Well – that was a great Christmas break, but now it‘s down to some serious design reporting
I’m looking forward to visiting the new show Home, on at Earls Court in the coming week. It’s only open to “the trade” – ie the buyers for the shops (and journalists!) – but I’ll be there to report back on anything we at Homes & Property think you’ll especially like. Looking down the list of who’s showing, I’m finding a lot of very bright British design sparks.
Then it’s over to Paris by Eurostar for the incredible Maison & Objet, in huge halls to the north west of the city. This show actually takes place in September as well, but the ones in January are the more important, as they set the design trends for 2012.
Shop keepers come from all over the world to hunt out the latest merchandise. Halls are packed, with tempers frayed and temperatures unpleasantly variable – from boiling to freezing in the blink of an aisle. Signage is negligible (where are those loos?), sandwiches are on French leave, and there is very little natural light, except in one markedly modern new hall. A couple of years ago strong winds blew off a section of the roof in two places – yes, really. But would I miss it? You bet I wouldn’t – the adrenalin sets me up for the whole year, and it is Paris, after all.
The number of British exhibitors taking their wares to Maison has exploded recently, with many who started in a small way on the stand of the British European Design Group (BEDG; www.bedg.org), now confident enough to take space in their own right. I always love calling by the Brits at Maison, firstly because I am so proud of them, and secondly because I know that what they show will be available pretty quickly to readers back home.
After Maison comes Interiors UK – this show used to be called Interiors Birmingham, but has changed title to reflect (they hope) an increasing importance in the world of international design fairs. The organisers have worked really hard to up the design ante. I’m looking forward to exploring the space organised by Designersblock - there are some good “taster” videos on their website (www.verydesignersblock.com).
Piers Roberts and Rory Dodd – London design mavericks extraordinaire - are bringing together fringe elements of British design that I know I won’t have seen even in Paris.
In the picture, they are bathed in a red glow from the neon sign at their last installation at the London Design Festival in September – Rory is on the left and Piers on the right.
Next stop, Milan in April – I’ll have a chance to draw breath before then!
Meanwhile, over Christmas, I did a lot of walking to see some of the best display ideas in the capital from store windows to the huge trees at Trafalgar Square. Here are a couple of pictures, one from Selfridges (left) and one from Liberty (top right). In window design, British shops really do lead the world – there are so many creative ideas to absorb from them.
* To see more pictures from my Christmas and new year walkabout visit
http://www.flickr.com/photos/barbarachandler/sets/72157628281265145/
