October 22, 2005 | 12:00am
Dog eat dog. The rat race. Vultures.
Wolves. In spite of the advances of the modern age, the world seems as savage as ever, if not more so. How then to keep one’s humanity as even new species of beasts are discovered and the established ones have become more ferocious than ever? How do we fortify our homes with the right talismans to guard against these beasts of the wild? Francois Bernard, Elizabeth Leriche and Vincent Gregoire of Maison & Objet’s trend laboratory in Paris formulated a design theme to help us during these troubled times:
Archetypes go back to the beginning of time, to original patterns and models. Eternal symbolic forms taken from primeval memory re-inject renewed energy into objects of the digital age. Vintage nostalgia is forsaken in favor of an original order where our interiors and the objects therein regain the freshness of the first mornings of the world. "Archetypes" as a trend itinerary takes us back to the roots of creativity in search of new inspiration models. We have to reconquer our origins so that the past can join modernity in "a tribute to our future ancestors." It’s a return to the calm of dependable values.
Elizabeth Leriche proposes a home evoking Beauty and the Beast: "A familiar or fabulous bestiary re-enchants art, architecture, design and decoration. Our friends, the beasts, are making our interiors savage. Inside this new Noah’s Ark, animality suddenly arises from the inmost depths of collective memory. A zoomorphic aesthetic where poetic trophies bring about humor and humanity in a savage world." Some of the "animality" objects include wall-mounted 3-D wood cut-outs of traditional hunting trophies, so politically and environmentally correct without the kill; stools in curly wool, worth a chuckle with felt sheep ears sprouting out of a corner; and furniture in the shape of an ostrich or a dog named "Sultan," a favorite name given by the French to man’s best friend. Horns and antlers are everywhere, used as armrests and legs for chairs, as coat hangers, or as a solitary sculptural piece as in the lamp of Hiroki Takeda.
| ARCHETYPE 2: ‘FUTURUSTIC’ |
The future is rustic, says Francois Bernard, whose "primitivism of tomorrow" reconciles legend with the present. "The confrontation of these two apparently contradictory ideas is a source of questioning and inspiration. If the rustic angle mainly suggests images of rurality and values from the past, the "future" angle evokes the importance of innovation along its economic, aesthetic and behavioral imperatives." At a time when everything is virtual, there is a need to project rustic codes that express the desire for materialism. With everything being globalized and homogenized, we have to go back to regional roots for a sense of authenticity and individuality. The know-how and creative repertoire of the 18th and 19th centuries are being reclaimed, together with the integration of the artistic contributions of the 20th century with its diversity of exploration. Research on materials, textures, features, structures – from conceptual to land art – are treasures to draw on in contemporary creation. Drawing on the "rustic" revitalizes and produces a desire for "materiality" related to the elements: earth, stone, wood, fire, crude and natural textiles. When these are paired with contemporary materials and techniques, we are able to create a "heritage to come." The hammock, then, is reinvented by Moroso, with technical fabrics and technology that guarantee ergonomic comfort as well as durability while harking back to an idyllic past. Antiques of yore are streamlined by Capellini with advanced techniques and a revamped silhouette to suit modern interiors. Tokuji Yoshioka’s stone armchair is both primitive and sci-fi superhero-worthy.
| ARHETYPE 3: HISTORIQUE, HYSTERIQUE |
For Vincent Gregoire of the Nelly Rodi Agency, these troubled times marked with doubts call for a return to archetypal values in the form of the Historical-Hysterical House, a grand temple for today’s gods and vestals. "The Graeco-Roman culture still dictates the principles of absolute beauty," he states. The new formal language invokes strength, force and order within the overstatement of greatness. The geometrical exactness of lines, the symmetry and the repetition dramatize the interior space, putting a limit to the cacophony of "anything is possible." Just as in the ancient tragedies, the exaggeration of volumes and of proportions reminds man of his condition as simple mortal. He turns his back on the languidness of sprawled comfort and privileges. There is a shift to the great show of the monumental and the sculptural, to pure and precise balance. Underlining this purity is a preference for immaculate white, with even furniture and walls awash in neutrality. Shapes are classic – in Louis XVI, Graeco-Roman, Empire and Directoire – but updated in washed-out finishes and new materials. Laurel leaves, columns, friezes, cornucopias and other symbols of imperial greatness are ubiquitous. On the "hysterical" side, there are touches of red, gold and black in the interiors, for what Gregoire calls the "Dramachic" effect.
