The unveiling of the Claridge’s Christmas tree has traditionally heralded the start of London’s festive season, not least because of the illustrious roster of designers who have headlined the Mayfair hotel’s installations. For 2016, it is designers (and long-time friends of the hotel) Sir Jony Ive and Marc Newson who have taken up the challenge of reinterpreting the tree.
The pair, who collaborated with British set designer Michael Howells on the project, explain, ‘Our aim was to create an all-enveloping magical experience that celebrates our enormous respect for tradition while recognising our excitement about the future and things to come.’ This year’s installation is suitably forward-looking with nary a bauble or thread of tinsel to be seen, instead exploring the relationship between nature and technology.
See Claridge’s past Christmas tree collaborations
Transforming Claridge’s grand lobby, a series of vast four metre-high light boxes line the walls, illuminating black-and-white images of snow-capped silver birch trees. Against this immersive backdrop, towering cast models of Scots pine rise to a canopy of natural green pine.
‘There are few things more pure and beautiful than nature, so that was our starting point, layering various iterations of organic forms with technology,’ Ive and Newson say. A soundscape recalls acoustics from a forest, starting with a dawn chorus and including owls, nightingales, sparrows and foxes. Specially choreographed lighting – synced to the soundscape – creates a dappled effect in the space, continuously cycling through sunrise to a celestial night scene.
A smaller sapling tree grows among the ‘forest’, playing with proportions – but it’s also a symbol of the future, they say. In a year as tumultuous as this one has been, Claridge’s festive installation ushers in some much needed calm and optimism.
Vast light boxes featuring a crisp, black-and-white photographic mural of snow-covered silver birch trees form the backdrop to towering models of cast Scots pine
Playing with proportion, a smaller sapling tree sits underneath a canopy of natural pine
Mimicking the dappled light of forests, specially choreographed lighting continuously cycles through sunrise to a celestial night scene
The immersive installation leads through to Claridge's art deco lobby, where several bare trees are dotted around the space
INFORMATION
The Christmas installation is on view until 3 January 2017. For more information, visit the Claridge’s website
ADDRESS
Claridge's
Brook St
London W1K 4HR
-
Highlights from the transporting Cruise 2026 showsThe Cruise 2026 season began yesterday with a Chanel show at Lake Como, heralding the start of a series of jet-setting, destination runway shows from fashion’s biggest houses
-
Behind the design of national pavilions in Venice: three studios to knowDesigning the British, Swiss and Mexican national pavilions at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2025 are three outstanding studios to know before you go
-
Premium patisserie Naya is Mayfair’s latest sweet spotHeritage meets opulence at Naya bakery in Mayfair, London. With interiors by India Hicks and Anna Goulandris, the patisserie looks good enough to eat
-
Alessi Occasional Objects: Virgil Abloh’s take on cutleryBest Cross Pollination: Alessi's cutlery by the late designer Virgil Abloh, in collaboration with his London studio Alaska Alaska, is awarded at the Wallpaper* Design Awards 2023
-
Design Miami 2022: highlights from the fair and around townDesign Miami 2022 (30 November – 4 December) aims at ‘rebooting the roots of our relationship with nature and collective structures, ecospheres, and urban contexts’
-
Salon Art + Design 2022: design highlights not to missWallpaper* highlights from Salon Art + Design 2022, New York
-
Design Week Lagos 2022 celebrates creativity and innovation in West Africa and beyondCurated by founder Titi Ogufere, Design Week Lagos 2022 is based on a theme of ‘Beyond The Box’
-
Designart Tokyo transforms the city into a museum of creativityDesignart Tokyo presents global design highlights through a series of exhibitions involving global creative talent and traditional Japanese craft
-
Tom Dixon marks his studio's 20 years with a show of design experimentsMushroom, cork, steel coral and more: Tom Dixon showcases an overview of his design experiments as he celebrates his practice's 20 years
-
Vitra unveils new London home in the Tramshed, ShoreditchLondon Design Festival 2022: after a year-long renovation, Vitra opens the door to its new showroom in the heart of Shoreditch
-
USM launches blushing pink limited edition of its modular furnitureFollowing an installation during Milan Design Week 2022, USM launches a new pink limited edition of its Haller range
