Furniture has evolved in the recent past from being mere necessities to being works of art. The designs have gone from the staid and boring to futuristic and unique. Artists with a passion for modern styles and designs with a message, for added effect, are at the forefront today with many interested in their designs.
The Mangrove chair is one such furniture piece that is unique in its idea and design. Conceived by Adam Krehbiel for Verasari Designs, the Mangrove chair is an attempt by the designer to bring into focus the danger of the disappearing mangrove eco system and its effect on the entire planet.
Ninety percent of the materials used to build the Mangrove chair are recycled products that have been put together to resemble a small part of the mangrove. This sculpture like chair has been made using yellow pine, steel pipe, resin and sand. These materials have been put together to give a very startling and striking visual effect while also championing the cause of the fast vanishing delicate mangroves.
The USP of this chair is that it fits easily into its surrounding décor, be it in a room or on the patio or in the garden. The chair does exactly what the designer intended – showcase the natural beauty of the mangroves and make people aware of the impending danger of fading eco systems.
This one-of-a-kind chair is one in a series of sculptured furniture by Verasari Designs and it is an exclusive piece which is available especially for those who want to make a style statement while supporting an important cause which involves the planet. The proceeds from the sale of this chair have been pledged towards organizations spearheading the cause of earth conservation and awareness of the global eco system.
There are the staid and purely functional skateboards that serve the purpose that they are made for. These skateboards are available in different ranges from the standard ones to the skateboards that are made with the exclusive set of individuals in mind.
Damien Hirst, a contemporary British artist renowned for his art works has come up with a collection of skateboards that are sturdy, eye catching and artistic in their design and pattern not to mention their added value as Damien Hirst’s work.
Damien Hirst has extended his artistic ideas to various areas and designing skateboards is one of them. The artist has used the skateboard deck as his canvas to create his magic. His collaboration with Supreme, the skateboard company fromNew Yorkwhich is also responsible for showcasing works skateboards from artists like Jeff Koons, Christopher Wool and Richard Prince, saw his first designs come out in 2009.
Damien Hirst has designed 40 unique skateboards in addition to the 2009 skateboards which will be re-released which featured a few skateboard decks with different colored spots which were colored in special colors different from each other. A few skateboards featured medical symbols and some of them included scientific signs.
His latest offering of 40 skateboards feature original designs and his signature on the deck boosting the value of the skateboard. Damien Hirst has used his artistic leanings to use the skateboard as his canvas and come up with unusual patterns which also include graffiti work.
These high-end skateboards are much in demand for its practicality as also for its significance as an exclusive asset. On the lines of Alex Luxat’s Carbon fiber skateboards or Stephen Sprouse’s Graffiti skateboards which are considered pieces of art, Damien Hirst’s contribution to the sport world is a sure winner with those wanting a high-end, exclusive skateboard
Sport is not without its exclusive memorabilia and plush game additions. The golf ball encrusted with diamonds in different colors, the silver and gold cricket ball are just some cases in point. These simple sports items which define the game have been given a lavish makeover to pamper the sports enthusiast and collector of special articles.
Rawlings Sporting Goods Company Inc and Gold Sport Collectibles have collaborated to bring the 24 carat Gold Baseball to baseball fans to make the occasion of the major league game of the State Farm Derby a truly unforgettable experience. The gold baseball is going to be the center of attention at the games to be held shortly.
The 24 carat gold and leather ball is an outstanding piece of craftsmanship. The leather on the ball has been treated expertly to make it extra soft to touch. This soft leather has been coated with 24 carat gold to give it a golden sheen which is stunning and unique.
The ball has been manufactured in accordance with environmental norms and is, therefore, an eco friendly piece of memorabilia which will up the luxury quotient and at the same time be ideal for a strong home run hit. There will be no difference between the ordinary leather balls used in the other games and this gold coated ball.
The 24 carat gold baseballs are bound to make the State Farm Derby a unique and singular experience unlike any other. The uniqueness is further heightened by the $18,000 that will go to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America each time the gold ball is hit as a homerun.
