


Even functional furniture here is art; Breakfast Table by Albert Paley is used for both formal and informal dining. Michael chose chairs by Italian designer Roberto Lazzeroni because they echo the ironwork of the table. Paley also made the three candlesticks on the windowsill, Ginkgo Leaf Candlesticks. Also on the windowsill is a porcelain pot by Thomas Hoadley, a sculpture called The Gandress by Jack Thompson and a 1910 Westminster clock. The two cups displayed on the wall are by Wesley Anderegg.


In the guest room, Michael created a wall of art and mementos. Clockwise from left: a leather M once used as a piece of letterpress type; a Victorian door plate; a sculpture of a hand, from India; a cross encrusted with ex-votos (Mexican silver prayer trinkets); another Victorian door plate; and a door knob. On the table is a music box made of the Monroes’ wedding photo. On top is their son’s The Golden Mean.


The Monroes keep more than books on their shelves. At left is Cylinder by Dale Chihuly. The book-shelves also hold two glass pieces by Dante Marioni; three wood pieces by Reverend Herman Hayes, a minister and folk carver; a framed collage by well-known textile artist Lenore Tawney; two glass goblets by Craig Zweifel; two 18th-century Russian glass goblets; a turned wooden bowl by Philip Moulthrop; and a 19th-century Chinese vase.


In the entryway sit chairs by Dean Pulver, titled African 1 and African 2, beside Demilune Candlestick by Albert Paley, on which sits a round white object by Christian Burchard. Daughter-in-law Isha Bohling made the white sculpture on the wall, Honey Creek. On the stairway wall is a ceramic plate by Peter Voulkos and on the small shelves are candlestick angels, folk art from Mexico. The yellow painting in the background is Bernadette’s Spring.
During the day, Michael Monroe curates a serious and respected museum of craft in his role as director and chief curator of Bellevue Arts Museum. After hours, he and his wife, Bernadette, curate a more playful collection for their own personal exhibit space—their Bellevue home filled with works by family and friends.

After 33 years in power-driven Washington, D.C., where Michael was director of the Renwick Gallery, the Smithsonian’s museum of contemporary American craft and design, and then three years spent in the hustle and bustle of New York City while Michael directed the Peter Joseph Gallery and then was executive director for the American Craft Council, Michael and Bernadette moved to the Seattle area in 2004. Michael came to direct and curate the Bellevue Arts Museum, but he and Bernadette also desired a scenic spot in which to enjoy their art.

Inspired by their time in tiny New York City apartments, the pair chose a 1,600-square-foot home tucked beside Bellevue Way that is half the size of their former home in Virginia. “We’re at a point in our lives when we need to simplify, simplify, simplify,” Michael says. The house is one of nine that form the AIA award–winning Avant Place, designed by Anisoglu Associates in 1987.

They loved the home’s proximity to all the amenities of downtown Bellevue, as well as the home’s next-door neighbor: a nature-filled greenbelt. However, the building needed some tweaking to make it fit their specific needs. Although most people take down walls while remodeling, the Monroes put up more walls to create defined spaces and to help display their art. One added wall closed off the dining area from the kitchen, so that they can host formal dinners. Another was added to create a separate reading room, including an office space tucked into a small closet. New hardwood floors increased the warmth and intimacy and a large window to the moss-covered greenbelt replaced a wet bar. “You need a place you can come back to and put yourself in shape,” Michael says. Sitting on the snug brown sofas in the living room, one feels hours away from Bellevue rather than the actual few minutes’ walk.

Almost all of the walls in the home are painted white or a soft gray, both evocative of a museum. “To me, color really shouts. When you live busy lifestyles, everyone shouts at you all day,” Michael says. He and his wife believe muted colors allow for a more contemplative state of mind. “We rely on nature for the color,” Bernadette adds. The only room painted a dramatic color is the red kitchen, but even there Bernadette explains that the color was chosen because red complements green on the color wheel; the red in the kitchen complements the green trees and plants visible through the window.

The house has skylights and windows that catch natural light around the clock. Michael and Bernadette especially like to watch the moon travel around the house at night, prompting them to nickname their house “the Moon Cottage.” “The artwork takes on different qualities depending on the light,” Bernadette says.

The Monroes wanted their home to reflect their lives, rich with memories and loved ones, so a graceful composition of art pieces spreads over the finished house, filling every wall and surface. “It isn’t so much that we’re collecting as much as we are creating an environment,” Michael explains. “We desire a slower, quieter point of being in the universe,” Bernadette adds.

A lot of the art was made by Bernadette, a lifelong drawer, painter and printmaker, or by the couple’s son, Ian, an artist now living in London who makes gigantic, architecturally inspired painting installations in vinyl. The Monroes’ daughter-in-law, Isha Bohling, is also an artist, and it was she who drew the caricature of Michael and Bernadette as king and queen of a domain filled with art that hangs in the master bedroom. Other pieces include work by famed glass artist Dante Marioni, metal sculptor Albert Paley and glass artist Dale Chihuly, the last two Michael has known for more than 30 years.

The couple’s domain was much larger when they lived in Virginia, so their collection was twice as large, but when they made the move to the Northwest, the Monroes edited out everything but their must-haves. Michael says that as a curator, he is always asked, “If the museum caught on fire, which piece of art would you take?” In the museum, and in this home, the question is almost impossible to answer because every day, Michael and Bernadette look at their favorites on the walls, the ones they absolutely love.

“Each house is a portrait of who lives in that house,” Michael says. Bernadette nods in agreement and says, “This is a portrait of our whole lives.”

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Anisoglu Associates, P.O. Box 10386, Bainbridge Island, (206) 256-6411