Giving flat surfaces an "architectonic" treatment has long been a fascination with designers, and the newest line by Graham & Brown, Shape & Form, has accomplished this beautifully. The collection of wallpapers has a variety of "slights of hand" that provide textural interest, including geometric shapes, optical illusions and natural forms: each exploring the way light and shadow interact to affect perceptions. High gloss finishes, metallic sheens and tone-on-tone combinations lend extra heft to the interest these wall coverings contribute to a room. Shown, above, is Ephemeral in plum, and, below, Checker in white.

  by Saxon Henry Miami Beach-based realtor Gary Hennes has a genius for eclecticism that makes any interior space he occupies standout. His home on the beach is a light-filled space full of treasures that he has collected over the years with an eye to quality and a knack for snagging pieces for a steal. “I love beautiful objects,” he says. “I’ve always loved form.” At his own admission, Hennes gets it honest, as his mother made an art of making an eclectic home “read” like a highly sophisticated environment where grown-ups lived and kids learned the discipline of nesting in style. “For mom, everything was about presentation, even when she cooked,” he explains. This penchant for packaging had its foibles. “More than once, I came home from school and the whole house was rearranged!” he quips. The lessons in eclecticism began when his mother inherited cherished family heirlooms, which the late mid-century-style home they occupied didn’t welcome easily. A young Hennes watched as she made everything relate seamlessly. “I don’t think your eye plays tricks on you when you see environments that work and those that don’t work,” he says. “You have to trust your sense of style and let it guide you.” The stylish environment he has created in his own home is all the more surprising given his ability to ferret out items with pedigree at a fraction of the weighty cost many collectors plunk down for vintage furniture. “I definitely like what most people would call ‘the find,’” he explains, “but creating successful interiors is as much about editing as it is about what is contained in each space.”  Recently, Hennes turned his attention to his office by incorporating a walled-off double-height volume adjacent to the original one-story space and adding architecturally interesting detailing. Then he brought vintage finds into the spaces to lend the rooms cosmopolitan warmth. For those who think any renovation is highly costly, he accomplished the update on a reasonable budget. Hennes sees the office as an extension of his residence, and he notes that since he spends more time at work than at home, he saw the importance of making the intimately-scaled space as personable as possible. “This was an opportunity for me to be expressive,” he says. “I’m a good observer and I enjoy using the ideas I’ve gleaned in my own spaces.” His advice for someone wanting to collect: “Have fun with the hunt. The satisfaction is in finding things that speak to you.” Don’t be afraid to experiment, either, he says. “I sometimes see interiors I’ve created a couple of years after the fact and I think, ‘OMG’!” This is normal, he believes, as perspectives shift over time and a sense of style is an ever-evolving process. Patience is also a crowning virtue when searching for good-looking furnishings. “For the evolving person, collecting and nesting are ongoing pursuits,” he explains. “These activities are never finished until the day you die.” Lastly, use your instincts when you see a piece of furniture, an accessory or a piece of art that speaks to you. “I’ve brought things home that I had no idea where they would fit,” he remarks. “It’s why I have a garage, which is where things go until I know exactly where they go!” When it comes to favorite designers, he prefers to emulate people who have lived design rather than those who have studied it. “I live in a glass house so everything is seen from the outside,” he says. “As soon as I pull my car into the driveway, my home and everything in it welcomes me. That, to me, is the sign of a well designed, highly personal space.”  One classic Hennes anecdote is a good one to take away in terms of thinking through purchases before you put the money on the table, even if the price is a steal. “When the owners were selling off the contents of the Revere Hotel because Gianni Versace was demolishing it to make room for his pool,” he explains. “I bought the sectional sofa that had been in the lobby. It was white vinyl and filled with soot. I don’t know how many bottles of Windex I went through trying to get it clean!” Had he taken the time to “kick the tires,” so to speak, that sectional might have been someone else’s prize. “That was one hell of an uncomfortable sofa!” In the world according to Hennes, this is all in a life’s work. “I live to learn,” he says. “If you love where you’re living, changing your spaces an infinite number of times isn’t unsettling, it’s incredibly satisfying. As a matter of fact, talking about this is making me want to go home and rearrange my furniture tonight!” See other images of Hennes' office here.

