May 2, 2012 | Architecture, blog, Famous Designers, Interiors
“I have not tried to recreate a moment in history. I have quite simply thought of the kinds of furniture we want to live with at home today, pieces that are elegant and functional, comfortable, and convivial. “ ~ Jacques Garcia for Baker Furniture
French interior designer Jacques Garcia possesses a truly unique style, mixing 17th- and 18th-century references with modern influences to create a timeless interpretation of French elegance. From being an interior decorator for clients such as the Sultan of Brunei, to his high-profile re-creation of an 18th-century tea house for Ladurée on the Champs Elysées; and the design of the always relevant Hôtel Costes, his design is timeless. Jacques Garcia has renovated private and public spaces around the world, including many hotels in Paris and is one of Baker’s top designers. The NoMad Hotel is his first hotel in New York. The design draws from his private, idiosyncratic residences and is inspired by his time in Paris as a young man.
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Mar 16, 2012 | Compliments & Accessories, Famous Designers
Milan 2012 will witness the launch of ‘Luminosity’, a showcase of new lamps, lights and shades presented in a series of illuminated environments, at MOST, a festival of design, innovation and culture to be held at the Leonardo da Vinci Museum of Science and Technology in Milan.
Luminosity is an exploration of light. On a mission to illuminate and furnish the future, we aim to de-mystify preconceptions of artificial light and to educate people on the future of lighting. New Products introduced by Tom Dixon include:
Etch Web is a vast 65cm wide shade with an unusual open structure, designed to cast atmospheric angular shadows when lit. An irregular pentagon shape is repeated 60 times across the body to create a total sphere. The enormous globe is astonishingly lightweight, weighing only 980 grams, with a correspondingly ethereal visual attitude. Formed from copper anodized aluminum through a process of digital photo-acid etching, an oversized LED bulb is suspended within the center of Etch Web to make it the ultimate shadow play pendant.
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Dec 26, 2011 | Compliments & Accessories, Famous Designers, Interiors
Powerful, mysterious and seductive black is universally prized. Embraced by both kings and monks, it is in turn melancholy’s confidant and glamour defined.
Whispers, the new wallpaper collection by Marcel Wanders celebrates polarity and the art of observation.Like little secrets, soft velvet whispers sparkle upon rough textured paper offering multiple yet opposing sensations to the touch and eye. The colors are dark, the details enigmatic, only upon close inspection do the narratives come to life. This is a wallpaper for intimate spaces such as a boudoir or a private bar, and within these spaces Whispers invites you to live your wildest dreams. Your secrets are safe. Black absorbs all.Tell me a secret… whisper something… no one else knows…
I love this collection by Marcel Wanders and feel it is fairly priced considering the quality and designs, at $160 per roll, each roll is 52cm wide and 10 meters long.The collection is of 4 designs with varying colors.
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Nov 22, 2011 | Architecture, Famous Designers
These breathtaking images are none other than of the Kameha Bay Portals, a luxury resort in Mallorca Spain designed by Tec Architecture and interior designer, Marcel Wanders. Kameha Bay Portals has recently been admitted by the Leading Hotels of the World into its exclusive hotel association and is scheduled to open early 2013.
In addition to its beautiful dream-like design, the resort enjoys the highest standards of ecological sustainability and energy efficiency. The development of the Kameha Bay Portals will involve a ‘green building’, which, with its own sandy beach and access to a small bay, will blend perfectly into the natural surroundings.In accordance with the Kameha philosophy of anticipating and catering to the most diverse wishes of the guests, the Kameha Bay Portals will keep transforming its design based on the theme of the changing seasons, a design concept by Marcel Wanders.
According to Yoo, “currently planned are 64 rooms and suites between 36 and 240 m² that will extend to the main building and the beach. Spa treatments, holistic programs, and water sports are just a few of the activities one can anticipate from the Kameha Bay Portals resort.”
“Inspiring architecture by tec Architecture has met the extraordinary interior design of Marcel Wanders and in doing so has created one of the new favorite locations in Mallorca. For Sebastian Knorr, CEO of the tec Architecture architectural firm, the interplay of hotel and nature and the highest standards of ecological sustainability and energy efficiency are particularly important in the design. Because of this, the development of the Kameha Bay Portals will involve a ‘green building’, which, with its own sandy beach and access to a small bay, will blend perfectly into the natural surroundings. The investment volume amounts to 50 million Euros.
In accordance with the Kameha philosophy of anticipating guests’ wishes and catering to the most diverse wishes of the guests, the Kameha Bay Portals will keep transforming -‐ like a chameleon. Based on the theme ‘changing seasons’, the design concept by Marcel Wanders is in line with the seasons: in summer, light fabrics and bright colors dominate, while in winter warm colors have an inviting ‘cocooning’ effect.”
Info and images from: YOO
Nov 7, 2011 | Architecture, blog, Famous Designers
From Zaha Hadid Architects:
Stone Towers, named for an ancient petrified tree at the heart of this new development, comprises state of the art office facilities for a rapidly expanding city, alongside a five star hotel, serviced apartments, restaurants, bars and a central landscaped area, the ‘Delta’.
Our design mediates two distinct ‘edges’ – high speed ring road to the north and residential component to the south. Deliberately pursuing a rhythm of interlocking, yet individually differentiated building forms, static repetition is avoided and structures successfully merged within a cohesive landscape.
Ancient and contemporary Egyptian stonework is referenced on building surfaces – producing external skins that respond and change under intense sunlight thanks to the use of protrusions, recesses and voids. Both sunlight and deep shadow serve to further define Stone Towers.
North Edge buildings set a strong vertical presence in response to the ring road, forming a gentle S-curve. The skewed orientation of these buildings creates two different effects when observed driving either west or east. From one direction the louvered East Façade is more prevalent. From the other, the curving, solid pre-cast façade dominates. Additionally, the building setout creates a high degree of self shading for the more transparent east and west façades. Each building follows a similar set of rules, yet is entirely unique.
South Edge buildings, adjacent to the residential development are lower in height, seeming to emerge from the landscape as a series of ribbons. They connect to the North Edge via the ‘Delta’ – a landscaped area marked by water features, cafes, retail outlets and shaded areas, which effectively weaves the entire Stone Towers composition together.
Stone Towers
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Cairo, Egypt
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2008 – TBC
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Rooya Group
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Design
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179,970m2
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Retail: 20,813m²
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North Office Buildings: 226,163m²
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South Office Buildings: 231,134m²
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Hotel: 85,500m²
Set between ring road and residential area, Stone Towers avoids the monolithic repetition of static building masses – comprising higher structures, articulated through a series of ‘ripples’ to create North Edge Buildings and lower, softer ‘ribbons’ at South Edge Buildings – a central, outdoor landscape, the ‘Delta’ fusing these key elements.
ZHA
Oct 28, 2011 | blog, Famous Designers, Kitchen Design
Karim Rashid designed a new unusual kitchen island concept inspired by the oriental art of folding paper. The shape is sculptural and looks like its just there for display. But since it is made entirely of DuPont Corian, it is functional as well. It manufactured by the Egyptian producer Amr Helmy.
Its base can expand into a large worktop, which is divided into three zones: the cleaning area with an integrated sink, the cooking zone, and a snack area. Moreover, the island comes with a large wall cabinet with plenty of storage space.
Gotta love it …
