When the entire room become a piece of art by itself.
Bonjour! I have been looking back at a dining room we designed a year ago for a young couple and their family. This project was a new construction, so it truly felt like working with a blank canvas.
Our client’s vision was to create a warm contemporary home. The dining room is the first room you see when you come in and we saw its need to be a statement room. Art can obviously be the biggest statement in the room, but why not turn the entire room into an artful experience?
We first selected the Vertigo light fixture designed by French designer Constance Guisset for Petite Friture. I always love to promote my fellow French designers in my projects! Vive la France!
This light fixture, even in its small version, makes such a statement. It is airy and elegant…like a large haute couture hat! I have this image in my mind of Ines de la Fressange in her best Chanel hat standing in the middle of the room, but maybe it’s because I’ve been reading this Karl Lagerfeld biography. 🙂 You will not see it in the picture, but with its ultra light fiberglass structure, stretched with velvety polyurethane ribbons, this pendant lamp fascinates as it comes to life, swaying in the soft air currents that surround it. (Petite Friture)
The second decision we made was to add a pair of oversized, carved palm tree trunk floor vases. Truly one of a kind and so breathtaking! They brought a nice organic and vibrant element into this square room.
If you are not aware, we are in New Orleans, and we are surrounded by historical architectural elements. It is part of the city’s DNA. Though this house is a new construction, it became obvious to me that we should incorporate classic architectural elements revisited in a contemporary way. Molding adds such a classic touch and can be treated in so many ways. For this formal dining room, I decided to use very thin and simple half round trim.
It is fun once you receive the stack of trim, but where do you start on this blank canvas with these loose pieces? I always say that we interior designers are nothing without great trades. Shaun Adams is an expert trim carpenter and he spent two full days transferring our drawing to the wall.
Then here I come with my blue tape to mark the places where I decided the molding needed to be broken. The classic molding design instantly became even more interesting when some pieces were missing. My intention was to create a suggestion more than an affirmation.
Meanwhile, the square block square table we designed was being locally fabricated by Steve Bowie, a fine woodworker in the Bywater of New Orleans.
On installation day, everything fell so nicely into place. …… and this minimalist room evolved into a colorful and artsy space. A bientot!