These balls which are available as full gold balls and half versions will be available in an exclusive casing along with a certificate confirming the genuineness and lavishness of the product.
The Art of the Paperweight: The Boston and Sandwich and New England Glass Companies
For about twenty years in the latter half of the nineteenth century both the New England Glass Company in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and the Boston and Sandwich Glass Company in Sandwich, Massachusetts, made paperweights. Although these paperweights lack the renown of their French counterparts made by the SaintLouis, Baccarat, and Clichy glassworks, they were undeniably influenced by them and by glass from Bohemia, England, and Venice. Indeed, their American makers were themselves immigrants from France, England, and Bohemia.
The outspoken author of The Art of the Paperweight: The Boston & Sandwich and New England Glass Companies provides not only a detailed consideration of motifs and sometimes complex methods of production, but engrossing chapters on the rise and fall of the two glasshouses and their principals. An example of the leisurely pace of the book is a consideration of the clay pots in which the glass was melted.
At the New England Glass Company, when the fires were allowed “to dwindle on Friday morning for the weekend holiday (which ended at midnight Sunday), they examined the pots for cracks caused by the change in temperature and replaced them as necessary.
A dozen workers manned the pot facility, processing approximately 350 tons of clay each year. This was also nasty work. The laborers combined a mixture of new and old clay with water, and then walked barefoot on it for up to two months before pronouncing it ready for pot making. Their reward? A dollar a day, and the early onset of arthritis and bone disease.”
The author fearlessly passes judgment on the aesthetic value of the astonishingly diverse array of paperweights produced by the two companies. He is particularly emphatic about the jasper background, which resembles a fine spatterware glaze on earthenware and was much used at Sandwich.
He writes: “Inspiration for this rarely attractive, usually awful background may spring from immigrant SaintLouis glassworkers, but the millions of colorful pebbles on Cape Cod beaches probably also stimulated the imaginations of the Sandwich artisans. They often utilized a combination of red, white and blue, its patriotic theme the saving grace, to good effect with some flower weights.”
The conclusion, which the author entities Epilogue, is just as pointed: “Like the people of this period, these weights emerge as rugged individualists ready to take on all comers…. From the simplest poinsettia to the most complex double overlay, they proudly proclaim ‘I am an American paperweight’
and truly deserve an honored place in the history of glass.” The native paperweight could not have had a worthier biographer.
The color photographs, almost all by the author, are spectacular, with individual canes and tiny details as crisp as latticinio grounds. The reproduction of the illustrations is enriched by a technique known as spot varnishing. For more about that consult a printer. However, the excellent glossary will explain latticinio and other terms of the paperweight trade, making this study accessible to those with a general interest in American glass as well as to collectors of paperweights
Bocci is a Vancouver based design house with a sister concern in Berlin, Germany, This design house specializes in creating contemporary pieces of art that may also be used practically in different interiors from homes to offices, hotels, business houses, etc. Designers at Bocci work in close conjunction with artisans, technical staff and other workers to produce exclusive creations from scratch, all under one roof.
Omer Arbel, the creative director at Bocci is responsible for conceiving many functional pieces of art, with the stunning end product being made available to the discerning client. The most recent is the Spherical Chandelier that is a bespoke centerpiece made from 28 glass spheres of varying sizes and different colors with low voltage lamps fitted into each orb with the resultant effect being one of vitality, color and haute design.
Each sphere is made separately using the intricate glass blowing procedure where the shape achieved will be unique and singular. These spheres are then combined together to fit into each other in a hexagonal form. All 28 spheres are of different sizes, giving the entire chandelier a distinctive look.
The Spherical Chandeliers are exclusive pieces that are made on demand and can be customized to fit the client’s specifications thus making each chandelier a bespoke piece which is of practical use too. The Spherical Chandelier can be modified to suit the surrounding area it will be placed in. The hexagonal form may also be tweaked along with the length that each sphere will hang from giving the chandelier and the interior it has been placed in, a spectacular look.
From the first drawing to the color scheme, the process of making the glass to the end finished product, the Spherical Chandelier is about exclusive, luxurious interior décor and individual polish and class.