             by Saxon Henry So many empty condos, so little time! This caveat served as designer Tui Pranich’s cue to opportunity. His business partner Jason Atkins was looking for a furnished apartment to rent and the offerings were so dire that they made haste and founded Tui Lifestyle. “We can furnish a condo in 72 hours,” says Pranich. “Our packages include everything from custom designed furniture to lamps, picture frames and ironing boards.” Packages range from $14,999 to $50,000.   The rampant rise of condos was also Sam Robin’s inspiration for her Ready to Wear line of furniture, created with Francesco Caracciolo di Marano. “We knew that we could combine great style and affordability,” says Robin, who can supply pieces in this line, which cost between $200 and $5,000, in about three months. When the condo market went schizophrenic, trendsetting designer Jorge Rosso of Studio Rosso Ubarri created Home Therapy. “So many people were asking me how to achieve high design on a minimal budget that I started a service for people who have good things that simply need editing or who need design advice,” he says. A full day of therapy will cost you $1,200. See other design stories by Saxon Henry.

by Saxon Henry

In her introduction to THAD HAYES: The Tailored Interior, Evelyn Lauder says of Hayes’ skill, “Thad Hayes can make a home fit into its own skin, not into his skin.” A perusal of the 21 interiors in the book proves Hayes’ long-standing client’s point, as the string of residences and retreats range from a pied-à-terre at the Pierre Hotel in New York to the Lauder’s Georgian vacation home in Palm Beach and a Tudor Revival in Texas.

Whether the designer is creating a backdrop for a contemporary art collector in New York City or Leonard Lauder’s collection of art deco posters in Palm Beach, his dexterity in working across styles and periods is apparent. His own Greenwich Village townhouse is among my favorites, as the interiors have a breathless quality to them. This is owed in part, perhaps, to the fact that Hayes had modernist architect Mies van der Rohe in mind when he introduced certain elements, or possibly to his affection for Japanese architecture. “I wanted our house to embrace and fulfill all the romantic notions we have around the idea of ‘home’: the welcoming of friends, cooking, children’s chatter, sitting around a hearth,” Hayes explains. “That was really my expectation.”

For his client’s interiors, he envisions environments that are equally personal, and it’s likely a result of his attentiveness during a project, as described in the introduction by critic Charles Gandee in which he quotes Hayes as saying, “I don’t delegate. I direct everything. I’m in every meeting with every client; I go to every job site. I go to the upholsterer. I know every pillow fabric…every detail.” This attention to detail leads to rooms that reflect “repose, clarity, and restraint,” says one client, but Hayes’ restraint is anything but spare.

One of the strengths of the beautifully photographed book is that it shows the designer’s dexterity and range: a New Jersey Craftsman, a modernist summerhouse in the Hamptons and a gentile home in Baton Rouge were given identities that shrug off any evidence of having been “designed.” In the acknowledgements, Hayes himself writes, “In my line of work it is easy to begin believing one is laboring for one’s art.” Hayes’ art has such a delicately powerful quality to it that even the natural light seems to tiptoe into the rooms, unwilling to allow its harshness to interrupt the quiet beauty that has been achieved. 

   by Saxon Henry There is no one answer to this question: there are as many as there are personalities under the sun. I've plumbed the minds of Philippe Starck, Andreas Reichert and Karim Rashid, and each had a remarkably personal point of view. Reichert says, "I love it when a project is ready to go into production and when I have a really good feeling about the design – this really warms my heart. This usually happens in the unspectacular and pragmatic surroundings of a factory, which makes the situation all the more distinct and special." Starck claims, "Anyone can build a building that protects people from heat, sun and cold. What I am determined to do is to make a stage where people can be sexier and more brilliant, a place where they can awake smarter." And Rashid declares, "I am inspired by every project I have worked on, by every city I have traveled to, by every book I have read, by every art show I have seen, by every song I have heard, and by every smell, taste, sight, sound, and feeling.” The list of other visionaries who have influenced Rashid is long and diverse, ranging from Andy Warhol and David Bowie to DJ’s Felix da Housecat and Grandmaster Flash. Film directors Stanley Kubrick and Francis Ford Coppola are on his list, as are Saarinen, Niemeyer and Noguchi.

