On April 23, Christie’s auction house will host a sale of items from designer Michael S. Smith’s L.A. client's home, which inspired his book Building Beauty: The Alchemy of Design.

Encompassing over 500 lots, the sale will include contemporary art, English furniture, Old Master paintings, Chinese works of art, antiques and Southeast Asian art, from the remarkable private property designed by Smith that span the past 500 years.

Items up for auction, clockwise from top: Regency carved marble bust, Italian grey painted armoire, 18th century Italian walnut bench, Pair of English mahogany library armchairs.

The inspiration for the interiors, which is the subject of Smith’s book (in bookstores this May), was drawn directly from the architecture of the house, which is a contemporary Palladian-style villa, overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

A native of California, Smith studied interior design at Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles.  In 1984, he continued his studies at The Victoria and Albert Museum in London, then returned to the U.S. to work under the tutelage of legendary antiques dealer Gep Durenberger.

Since his design firm, Michael S Smith Inc, was launched in 1990, he has been named three times to Architectural Digest’s “The AD 100,” and is the recipient of the Pacific Design Center's West Week “Stars of Design.” He has been named Designer of the Year by Elle Décor as well as being named to that publication’s A-List.  He also serves on the Board of Trustees of Otis College of Art and Design and has co-chaired the American Friends of the Olympia International Fine Art and Antique Fair. In 2010, Michael was appointed by President Obama to the Committee for the Preservation of the White House.

The sale will take place live at the Christie’s Auction House in New York City, and the sale is also up for online bidding. Click here to take a look at the sale e-catalogue. For additional information, contact Christie’s.