design news | books
ABOVE: The dining room table and sideboards all feature elements on Robert Adam’s
designs. They are framed by three spectacular double-barrel vaults
LEFT: The main hallway of a house in Sarasota, Florida, has a hand cut marquetry
panel as its focal point, which was created to extend the perspective by continuing
the line of chandeliers on the architectural axis. Its design is based on a Rome Palazzo
Classic Contemporary
The DNA of Furniture Design
TIM GOSLING is a British designer with an
international reputation for his beautifully crafted
furniture, exquisite interiors and a commitment to
working with highly skilled British craftsmen.
Gosling is a designer fascinated by capturing the
essence of design and in his new book, Classic
Contemporary, he articulates his philosophy: Encoded in the very
DNA of designed objects are multiple stories, if we understand
these, and the elements of historical design and its make up in
furniture, we will be better able to break the rules of design and keep
it moving forward. Featuring Gosling’s original drawings as well as
archive drawings and photographs of the work of the architects and
designers who have inspired his own aesthetic, each chapter begins
with the ‘Design Rules’ of a particular historial period and details the
materials and leading figures associated with the era and style, from
Christopher Wren to Thomas Chippendale, John Soane to William
Morris. These are followed by plates showcasing Gosling’s interiors
and furniture.
With a foreword by Michael Palin, a fellow committee member at
the Athenaeum in London where they worked together to protect,
enhance and display one of London’s finest buildings, in the pages
of Classic Contemporary Regency Victorian, Art Deco and Modernism
are revealed in a new light. The result is a book that provides a
unique insight into the work of one of today’s
most popular and respected designers.
34
Bridge for Design December 2015
Classic Contemporary
by Tim Gosling
Published by Thames & Hudson Ltd
www.thamesandhudson.com