We’ve posted a write-up about the Tobias Wong crystal chandelier, which is actually a Schonbek crystal chandelier reconstituted. The press release is online, too.

Tobias Wong is a young designer in New York who seems to make news every time he creates something new. Even though it’s not new. I’m fascinated by Wong’s philosophy of unoriginality, the thought that there are no new ideas, only new perceptions. He’s right in a deep sense. You could say that a crystal chandelier is really a tree with the leaves and fruit rendered as crystal pendants. We no longer see the tree because of the magnificence of the crystal, but the tree is still there.

An Empire style crystal chandelier, like Camelot, is really a hanging basket, glorified by crystal. This is even more obvious in the new Trilliane.

And some crystal chandeliers are really lanterns, like Century and Bagatelle. The basic lantern idea undergoes a Cinderella-like transformation with these tiny chandeliers.

When you bring a crystal chandelier into your home, you join in the creative process of reinventing it. The colors in the room will be refracted by the crystal. The mood in the room will have its effect on the chandelier. A crystal chandelier that enters your home looking regal and dignified may become positively playful in a whimsical setting.

Schonbek is the most original designer in the category of crystal lighting. This is well known in the lighting industry. Yet Schonbek, when designing traditional crystal chandeliers, is re-envisioning what has gone before. Oddly enough, a traditional Schonbek chandelier will usually capture the spirit of the past more truly than a slavish reproduction, because design is a living art at Schonbek. Over the centuries great craftsmen and designers have been amazingly inventive within the boundaries of tradition, and this is what keeps classic forms alive and engaging.

Schonbek is especially adept at bringing together motifs from various periods in one design. You contemplate the result, and you’re in a time and place in another century. Yet you really can’t assign the design to a particular era.

In the context of originality, it’s instructive to consider Geometrix™. Here is a collection of crystal chandeliers and pendants like nothing our ancestors ever imagined. But the forms are archetypal: the circle, the square, the pyramid, the curve. Geometry is the precedent, the source of inspiration. Geometry becomes poetry with Geometrix™, and that gets to the heart of creativity.

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

There’s an exotic new crystal chandelier somewhat hidden on this website, called Flamenco.

You’ll find it as a suggestion for the contemporary bathroom in The Decorating Game.

I love this crystal chandelier. The name was suggested by the exotic combination of aloofness and smoldering passion you see in a flamenco dance.  

Flamenco is eclectic in the extreme, a beaded crystal chandelier, a rock crystal chandelier and a contemporary chandelier all in one. And you also have trendy Jet Black crystal in the mix.

Flamenco is not a warm and fuzzy crystal chandelier, but rather sleek and sophisticated. The overall shape is sensuous yet regal, and the details are fascinating.

Most intriguing are the rock crystal spheres encircled by swirls of Strass® crystal beads. They make me think of planetoids showered with meteorites. The effect is definitely celestial.

The Jet Black frame is outlined by Swarovski® crystal beads. This is a very chic look, like a woman in a black sheath wearing diamonds.

And there are crystal stars (a favorite with me). Although crystal stars go back centuries, they look utterly contemporary in this chandelier design.

More delicious details? The Jet Black crystal balls supporting each light and brooding at the heart of the chandelier. The black tassel and rock crystal dagger at the finial point.

This crystal chandelier may also be ordered with black shades.

You'll need to visit a Schonbek rock crystal dealer to get Flamenco. So check out the address of a dealer near you on this website.

Monday, December 11, 2006

The Rose is a crystal chandelier that clearly demonstrates how much fun Schonbek had creating it.

Just look at the profusion of crystal types displayed by this crystal chandelier. The curious teardrop shaped crystal pendants suspended from crystal octagons. The dainty green crystal leaves. The tiny faceted crystal jewelry beads. The plump crystal pear at the finial point. And the glossy opal crystal (opaque rather than clear) in many renditions of The Rose. Imagine how amusing it must have been to play with all these shapes and textures and bring them into harmony with each other.

The fact that this crystal chandelier comes in 12 color palettes is another giveaway to the high spirits of the design group. Why not just five or six color options? Obviously Andrew Schonbek and his team got carried away.

Then there are the names of the crystal color palettes: like Iced Tea, Midnight Ming, Opal Rose, Chanterelle, Mint Julep and so forth. No other crystal chandelier ever enjoyed such piquant color codes. They really do convey the unique flavor of every rendition of The Rose.

I had a music teacher who used to say, “You must enjoy your own sound!” The pleasure of the artist transforms the piece and shows through to the audience. The Rose is a good example of this principle in operation.

When you acquire The Rose, you’re acquiring much more than a crystal chandelier. You are opening yourself up to a mood rich in color. You’re declaring yourself a romantic, an optimist, a dreamer of extraordinary dreams.