See the wanderings of these mythic minds at my blog on FastCompany.com. For other design stories, visit DesignCommotion.

  by Saxon Henry

Audrey Hepburn once said, “Some people dream of having a big swimming pool. With me, it’s closets.” Were she still alive, Ornare’s closets would likely make the iconic actress swoon! The Brazilian company that migrated from South America to Miami is known for its exceptional detailing and luxurious appointments. A stroll through the Miami showroom brings great sensory pleasure. There’s something about the sleekly polished woods, which have managed to retain their textural personalities, combined with a peppering of undulant furniture that creates an air of allure.

 

I believe it’s safe to say that the populous of the vibrant country of Brazil can’t help but produce provocative products; and though Rio de Janeiro often gets blamed for Brazil’s tantalizing reputation, it’s not just the cariocas, or natives of Rio, that birth designs exuding sexy charm. São Paulo stakes its own claim here. During a recent trip to the city, Jason Richard Adams, director of Max Strang Architecture in Miami, noticed. “São Paulo was a city of absolute contrasts: lush rolling hillscapes with concrete towers rising up out of the canopy,” he explains. “There was a great vibe about the streets, and my favorite area was the libertage, or Japanese freedom district.”

 

He also noticed the sultry quality of the products being manufactured there. “What makes Brazilian design so inherently sexy is the mentality of the people,” he remarks. “They are in touch with nature, and prefer their designs to follow that path.”

 

Marcos Zucaratto, a Brazilian-born, Miami-based interior designer for Artefacto—a luxury Brazilian brand that has exploded in the U.S. in the past several years, couldn’t agree more. “We have so many natural resources that we work with, all of which link us to the organic,” he says. “We don’t limit our designs to straight edges; we create a balance between the organic, or natural elements, and the sensual.”

 

The designer, who designed the living room in the photo above, believes that Miami is a great place for Brazilians to strut their stuff. “It’s a natural place for us to put our creativity out there,” he explains. “I am a true carioca—was born and raised in Rio, which is an incredible city full of contrasts and beautiful people. This helped me to be who I am, and it is my constant inspiration.”

 

Designer Thomas Bina, the creative director of Los Angeles-based Environment Furniture, is a native Angeleno, but he’s been living in Brazil for the past five years in order to cultivate resources and designer relationships. He spotted a green trend coming out of Brazil, which is why he moved there. As is the case with most other aspects of life there, the environmentally friendly products pouring out of the South American country are far from boring. Case in point is the Giramundo swivel chair, which is covered in yarn scraps that were collected in Rio. And who can forget the playful wares of the Campana Brothers with their knack for envisioning spirited environmentally friendly products?

 

Ornare has also made a commitment to sustainable design. “Their factories were impeccably clean, modern and environmentally green in their re-use programs,” says Adams, who visited the company’s facilities while in Brazil. “As is the case with many of their products, the aspects I loved the most about Brazilian design was the use of reclaimed wood, and the stylistic ways architects and designers utilized this material.”

 

The company has just launched Linah, a new line of kitchen products, in the U.S. Why Miami for its first U.S. outlet? “Miami was a great choice because we felt that the city is home to the perfect combination of design innovation and luxury,” Ornare’s Director Esther Schattan remarks. “The city is filled with cosmopolitan citizens that are open-minded when it comes to embracing new ideas.”

 

Though certainly not a new idea, Adams’ last comment about the Brazilian’s penchant for the provocative is far from an afterthought: “It doesn't hurt that there is an abundance of sexy people in that country!” For other sexy design stories, visit my ezine DesignCommotion.

Everyday I am amazed to find that design is absolutely everywhere. I would like to share my discoveries with you. As I'm interviewing design visionaries, they never cease to amaze me in their depth and talent. Ross Lovegrove claims the road to success for any designer is paved with stamina. “Thou shalt not waffle,” he proclaimed. To read interviews with Lovegrove, the Campana Brothers and Piero Lissoni, visit my ezine Design Commotion. Lissoni claims that design for him is close to child’s play. “I still play everyday,” he explained. “I have just changed the scale of the things I am playing with!” Lovegrove designed the Swarovski Crystal Palace at Design Miami/ this year. See an interview about his design of Liquid Space here.