Newspaper Article

What's in a table? Class and a dab of humor

Rawsthorn, Alice

2008

Overview

\"There's so much energy in their designs, but it's compressed: there are no sudden explosions, but a consistent elegance,\" said Piero Gandini, chairman of the Italian lighting company Flos. Gareth Williams, a curator at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, describes BarberOsgerby's work as \"well-resolved and thoughtful, often quite sober, but not without lightness.\" He sees parallels with \"the rather unsung generation of British furniture designers, like Ernest Race, emerging after World War II, and mixing Modernism with arts and crafts ideals.\" Each of their projects is developed collaboratively. \"One or other of us will come up with the initial idea, and we then spend a good deal of time refining it,\" said [Jay Osgerby]. \"Hopefully that dialogue gives the work depth and detail. As there are two of us we tend to push it.\" They enjoy experimenting with new materials and technologies, and working on different scales, from mass production for Flos and Panasonic, to limited editions like the Iris tables and the handcrafted pieces launched in Milan last month for Meta. All of their clients comment on their commitment to detail. \"It's in those details that their talent shines,\" said Alasdhair Willis, chief executive of Established & Sons. Louise-Anne Comeau, Meta's co-creative director, recalls their producing \"over a hundred drawings and mock-ups\" for one candelabrum. Restrained though BarberOsgerby's designs may be, their concepts are so clearly defined and detailing so precise, that their work has a distinctive signature, something that few designers achieve, especially without resorting to sensationalism. \"There's something that makes our work easily readable,\" said Osgerby. \"It's not overly complex, so you don't get lost in the geometry. We produce things logically, not whimsically, because we want them to have longevity.\"

• Publisher: New York Times Company
• Subject: Osgerby, Jay