Friday, November 10, 2006

I just finished interviewing Tobias Wong by phone. He’s a young “conceptual designer” who’s been shocking and thrilling the design world since he came on the scene just a few years ago.

A beautiful example of his work will be on exhibit starting December 8 at the Cooper-Hewitt Museum in New York City. His design is a reinvention of a Schonbek crystal chandelier. The trim is Swarovski® crystal, and Tobias Wong is working in conjunction with Swarovski. But the chandelier is from Schonbek.

The work that Tobias Wong does is amazingly original, and yet he doesn’t believe in original work. His work derives from the past, from the many beautiful things that already exist in our culture. He creates a new context for, or a new take on, an object that interests him. This is actually a way of rekindling appreciation of the object and giving it a new life. At least I think that’s what he’s saying.

In this case, the original design Tobias Wong is appreciating and re-envisioning is a Schonbek crystal chandelier.

I won’t say much about the design yet. There will be a special section and a press release on this website about it in three or four weeks. I still need to interview a few more people. But I just feel like reliving this interview for a few moments. It’s not every day I come across a young creative genius who’s into crystal chandeliers. He’s been called a bad boy. In my book, he’s good for us.

Tobias Wong really likes the fact that Schonbek just invented a dishwasher safe crystal chandelier. That kind of thing appeals to him. It’s a prime example of taking an existing form and doing something unexpected with it.

His design for the exhibit involves bringing people closer to the crystal chandelier. He thinks it’s a shame that crystal chandeliers are so often hung high up where the beauty of the details can’t be appreciated. Check back early in December and I can show you an image of what Tobias Wong thinks should done with a chandelier.

Meanwhile, I will show you the Schonbek crystal chandelier he’s adapted. It’s a New Orleans. This may not be the precise version of New Orleans he worked with. But close enough. I happen to be especially fond of this chandelier just because it is over the top. Its extreme opulence is probably what appealed to Tobias Wong. He’s fascinated by luxury.

I can’t help remembering all the times I’ve interviewed Andrew Schonbek about new Schonbek designs. He, too, has a penchant for reinventing the past. A Schonbek chandelier may have elements from more than one century or culture. The look is very traditional, but if you examine the design closely, and know what to look for, you see that a playful eclecticism has been at work.

I asked Tobias Wong his thoughts about the crystal chandelier as cultural icon. He said something like, “In pop culture, crystal chandeliers are everywhere. We’re really going back. The modern thing is so worn out. We’re longing to be more ornate and decorative.” I found it interesting that he sees crystal chandeliers as both pop and traditional. Tobias Wong invented the term “paraconceptual” to describe going beyond the boundaries of logic. Which is what he does.

If you think about it, a crystal chandelier does defy logic. Nobody needs one. It’s hardly a task light. If you have a crystal chandelier in a room, you still need other lights to illuminate dark corners. We want crystal chandeliers in our lives purely and simply because they’re so beautiful.

Wednesday, November 8, 2006

There is a restaurant in our downtown that I walk by every day. I always take note of the crystal chandeliers. They are rather spindly, with a questionable quality of crystal. Certainly they are not Schonbek crystal chandeliers. But even though they’re not the best of their kind, they definitely contribute to the atmosphere of this highly successful little bistro.

Atmosphere is the operative word. Restaurants are desperate for atmosphere. They know it will increase their patronage. I’ve been trying to put my finger on what atmosphere encompasses. Perhaps a mix of romance and mystery. But it also has to do with the physical quality of the air in the room.

Prismatic light is soft, rich, flattering and ineffably lively.

I’m writing this from home. I had to come home from work to let in the washing machine repairman. It’s fun to enter your home at an odd daylight hour, when your home is not expecting you. I am immediately aware of a pleasantly but ever so subtly scintillating atmosphere. The crystal chandeliers, after all, have been at play all morning with the light in the room. They do this even with natural light.

I like to think of prismatic light filling my rooms all day long, stirring up what would otherwise be stagnant air. Even when no one is moving around through the house, the house is alive and somehow enjoying itself. A nice feeling to come home to.

Monday, November 6, 2006

For years I had the idea that my bedroom should be dark, because darkness promotes sleep. So my bedroom walls are dark gray. Having a crystal chandelier works with the darkened room philosophy, because you can dim down your chandelier as much as you please.

But I’ve seen a lot of photos of bedrooms (Schonbek has been collecting them for years for the Beautiful Rooms section of this website), and it has finally dawned on me that most people prefer light bedrooms. Bedrooms on the Schonbek website, of course, always include crystal chandeliers. And the chandeliers contribute greatly to the cheerfully light ambiance.

Perhaps the priority of most people is waking up in the morning, rather than falling asleep at night. Probably mine should be too.

So I’m considering redecorating my bedroom. Since we have a crystal chandelier in this room, namely Artifact, which I love, it seems to make sense to base the style and color scheme of the new room on the chandelier.

Artifact is a nostalgic crystal chandelier designed on a tiny scale. It can’t be pinned down to a precise century or country. This is deliberate. Schonbek excels at creating original designs that evoke the spirit of the past without precisely reproducing it. The great haute couture designers do this, too. They may bring back a 40s or a 60s look, but it’s the 40s or the 60s from a new perspective.

Decorating a room with the crystal chandelier as your starting point is very interesting. People tend to think about lighting last, yet it has the potential for being the most arresting feature of a room. Artifact displays wonderful amethyst colored crystal pears, so I may think in terms of dusty rose walls. Then again, the Etruscan Gold frame opens the door to golds and browns.

It occurs to me that decorating a room is like planning a trip. There’s a lot of fun to be had in research and anticipation.