A game of contrasts – SOLD
Tiaan Nagel (Fashion designer)
For many years, Tiaan Nagel has been what can only be described as a champion of design. Having had one foot in both fashion and interiors for most of his career (Tiaan is a previous editor of House and Leisure) he understands craftsmanship and design like few others. ‘The starting point for my chair was Billy Baldwin’s iconic red living room, commissioned in 1955 by the legendary Vogue editor Diana Vreeland,’ says Tiaan. Honouring the original woodwork of the frame, but juxtaposing it with modern metal legs created by Paz Design, he chose a lush, deeply hued red fabric. ‘Like Ms Vreeland, I find most shades of red a great tool to communicate new ideas – in this case, the idea of deconstruction, assemblage, and collage. I took a picture of the chair, cut off the legs, and glued a sketch in lipstick-red on it – very geometric as a counterpoint to the curves of the backrest.’ For Tiaan it was important to capture the concept of spontaneity and intensity, which he believes is what the red and severity of the geometric lines of the legs’ structure afforded the chair. ‘But it also coaxed up what Ms Vreeland’s red “garden from hell” – as she called it – represented: a sort of Frankenstein nightmarish take on the “traditional”, what’s considered “appropriate”, and what’s perceived to be good taste.’