A Lifetime Achievement Award For Carleton Varney

Carleton Varney,

The owner of Dorothy Draper & Company, Inc. ( est. - 1926 ), receives his lifetime achievement award at the Design Center of The Americas.

Go to Design Exposed to my video of the event.

Renee Finberg 'TELLS ALL' in her blog of her Adventures in Design

Beautiful ' Order And Disorder ' Makes Stunning Storage !

Beautiful 'Order and Disorder ' Makes Stunning Storage

How great is this look ? They have taken the fronts of china cabinets , or have achieved this look by installing/attaching custom china fronts ( or salvaged antiques ) , over the opening in a wall where a pantry or closet might be specified for storage.

Think of space you save with set-in storage, and the beauty you achieve with these china cabinet fronts instead of using standard doors. It is a great alternative when you want the look of an antique in a room , but you are dealing with limitations, and sometimes we are talking ' inches'.

Or... guess what ?

You could just apply a salvaged china cabinet front, or a dresser/buffet front with a mirror and a pair of electrified sconces on either side . Use your glorious imagination !

This could be done in a foyer that is too tight , but you wanted an impressive entrance. 'Voila,' you can have it !
As a designer, I never have taken very well to the words , " it is impossible" or " there is not enough space to do what you want".
I always figure something out. Always.


And I love the contrast of the high-tech kitchen with the warmth and elegance of the
china cabinet's facade. It works beautifully in my eyes.

I think this might be what Mr Brock was alluding to when he was quoted in the NYT :
Mr. Brock’s definition of aesthetic beauty is based on a complex mathematical theory he developed.
In the catalog he writes that beauty is present in an object “when the right balance is achieved between order and disorder.”

But, even what we read is subjective , NO ?

picture from: curbly.com

( enlarge any picture for more info and a closer look )
Renee Finberg 'TELLS ALL' in her blog of her Adventures in Design

Dorothy Draper And A Few Of Her Custom Pieces

What A Gal !


And what a gal I would be, if only I had accomplished just one half as much as Miss Draper !

This chair is what inspired this post.

It is functional Art.

Dorothy Draper Crown Chair
USA30's

These were designed for the Crown Room in the Fairmont Hotel here in San Francisco.

Price$1,650 ( I think this price is a bargain )
Measurements

height: (2 ft. 5 in.)

second height: (1 ft. 7 in.)

depth: (1 ft. 8 in.) 20" deep ? what could be better ?

width/length: (2 ft.) only 24" , how great ?

I might kill for this chair ...

And how great would it be

if I were writing this post while sitting in this chair ????

Beyond Princess !!!

These are silver plated handles on a set of night stands.

These look just like something I had custom made for a client. So, I definitely love them.

I could live quite nicely with these next to my bed.

These are from a hotel that Dorothy Draper did the interiors for.

Again, hotel furniture designed by Dorothy Draper.

I know you have seen the table toppers that they make out of painted tin, they add a false apron, in addition to the decorative surface. They are very fashionable and pricey.

HMMMMMM....I wonder where they might have come up with the idea ?

From Dorothy Draper tables perhaps ?

These look so heavy, I wonder what the wood type is ?

1st Dibs has quite a collection of Dorothy Draper Originals.

Go here to find out more :
http://www.1stdibs.com/furniture_search.php?i_creator=Dorothy+Draper ( 1st Dibs )

http://www.interiordesignquotes.com/dorothy-draper.html
http://www.dezignare.com/newsletter/DorothyDraper.html

( enlarge any picture for more info and a closer look )

Renee Finberg 'TELLS ALL' in her blog of her Adventures in Design

The Right Balance Between Order And Disorder....

Mr. Brock’s definition of aesthetic beauty made me reflect on how I put together the many pieces of the 'DESIGN PUZZLE,' that I call a beautiful and interesting room.

Horace Wood Brock may be a cutting-edge authority on the economics of uncertainty, but when it comes to art, he’s as traditional as they come.

“Beauty is back,” he said defiantly, discussing his collection, which is now on view at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. “Political correctness, move over.”

His collection includes a 17th-century Flemish cabinet-on-stand veneered with turtle shell, ebony and bone; an extremely rare Louis XIV Boulle longcase clock commissioned for the palace at Versailles; a Louis XVI fall-front desk by Jean-Henri Riesener; a George II japanned chinoiserie tea table; a garniture of floral Qing dynasty porcelain vases with Louis XV bronze mounts; and a Regency medals cabinet-on-stand veneered with precious woods. (His English Regency antiques have been promised to the Boston museum.)



Go here for the rest of the NYT article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/30/arts/design/30anti.html?_r=1

Mr. Brock’s definition of aesthetic beauty is based on a complex mathematical theory he developed. In the catalog he writes that beauty is present in an object “when the right balance is achieved between order and disorder.”

Go here to see collection:
http://www.curatedobject.us/the_curated_object_/exhibitions_boston/

*you may have to type in the above link and search for 'Splendor And Elegance' ( the name of his exhibit)

( enlarge any picture for more info and a closer look )

Renee Finberg 'TELLS ALL' in her blog of her Adventures in Design

'Carlton' & Me

On January 21st 2009 , I had the pleassure of meeting with Carlton Varney before he picked up his Lifetime Achievement Award at the DCOTA in Dania Beach Florida.

Carlton Varney and I sat in Brunschwig & Fils for about 40 minutes ( but who's counting ) , and I had the chance to ask him things that I wanted to know about his life and his feelings on design related issues.
I am way behind on getting his interview ready for you. I just started a new job, so I am way behind on 'my life' , if you follow me.....

But, I am working on it.


( enlarge any picture for more info and a closer look )
pink is for CV
Renee Finberg 'TELLS ALL' in her blog of her Adventures in Design