The Decoration of Houses is the influential treatise on interior architecture written by the novelist Edith Wharton with the architect Ogden Codman Jr. Reacting against the cluttered excess of Victorian taste, the authors argue for rooms governed by proportion, symmetry, and the principles of classical architecture, treating decoration as an extension of structure rather than mere ornament.
The book helped launch a movement toward restraint and harmony in American interiors and established Wharton’s authority on matters of design before her fame as a novelist. Drawing on European precedent, it discusses walls, doors, windows, ceilings, and the disposition of rooms with clarity and conviction. It remains a foundational text of modern interior design and a window onto Wharton’s exacting aesthetic sense.