Tuesday 2 August 2011

Celestial Commode



Celestial Commode, Barbara Barry collection Baker Furniture







Newgrange, neolithic burial site , Ireland




When I saw the very attractive Celestial Commode from the new collection by Barbara Barry at Baker Furniture, I immediately thought of the large stone carved with spiral decoration in front of the entrance to a neolithic monument in Ireland, Newgrange.

The spiral is a motif that has been used to decorate surfaces forever as we can certainly see from this stone carved probably between 3100 - 2900 BC. If this stone was the inspiration for this piece of furniture, I find it fascinating how the links in design from ancient to contemporary can still influence the imagination. I visited this site a few years ago with my sister and was interested to learn this monument was designed to capture the sunrise of the winter solstice. That took some planning and  mathematical application.

However, the furniture from Barbara Barry has also inspired me and I have used pieces from consoles to coffee tables to bedside tables in apartments for clients in New York. I would say not only the surface decoration but the graceful lines and proportions of the furniture are elegant and can give any space a timeless quality.












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