Category: Books

The Talented Mr. Redd

Miles Redd


I love great houses. And if you’re one of our readers, I would dare say you do as well. The elements of a great home is never built overnight, and it’s a continuing process – a beautiful, long process that is. The interior design history is complete with great designers who we look to, and admire for their style sensitivities, excellent panache, and exquisite sense of tastes. In our generation, one such designer is Miles Redd.

“Life in the 21st century means taking the best of history and making it work for you.” Miles Redd

The Big Book of Chic by Miles Redd
The overachiever is well-known for his quirky brand of cozy glamour. His unique aesthetic vision is characterized by some of the elements I love in design – a playful mélange of high and low, that is invigorated with whimsical splashes of color and modern gestures. The talented designer draws on inspirations ranging from Cecil Beaton’s photographs to René Gruau’s illustrations. His trademark approach to design has brought to life rooms infused with boldness, fantasy, and sophistication. This lavishly illustrated volume is an inspiration to me, and I’m sure will be an inspiration to anyone interested in a variety of spirited and eclectic designs. Living beautifully is indeed very chic!
Miles Redd

Photos courtesy Assouline Publication

In 2003, Miles Redd was named creative director of Oscar de la Renta HOME, and his first book, The Big Book of Chic is out on October 4th, 2012, but will hit the stores on October 25th. To pre order this stylish book, visit: http://www.assouline.com/9781614280613.html. 

A Must Read: A 21st Century Palace by Geoffrey Bradfield

The pages of Geoffrey Bradfield‘s latest interior design book will certainly take you to one of the most breathtaking and soaring palaces in the world. Get ready to be transported to a rich virtual journey through the creation of one of this stunning new breed of palaces: a high-rise residence Bradfield designed in the heart of Mexico City. It showcases all the requisite building blocks essential to the development of any great modernist collection: museum-worthy 20th- and 21st-century painting and sculpture, ravishing Art Deco furnishings (my favorite!) and extravagant materials cut and quarried from halfway around the planet.
A 21st Century Palace will be available for purchase on Amazon, and Barnes & Noble in July 1, 2012
This is the first volume in a series that will examine the astonishing particulars of five distinct contemporary palaces located around the world. Geoffrey Bradfield is well equipped to tell this story. “Functional Opulence” is the key to his designs, which draw inspiration from the Orient, African Primitivism, and Art Deco.

His work incorporates fine art and antiques with modern materials and high tech accessories, attaching the same sculptural value to utility objects as to important pieces of art. The look, drawn from the twentieth century, results in intensely comfortable and superbly elegant environments that delight the eye, mind and body alike. In 1991, he co-wrote Point of View: Design by Jay Spectre. He is the eloquent writer of Celebration: Christmas in New York, published in 1993, and a book showcasing his work of the last decade, Geoffrey Bradfield – Defining Millennium Modern was published in 2004. In 2009, he wrote Geoffrey Bradfield Ex Arte which was published by Panache Partners. The book featured a compilation of his international projects. Feel free to contact me, if you’d like to have a signed copy of one of the most anticipated book of this season.

Top 10 Places to Shop in 2011

Clockwise: Art Deco Furniture from Maison Gerard, OC Concept Store, Arabesques Earrings, Kiki de Montparnasse, Starlet Robe, Fine stationary from Mrs. John L. Strong.

From Top: Darcy, White & Silver Wallpaper ($70/Roll). Bottom from Left: Jana Paintable. Right: Arches Paintable Wallpaper ($30/Roll).

Handblown Czech glass from Artel.

Diamond 18k Rose Gold Bracelet from High End Weekly’s Amazon Store.

Top Left: Bookmarc by Marc Jacobs on Bleecker Street. Right: Flowers by L’Olivier. Bottom: Red Velvet cupcakes from Cannelle Patisserie, Jackson Heights, NY.

NOTE: Please notify us directly, if you believe that certain images on this post are alleged to infringe upon the copyrights of others, according to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Thank you.

John James Audubon


Splendid Birds

Birdwatching is my favorite outdoor hobby. There’s something exhilarating about observing these feathered friends hop, skip, and fly to the sky. They always seem so engrossed in the moment, even when they’re motionless. I cannot look at a good looking bird without thinking of John James Audubon.

