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April 8, 2013

In Residence: Marc Newson

A Fascination with Scale and Materiality Informs the Star Designer’s Home

With Salone de Mobile in Milan kicking off this week and bringing together design world VIPs, we visit the London home of one of its favorite sons, Marc Newson, in today’s second installment of our “In Residence” series, helmed by Matthew Donaldson. A space-age aesthetic dominates at casa Newson, an unlikely look for a period building but one entirely reflective of the superstar designer’s streamlined visual language. The futuristic interior gives way to mock-Victorian details such as a wood-paneled library, one of several flourishes authored by Newson’s wife, fashion stylist Charlotte Stockdale. In Australian-born Newson’s most celebrated work—cabins for Qantas Airways and the Ford O21C concept car, for example—his finely honed eye for materiality reigns supreme; here that is reflected in the marble that lines his bathroom, the massive wall of river rocks from Nova Scotia (a “big deal” to achieve, he confesses) and the composite linen that forms his giant dining table. His passion for metal is betrayed by a small display of unusual knives in the library: “I trained as a jeweler and a silversmith,” he explains. “I love the way metal is worked, and certain techniques and processes are best illustrated in objects like knives, which are, essentially, tools. They display an incredible level of ingenuity and skill.” After Taschen’s recent publication of his complete catalog of designs, Marc Newson. Works, Newson’s next projects will be a private jet interior for a member of the Qatar royal family and a fountain pen for Hermès. “What holds my attention is variety,” says the consummate aesthete.

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Spotlight

Reed Krakoff: Best of ICFF

The Coach Fashion Guru Plays Favorites at North America's Biggest Contemporary Furniture Fair

Reed Krakoff indulged his private passion for design objects at New York's annual International Contemporary Furniture Fair to curate a personal "Best of" list for NOWNESS. The Executive Creative Director of Coach, who also helms his own eponymous womenswear line, has filled his Upper East Side townhouse with museum-worthy pieces spanning Louis XVI Guildwood chairs to Ron Arad's contemporary stainless steel models. “It’s a question of, 'Is it inspiring and is it serving a function in an original and beautiful way?’” he says of his buying benchmark. With that in mind, Krakoff compiled his standouts from the trade conclave for home design.

Flat Impact by the University of Oregon
A conceptual approach but a meaningful concept. These designers are obviously engaged with the practicalities of shipping and construction. All the furniture packs flat, and it appears there’s no hardware. I like that it all looks raw; I like the integrity of that.

W101 Lamp by Claesson Koivisto Rune for Wästberg
This lamp, is made out of, what—paper? I’m not entirely sure how they’re keeping the paper from burning, with the heat of the light; there’s some kind of laminate, I guess, and the LEDs are relatively cool. But wow, I really like this.

Ply by CW Keller
This is laser-cut plywood—a material Eames pioneered—and they’re doing 3D modeling with it, which would have been unimaginable just a few years ago. This play with materials is one of the most interesting things happening in design right now.

Fresh Air Dining Chair by Richard Schultz
Even if you don’t know his name, you’ve almost certainly seen Richard Shultz's work. He designed some of the most iconic outdoor furniture, and this must be his first new collection in decades. This fresh take on the Windsor chair is great.

STEP Ladder, by Karl Malmvall for Design House
To me, this ladder speaks to the fact that good design has come to permeate the everyday. This is a useful household object—my wife has one, in fact—and it’s been executed in a fresh, appealing way.

Reclaimed Cypress & Stainless Steel Table by Amuneal
Cypress with some kind of stainless steel finish? Beautiful. The company is fantastic. I used them to make the vitrines for my store. They do incredible custom fabrications.

Zenith Chandelier by Philippe Starck for Baccarat
Starck really goes for it. Something like this is not for everyday use; it’s unapologetically special and maybe even over the top. But here’s why Starck’s a genius: black crystal is such an obvious thing to do, but he was the first person to go there.

Pendant Beat Lights by Tom Dixon
I love these lights—they're modern, yet have a timeless quality. Tom Dixon is one of the great high-low designers. He’ll do esoteric things, beautiful limited-edition work, and then he’ll turn around and make something totally accessible.

To read about the teenage innovators that made their ICFF debut with a radical rethink of classroom design, click here.

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Spotlight

Salone del Mobile: New Classics

Design Authority Laura Houseley Rounds Up The Stand-Outs From the Furniture Fair

Design critic, editor and author of The Independent Design Guide, Laura Houseley handpicked the highlights of this year’s Salone Internazionale del Mobile for today’s slideshow. Houseley has been covering the fair, which extends to over 400 locations across Milan and annually lures a who's who of furniture and product design, for 13 years. “The younger, independent designers had a good year,” she says. “Shows like those by ECAL [The University of Art and Design Lausanne] are a great example of what is achievable in contemporary design and the kind of optimism I wish I saw everywhere.” Houseley details her findings below.

Tip Ton for Vitra by Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby
The 100% recyclable Tip Ton is made from polypropylene and can be tilted forward from its normal position and locked stationary at a nine-degree incline. Until now, this forward-slanted sitting position has only been available from sophisticated and expensive office chairs.

Forward, Clothes Hanger by Staffan Holm
Wall hooks or wall installation? Talented Swedish designer Staffan Holm leaves the choice in your hands. The wall furniture is minimal and elegant, just like Holm’s other pieces.

Waft Stool by tanimatsumura
Tokyo designers Takaaki Tani and Kazunori Matsumura are behind tanimatsumura. Their stool is made from a plywood hybrid they invented, an ingenious material comprising thin layers of beech wood and aluminum that allows easy manipulation.

Osso Chair for Mattiazzi by Erwan and Ronan Bouroullec
A celebration of the tactility of wood from the hottest manufacturer around, the chair makes full use of hi-tech digital processes to produce a seamless form.

Waver for Vitra by Konstanin Grcic
Functionality is at the forefront of everything Konstantin Grcic does: inspired by paragliding and windsurfing equipment, the hardworking Waver lounge chair swivels, swings and can be used indoors or out.

Play by Decha Archjananun and Jars by Guillaume Noiseux, both for Baccarat
Students of the Master in Design and Luxury course at ECAL worked under the direction of English designers Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby to reinterpret Baccarat’s best-known piece, the 170-year-old Harcourt glass. Guillaume Noiseux produced one of the most challenging designs by turning the traditional glass into a storage jar. Decha Archjananun’s interpretation re-envisaged the hand-cut crystal as a series of children’s games.

Icon03 by Jan Plechac
Look familiar? Plechac has taken iconic chairs and realized them in their most basic graphic form, ready for outdoor use. Here, Gerrit Rietveld’s 1917 Red Blue Chair gets the treatment.

Moon Chair and Twilight Installation for Moroso by Tokujin Yoshioka
Over the past few years Yoshioka has stunned audiences with his ethereal installations; this year he gave maximum impact with minimal materials. Twilight enveloped the Moroso showroom in misty, opaque vapor, through which Yoshioka shone beams of light, while visitors sat on his newly launched Moon Chair.

Accordion Cabinet by Elisa Strozyk and Sebastian Neeb
Recent Central St. Martins and University of the Arts Berlin graduates Strozyk and Neeb have produced a wholly fresh structure; the flexible skin of the Accordion Cabinet is made from a unique combination of pleated wood and textile, giving a fluid movement whilst retaining the rigidity of a solid material.

Surface Daylight by Daniel Rybakken
Rybakken’s subtle and poetic works often play with the idea of recreating natural light. Here, Surface Daylight mimics the effect of daylight casually glancing off a wall with its combination of corian and LED lights.

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