trends | interiors magazine panel discussion | design san francisco 2015

new wave:  new design ideas

michael wollaeger, the editorial director of one of my favorite shelter publications, interiors magazine, moderated a panel discussion co-hosted by the de sousa hughes showroom during design san francisco at the san francisco design center (sfdc) from february 4-6, 2015. 

 michael wollaeger | editorial director | interiors magazine
interiors magazine | february/march 2015
photo credits facebook | michael wollaeger and interiors magazine

the panelists, all contemporary furnishings designers, included:

 ted boerner | ted boerner, inc. | san francisco, CA
photo credit sellinginteriordesign.com 

 deirdre jordan | troscan design + furnishings | chicago, IL
photo credit chicagobusiness.com

mark albrecht | mark albrecht studio | new york, NY
photo credit michael appleton | new york times

 james magni | magni home collection | los angeles, CA
photo credit (c) james magni | amazon.com

here's the gist of the conversation...

michael wollaeger:

Q:  how are you influenced by design trends?

A:  not at all!  

     my furniture designs reflect:

     ted boerner:  my [creative] voice

     deirdre jordan:  authenticity

     mark albrecht:  circumstance and context

     james magni:  my design philosophy

      it's about:

     james magni:  hand craftsmanship and quality

deirdre jordan:  'the story'
clients want to 'meet the maker'

it's like 'farm to table' furniture

mark albrecht:  'handmade' is both branding and marketing

ted boerner | thicket oval coffee table

photo credit de sousa hughes

magni home collection | colette table

photo credit magni home collection

michael wollaeger: 

Q:  is design international?

A:  yes, and no.

deirdre jordan:  design is about the material, the process, and the craft

like in japan or the nordic countries

mark albrecht:  design is about scale

in paris, i feel like a spot...

in new york, i feel like a speck!

ted boerner:  excitement for design is international

like at the salone internazionale del mobile, [the annual furniture fair] in milan, italy

james magni:  i think that design is regional

troscan | tara coffee table
photo credit troscan design + furnishings

magni home collection | jewel side table
photo credit designawards.wordpress.com

michael wollaeger:

Q:  is customization important?

A:  very important! 

deirdre jordan:  custom furnishings are design problems to solve

mark albrecht:  custom furnishings combine challenge, context, and editing 

i'm okay leaving my comfort zone

but sometimes, a client's requests are not a good fit [for my design studio]

james magni:  we design interiors, and our product line, plus custom furnishings

ted boerner:  sometimes, custom furnishings become line extensions

troscan | edmund credenza
photo credit troscan design + furnishings


mark albrecht studio | hardwood credenza
photo credit mark albrecht studio

michael wollaeger:

Q:  how does culture inform design?

A:  it does, and it doesn't.

james magni:  art influences design 

first, art influences architecture

then, fashion

and finally, design

ted boerner:  i look at how people engage with each other

and, how i can enhance their interaction

mark albrecht:  i look at everything!

deirdre jordan:  design is about solving problems

i look at materials and processes [instead of culture]

what a material might or can do

how to bring out the best qualities of a material

mark albrecht studio | lounge chair

photo credit mark albrecht studio

ted boerner | lex club chair

photo credit san francisco design center (sfdc)

michael wollaeger:

Q:  how does the internet, digital media, and social media influence your designs?

A:  not very much.

mark albrecht:  it's overwelming!

but, i email cellphone photos

deirdre jordan:  there's too much information

but, i have a [private] pinterest board

james magni:  i'm not very involved

but, my team is involved

ted boerner:  i create my own screens

troscan | helene dining table

photo credit troscan design + furnishings

mark albrecht studio | wood dining table
photo credit mark albrecht studio

michael wollaeger:

Q:  who or what in the design world do you like or dislike?

A:  we like innovators.

ted boerner:  i like [spanish artist-designer] jaime hayon

deirdre jordan:  i like [lighting designer] jonathan browning

mark albrecht:  i like electric cars

james magni:  i like designers vs. retailers

magni home collection | jewel II dining table
photo credit magni home collection

mark albrecht studio | eclipse light | steel dining table | side chairs
photo credit mark albrecht studio

are you an innovator?

interior design | 2014 san francisco decorator showcase

there is usually a showstopper room at the san francisco decorator showcase.

last year, it was the living room by catherine kwong design,

with a cy twombly like floor.

living room | catherine kwong design | 2013 san francisco decorator showcase

living room floor | painted by stancil studios | 2013 san francisco decorator showcase

cy twombly (1928-2011) | untitled | acrylic on canvas | 2006 | sotheby's new york | contemporary art evening auction | 14 may 2014 | lot 41

 photo credits bess friday, bess friday, and sotheby's

this year, it's the master bedroom by antonio martins interior design, 

who paneled the bedroom in blue and white portugese tiles, called azulejos.

master bedroom | antonio martins interior design | 2014 san francisco decorator showcase

photo credit drew kelly

martins, who was born in portugal, grew up in brazil, and now works in san francisco and lisbon, re-imagined the traditional tiles as contemporary art.  

one of martins' relatives loaned the 17th century portugese bilros bed to him for the showcase.  martins imported the family heirloom to san francisco and had it restored.  another relative assisted martins by taking photographs of the portugese tile collection at the museu nacional do azulejo (MNAz) in lisbon.

photographs taken by martins' relative at the museu nacional do azulejo (MNAz) in lisbon

photo credits lisa walsh | innerspace

martins collaborated with decorative artists linda horning and katherine jacobus, who painted the 243 masonite wall panels for the bedroom from the museu nacional do azulejo photographs.

they took some artistic license.  to modernize the azulejos, they increased the size of the 4"x4" tiles to 24"x24" panels.
 
but, they wanted the 24"x24" panels to appear authentic.  so, they applied a crackled finish on the panels to replicate the crackled glaze on the tiles.  and, they painted the scenic panels in sequence, so that the panels would seem historically accurate.

master bedroom azulejos wall panels | painted by linda horning and katherine jacobus | 2014 san francisco decorator showcase
photo credits lisa walsh | innerspace

martins deconstructed the scenic panels, then reconfigured them, and installed them on the bedroom walls.