American White Pelican
Male Adult
“I felt an intimacy with them…bordering on frenzy [that] must accompany my steps through life.” JJA
His ornithological body of works always brings a smile to my face, and a little bit of joy into my life. My latest book purchase is The Birds of America. Eventhough the completed body of work was sold last December at an auction for $11.5 million, you can purchase the abbreviated version at your local book store. His original body of work consisted of 435 life-size, hand-colored prints that were published over the course of thirteen years.

Lately, I’ve been thinking about Audubon’s splendid birds, and the fact that we have one major thing in common. He was born in Haiti, my motherland. John James Audubon was born at his father’s sugar plantation in Saint-Domingue, while I was born in Port-au-Prince. His father was a French navel officer, and his mother, Jeanne Rabine, was from Les Touches, France. John’s father eventually moved away from the island to his native France. As a young adult, Audubon came to live in the United States, and it was there he began his ornithological career. His father would note that John always had an affinity for birds. According to Jean Audubon, his son “would point out the elegant movement of the birds, and the beauty and softness of their plumage. He called my attention to their show of pleasure or sense of danger, their perfect forms and splendid attire.” How marvelous! I would have loved to meet him.


From left:  Rock Grous. 1: Male in winter. 2: Female Summer Plumage 3: Young in August 
Right: Pied oyster-catcher

Louisiana Heron
Male adult
Trumpeter Swan
Adult
Wild turkey
NOTE: Please notify us directly, if you believe that certain images on this post are alleged to infringe upon the copyrights of others, according to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Thank you.

Jean Prouvé’s Industrial Furniture

French metal worker, Jean Prouvé was a self-taught architect and designer who would most likely always be remembered for his influence in the development of the idea of nomadic architecture, likening a chair to a house, and designing both with portability in mind.
Jean Prouvé bookshelf, 1953 

Above all, his main achievement was the ability to transfer manufacturing technology from industry to architecture, without losing aesthetic qualities. It’s also worth mentioning that he was an outstanding designer with many talents. From architectural design, industrial design, structural design right down to furniture design.

*  Don’t forget to participate in our End of Summer Giveaways, listed here on High End Weekly™.

One of a kind cradle by Jean Prouvé, 1936
In Vogue
Popular Jean Prouvé Standard Chair Vitra (picture provided by nova68.com)
Jean Prouvé: Visiteur Lounge Chair 
(picture provided by wright20.com)
Jean Prouvé Compass desk 
Ateliers Jean Prouvé
Jean Prouvé table
Jean Prouvé Coffee Table, 1944
Jean Prouvé: Objects and Furniture Design By Architects

NOTE: Please notify us directly, if you believe that certain images on this post are alleged to infringe upon the copyrights of others, according to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Thank you.

Shop Like A Parisian

Parisians take their shopping very seriously. After all, it is the birthplace of haute couture and hard core fashionistas take this business to the highest possible level. Whether they’re window shopping from les grand magasins, or quietly ushered inside the more intimate boutiques for their “first look”, Parisian men and women shop at ease in a city that offers just about anything from the unique to the sublime.

For me, the one shop which I often found myself admiring (and yes, sometimes gawking at their goods!) is Colette. There is no other shop in Paris like it. Since its opening in 1997, the store has thrived as an arbiter of Parisian cool, eclectic high-end fashion, designer collaboration, and it is also home to some of the silliest, unexpected books and knickknacks. The owners of Colette, Sarah Lerfet, and her mother, Colette Roussaux  have impeccable taste and a keen sense of humor.

     213 RUE SAINT-HONORÉ 75001 PARIS
   www.colette.fr

The Wondrous World of Parisian Florist Olivier Giugni

Parisian Flair

For the last few days, I’ve been eagerly anticipating my copy of Living Art by Oliver Giugni, and was not one bit disappointed when it finally arrived in the mail. Oliver’s latest book has a multitude of pages, all filled with stunning photographs, of some of the most breathtaking floral creations I have ever seen. My love for flowers, especially when they are beautifully arranged by such a talented florist like Olivier, will never wither away, even when the time has come to close the book and move on with my day.
L’Olivier Floral Atelier has a definite flair. Located at 19 East 76th Street, and 213 West 14th Street, it is truly “a wondrous world of flower extravaganza”.