While it may not be hard to guess just what business Nata Janberidze and Keti Toloraia are in, judging from their company name – Rooms – what they design is anything but essentialist or spartan. ‘Usually, when you think of the word "minimalism" something very clinically clean and minimal pops into your head,’ the duo writes by email. ‘In our case we wanted to come up with the new direction, we wanted to create something that is minimalistic but grandly wild at the same time.’
And as proven by their latest collection, ‘Wild Minimalism’, currently on view at The Future Perfect in New York, this daring range of dining and coffee tables, consoles and arm chairs is juxtaposed by the quiet composure of metal, stone and wood, sleekly cut lines and ‘a modern twist and hint of humour’, they add. ‘A stairway that leads nowhere, an unrefined stone drawer attached to the wooden console, etc. It’s a fusion of archaic and modern.’
Janberidze and Toloraia hail from Georgia, the unique former Soviet country in the Caucasus, where ‘because of the political and economic hardships... there were very few creative outlets when we were starting, but as the country transitioned into a smoother existence – all of a sudden there is a creative explosion’, explain the pair, who met at the interior design faculty at Tbilisi's Academy of Arts. And Rooms certainly is one of the first Georgian design firms to gain international recognition: they were tapped by Rossana Orlandi for a presentation during Salone del Mobile in 2014, where The Future Perfect owner David Alhadeff was stopped in his tracks.
‘I've watched them over the past couple years and have been impressed with their vision and stamina within this field,' he says. ‘I'm impressed that from some cool work, they have truly created a body of work that feels like it has a signature style. That's hard to do.’
Entitled ’Wild Minimalism’, the collection draws inspiration from ethnic Georgian furniture and folklore, and the films of Sergei Parajanov, a surrealist filmmaker from Soviet Georgia. Pictured: ’Modular’ coffee tables
The daring range of dining and coffee tables, consoles and arm chairs is juxtaposed by the quiet composure of metal, stone and wood, sleekly cut lines and ‘a modern twist and hint of humor’. Pictured: ’Staircase’ table, ’Stone Drawer’ console and ’Taurus’ chair
Rooms was tapped by Rossana Orlandi for a presentation during Salone del Mobile in 2014, where The Future Perfect owner David Alhadeff was stopped in his tracks. Pictured: ’Lovers’ armchairs
Alhadeff says, ’I’m impressed that from some cool work, they have truly created a body of work that feels like it has a signature style. That’s hard to do.’ Pictured: ’Staircase’ table
Rooms’ Keti Toloraia (left) and Nata Janberidze (right)
INFORMATION
’Wild Minimalism’ is now on view at The Future Perfect. For more information, visit the Rooms website (opens in new tab)
ADDRESS
The Future Perfect
55 Great Jones Street
New York, NY 10012
VIEW GOOGLE MAPS (opens in new tab)
-
Faye Toogood brings new life to Matisse’s legacyMilan Design Week 2023: tapped by Maison Matisse, the London-based designer has taken inspiration from the French master’s form to create a collection of heirloom-worthy objects
-
Rebuilt Shigeru Ban houses launch at the architect’s Simose Art Museum in Hiroshima
A series of rebuilt Shigeru Ban houses become available to experience and rent at the Simose Art Museum, designed by the same architect, in Hiroshima, Japan
-
Grown-up bohemia comes to Ibiza in the redesigned Gran Hotel Montesol
The Experimental Group’s completed Gran Hotel Montesol by Dorothée Meilichzon puts hospitality at the forefront
-
Nendo’s collaborations with Kyoto artisans go on view in New York
‘Nendo sees Kyoto’ is on view at Friedman Benda (until 15 October 2022), showcasing the design studio's collaboration with six artisans specialised in ancient Japanese crafts
-
Italian craftsmanship comes to Los Angeles in this eclectic Venice Canals apartment
Boffi Los Angeles celebrates a juxtaposition of texture throughout a waterside bolthole
-
Design Miami/Basel 2022 explores the Golden Age
Design Miami/Basel 2022, led by curatorial director Maria Cristina Didero, offers a positive spin after the unprecedented times of the pandemic, and looks at the history and spirit of design
-
Kvadrat’s flagship New York showrooms encompass colourful design codes
Industrial designer Jonathan Olivares and architect Vincent Van Duysen have worked with Danish textile brand Kvadrat on the vast new space, also featuring furniture by Moroso
-
What to see at New York Design Week 2022
Discover Wallpaper’s highlights from New York Design Week 2022 (10 – 20 May 2022): the fairs, exhibitions and design openings to discover
-
Colour defines LA ceramics studio and showroom of Bari Ziperstein
Step inside the multifunctional ceramics studio, office and showroom of designer and artist Bari Ziperstein, designed by local firm Foss Hildreth
-
Design for Ukraine: Bocci and Design Miami join forces to raise funds
The online sale of iconic Bocci pieces will benefit GlobalGiving’s Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund, providing urgently needed humanitarian aid
-
The Future Perfect celebrates materiality in new Los Angeles exhibition
Coinciding with Frieze LA, a new exhibition titled ‘Momentary Pause’ (17 February – 18 March 2022) explores material-based practices that inspire change
