We are excited to share our upcoming exhibition titled Refiguring Nature: Antique to Contemporary Design, organised as part of London Craft Week 2024. Pairing items from Mayfair Gallery’s collection of luxury antiques with the work of seven exceptional contemporary artists and designers, the exhibition delves into how creative minds have taken inspiration from the organic world around them, from the 19th century to the modern day.
A select pick of Mayfair Gallery’s extensive antique collection is placed in conversation with the works of Billie Bond, Cameron Design House, Amy Hughes, Rachael Plassard, Charlie Schaffer, Kathleen Walsh, and Jan Waterston.
The growing global climate crisis provides a more sombre lens through which we view these objects. Contemporary designers now draw upon the natural world often with a sense of deliberate eco-consciousness, whilst antiques are a more sustainable way to enjoy furniture and the decorative arts.
Let us invite you to a space where artists and designers, both antique and contemporary, ‘refigure nature’ in their works, creating timeless pieces that can bring the beauty of the natural world into the modern home.
Billie Bond
Billie Bond is an award-winning sculptor, with two decades of experience as a designer-maker. Her figurative creations are housed in public and private collections around the world and have been exhibited in renowned cultural institutions such as the Saatchi Gallery. Billie writes of her work:
"My work is concerned with identity and a personal obsession of revealing the concealed, exposing the discarded and the overlooked, repairing the broken and exploring ideas of duality…I try to translate an inner being through a disrupted surface, creating new and different visual conversations."
In Flower Power, Billie brings together two portrait busts (entitled Rosa and Aster respectively). Heavily inspired by the ancient Japanese art of Kintsugi, the pair is crafted from glazed stoneware which has been deliberately smashed and carefully pieced back together with 24ct gold leaf and epoxy. Adding to the beauty of the pieces is the selection of 19th and 20th century Staffordshire porcelain flowers placed on the mended cracks. Joining of the old and new, the broken and complete, invites the observer to think about the healing powers of nature as well as the tensions between destruction and repair. The busts are displayed near our pair of Napoleon III hardstone and ebonised wood pedestal cabinets, where the intricate floral pietra dura detailing matches the delicate porcelain features of Billie’s work.
Cameron Design House
Cameron Design House is an award-winning British design studio that creates contemporary statement lighting and furniture. Handcrafted in England, the Kupoli Coffee Table 15 is part of the studio’s debut collection of sculptural furniture. The fifteen domed pigmented chrome steel tubes are topped by a circular glass top, and the organic-shaped features create an attention-grabbing statement piece. Paired with it are Mayfair Gallery’s pair of Neoclassical-style blue glass, ormolu, and marble pedestals. The icy blue colouration of the table matches the blue accents of the pedestals. Touches of blue can be seen elsewhere in the exhibition, such as on the elegant pair of ormolu mounted Samson porcelain chinoiserie vases, hand-painted with famille verte floral illustrations.
Amy Hughes
Having worked and exhibited internationally, Amy Hughes’ craft practice involves an exploration of both form and decoration, working in 2D and 3D. Her designs are inspired by 18th century decorative arts, aiming to bridge the gap between the past and the present. The After Piranesi collection includes three Omaggio vases, their designs referencing the playful and exaggerated ornamentation of works created by Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720-1778). Examples of the black and grey colourways are exhibited on a superb pair of antique ormolu and hardstone mounted ebonised wood cabinets, their lavish nature-inspired adornments wonderfully complementing the monochrome vase designs. The white Omaggio vase is placed on a French glass, ormolu, and marble pedestal under a stunning pastel-coloured floral KPM porcelain and ormolu Rococo style chandelier.
Rachael Plassard
Taking inspiration from decorative historical styles, Rachael Plassard reinterprets traditional ornament in her jewellery designs. Her Faded Acanthus collection evokes a sense of opulence and luxury by layering decorative surfaces and combining techniques. By combining oxidisation with the complex ancient Korean technique of Keum-boo (whereby thin sheets of gold are applied to silver), Plassard’s jewellery features striking colour and texture contrasts. The earrings, the ring, and the brooch are displayed on charming silver and coral crab-shaped boxes by Buccellati and the necklace beautifully adorns the neck of a 19th century Florentine marble bust by Fazzi.
Charlie Schaffer
The winner of the National Portrait Gallery’s BP Portrait Award, Charlie Schaffer’s fine art practice is wide-ranging, featuring both traditional portraiture as well as reinterpretations of Old Masters’ artworks. It is a piece from the latter collection that is showcased in Refiguring Nature: titled After Turner, the dramatic oil painting is inspired by The Parting of Hero and Leander by J.M.W. Turner (c. 1837), which is housed in the National Gallery, London. Schaffer painted this work in 2017-18, in the National Gallery itself. His work is placed opposite the large watercolour painting titled Mont Blanc, Glacier by Arthur Croft (1837), and the complimentary colour palettes showcase how centuries of fine artists have been inspired by the lights and shadows of outdoor landscapes.
Kathleen Walsh
By blending traditional craftsmanship with contemporary aesthetics, Kathleen Walsh redefines the boundaries of nature-inspired design. Her works have been exhibited in prestigious national and international locations and form part of private and public collections. Walsh’s hand-crafted vessels combine wood (oak and elm) with resin in innovative ways, juxtaposting the natural wood grains with the smooth translucency of the resin. Showcased in Mayfair Gallery are three of her creations. Two vessels, Solas Ómra I and Solas Ómra II, are displayed on an exceptional ormolu, kingwood, and vernis martin side cabinet by Linke as well as a Louis XVI style ormolu mounted wood and marble commode. The third vessel, Salos Gorm, stands on a very fine antique Rococo style ormolu and kingwood desk. By placing Walsh’s vessels on exceptional antique wooden furniture, a dialogue is created between contemporary woodworking and the same practice from centuries past.
Jan Waterston
Jan Waterston’s work explores the junction between art, craft, and design, and is realised through the traditional exploration of natural materials, predominantly wood. Jan says of his work:
"Wood is the essential element that grounds all my work. Compelled to do justice to the material, I take a sensitive but instinctive approach, resulting in a deep understanding of the material, its inherent nature, and its unique qualities."
Crafted in limited editions from beechwood and a wool blend fabric, the Balloon Collection is inspired by balloon animals, replicating the inflated and twisted shapes in a new material. Playful shapes, smooth finish, and soft upholstery emphasise the beauty of the wood’s natural properties. The Balloon Chair Twin Back and the Balloon Chair Tri Back are placed in conversation with another contemporary piece evocative of balloon imagery – the Kupoli Coffee Table 15 by Cameron Design House. Paired with two large Chinese cloisonne enamel double crane models, Jan’s seating brings a touch of neutrality to a space blooming with colour.
Visit our London gallery to immerse yourself in the sights, scents, and textures of the natural world, with works of art and design from the past two centuries to the present day.
