Earlier this year, Kartell celebrated one of its most iconic pieces - Ferruccio Laviani's Bourgie lamp - with an exhibition of fourteen reinterpretations by a roster of international designers. This month the project has been expanded further, with the Bourgie being handed over to a group of American creatives, the results on display at the Greene Street showroom until 26 May - coinciding with New York Design Week - presenting a further exploration of the lamp's design and a tribute to its execution. It completes a big month for the brand, which has also just unveiled a re-designed and enhanced website, including for the first time an extensive e-store. Acting as an exploratory hub, the site allows users to delve deeper into the brand's history, to browse products and to access information about new projects and ventures. They can also admire other icons from Kartell's past, in addition to the legendary Bourgie.
Rafael de Cardenas' starting point was Ferruccio Laviani's transformation of a Baroque shape into a distilled design. Similarly, the New York-based designer further simplified the Bourgie, using its silhouette to create an installation of neon and mirror that multiplies the shape to infinity
Former Wallpaper* Design Awards judge Pharrell Williams applied his artistic versatility to the project, substituting the lamp's stand with a human arm holding the bulbs. According to the Williams, it 'represents the will of mankind in the daily plight of escaping the "shade" and the challenges of attempting to get closer to enlightenment.'
Kelly Wearstler's take on the Bourgie is a perfect marriage between Laviani's design and the American interior designer's aesthetic. Dissecting the object's base, Wearstler re-created it using her signature materials - a mix of stones and metal - covering the lampshade in strings of cord
Brazilian-born, New York-based artist Eli Sudbrack (aka Assume Vivid Astro Focus) gave a multi-level interpretation of the lamp, starting with a disco lamp idea and then developing its shade it to resemble a dunce hat. The artist wanted to 'turn something usually seen as negative bullying into a positive action, by transforming the dunce hat into a disco hat.'
-
The Bentley EXP 15 brings the bling and delves into tomorrow's luxury automotive experienceThe Bentley EXP 15 previews the company’s electric future, an asymmetric experiment in phygital form-making
-
Buccellati’s one-of-a-kind jewelled evening bags draw on a rich design historyThe high jewellery house revisits intricate velvet clutch bag designs, originally created by Mario Buccellati in the 1920s and 1930s
-
A colossal ‘ship’ in Shanghai honours Louis Vuitton’s travel legacyLouis Vuitton’s The Louis is an OMA-designed hub combining retail, culture and dining in the heart of Nanjing West Road
-
The owner of this restored Spanish Colonial home turned it into a gallery – with no social media allowedCasa Francis in LA is a private residence, but recently opened its doors to one member of the public at a time for an exhibition centred around domesticity
-
Why are so many rooms covered in curtains?Comfort, privacy, and performance are all contained in the rooms swaddled in plush draperies
-
This Manhattan apartment and studio is a shrine to artThis New York artist's home is both comfortable and flexible, acting as a studio and a showcase for his work and collected pieces. We take a tour for our interiors series, The Inside Story
-
Life’s a beach at this tropical-glam Miami developmentFive Park Miami Beach mixes streamlined glamour with vibrant colour, and is the focus of Wallpaper’s interiors series, The Inside Story, as the Floridian city holds its annual Grand Prix
-
A Frank Lloyd Wright lamp broke auction record at Sotheby’s – fetching $7.5 millionThe architect's ‘Double-Pedestal’ lamp, which was designed for the Dana House in 1903, has become his most valuable work ever offered at auction
-
Step inside this Upper East Side jewel box apartmentThis radiant Lexington Avenue home is a harbinger of good things for the Upper East Side, and the latest focus of The Inside Story, our series spotlighting intriguing and innovative interior design
-
This Colorado ski chalet combines Rocky Mountains warmth with European design nousWood and stone meet artisanal and antique pieces in this high-spec, high-design mountain retreat
-
Swiss utilitarianism meets West Africa in this Armando Cabral and USM furniture collaborationA centuries-old West African motif signifying movement, adaptability, and progress served as the starting point for this collaboration between New York-based designer Armando Cabral and Swiss furniture brand USM