'i love the use of traditional design and techniques in a whole new way.'

-antonio martins

interior designer antonio martins
photo credit drew kelly

the deconstructed panels of azulejos could be compared to contemporary art.

photo credit drew kelly
 

eduardo nery | vibracao I | 1987 | artist's loan | museu nacional do azulejo | lisbon, portugal
 photo credit lisa walsh | innerspace

and, the bedroom could be compared to a contemporary art gallery.

not only are the floors and ceiling painted white.
but, each corner also contains a sculptural composition.

antonio martins | rope sculpture
braided from 200 pounds of italian jute 
photo credit lisa walsh | innerspace

tokujin yoshioka for driade | tokyo pop polyethelene chaise longue | 2003 | coup d'etat | san francisco CA

photo credit lisa walsh | innerspace

 photo credit drew kelly

the wall panels and the window coverings are so well coordinated that the fabric looks like it could have been hand painted by horning and jacobus.

window covering fabric | telefina | rhett cotton and silk | #90 oxford blue

photo credit lisa walsh | innerspace

the bed is framed by contemporary furniture.

vintage john dickinson african side tables at the head...
and, folding stools in the style of poul kjaerholm at the foot...

 john dickinson | african series plaster side table | circa 1975 | coup d'etat | san francisco CA

john dickinson | african series plaster side table

photo credits lisa walsh | innerspace and drew kelly

formations | x-ottomans | shears and window | san francisco CA

photo credit drew kelly

a contemporary brass sideboard, which acts as a vitrine for blue and white porcelain vessels, is the focal point of the opposing wall. 

scala luxury | spider sideboard | coup d'etat | san francisco CA
 photo credit lisa walsh | innerspace

when i visited lisbon in 2004, i thought that some of the contemporary azulejos at the museu nacional do azulejo (MNAz) were as outstanding as some of the historic tiles.

the MNAz owns the largest portugese tile collection in the world.  so globally, it is considered one of the most important ceramics museums.

highlights of the MNAz collection include a panoramic scene of lisbon prior to the earthquake that devastated the city in 1755.

photo credit vuelaviajes.com

 

grande vista de lisboa | museu nacional do azulejo | lisbon, portugal

photo credits museu nacional do azulejo

which do you prefer?  historic or contemporary azulejos?

paolo ferreira (1911-1999) | lisbonne aux mille couleurs | 1937 | museu nacional do azulejo | lisbon, portugal

shown at the portugese pavillion at the 1937 paris international exhibition

photo credit jose pessos

___________________________________________________________________

some more information about azulejos:
the word azulejo is derived from the arabic word الزليج (az-zulayj): zellig, which means polished stone.

azulejos are square ceramic tiles, which are decorated on one side, often with tin glaze.  tin glaze is a lead glaze with tin oxide added to make it opaque.  tin glaze does not run when fired, so tin oxide is also a pigment stabilizer.

azulejos have been used as a traditional component of portugese architecture since about 1500, when king manuel I (1469-1521) imported tile from the mujedar workshops in seville, spain to decorate his palace in sintra, portugal.  seville became a tile manufacturing center under moorish rule between the 8th and the 13th centuries.  in portugal, azulejos have been used as an ornamental or functional building material on the interior or exterior of public or private buildings since then.
 
in addition to the influences of hispano-moorish geometric tile, other stylistic influences include italian polychrome majolica, and dutch blue and white delft ware.

geometric azulejos | sala dos arabes | circa 1503 | palacio nacional de sintra | sintra, portugal
photo credit maria julia laginha

 polychrome azulejos | circa 1670 | palacio dos marqueses de fronteira | lisbon, portugal
photo credit lisa walsh | innerspace

blue and white azulejos | circa 1670 | palacio dos marqueses de fronteira | lisbon, portugal
photo credit lisa walsh | innerspace

azulejos patterns followed historical design trends.

moorish...
gothic, renaissance, mannerism...
grotesques...
allegorical, mythological, or religious scenes...
figurative panels...
vases of flowers...

bucolic, mythological, satirical, hunting, or war scenes...

rococo, neoclassical...

ecclecticism, modernism...

abstract, contemporary.

the late 17th and early 18th centuries are considered the 'golden age' of azulejos.

the palacio dos marqueses de fronteira in lisbon contains one of the most important collections of azulejos from the 'golden age'.  the michelin green guide describes the quality and the variety of the azulejos at the palacio dos marqueses de fronteira as 'outstanding.'

i thought that the azulejos at the palacio dos marqueses de fronteira were showstoppers, too.

references: 
 the art of azulejo in portugal exhibition catalog | instituto camoes
museu nacional do azulejo (MNAz) 
palacio dos marqueses de fronteira