INSPIRED BY: FURNITURE DESIGNER ASHER ISRAELOW

The Ø Chair by Asher Israelow

Serving trays, black walnut and brass.

Handcrafted Furniture for the 'Modern Explorer'

One of the best things about participating in national design fairs is the exposure we get to talented designers and makers. One of these such craftsmen is Brooklyn-based furniture designer Asher Israelow, whose work is featured as a part of the FAIR showroom collection, curated by interior designer Brad Ford. Israelow's design studio produces all original and small batch furniture pieces designed to last for generations.

And it goes without saying, that the more familiar we get with Asher's work, the more inspired we are. As a graduate of Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), with degrees in art and architecture, Israelow incorporates a strong architectural aesthetic into his creations. In his chairs and tables, there is a kind of clear structural strength as well as a streamlined elegance. His pieces are never 'heavy' and, yet, they carry weight. According to his own website, each piece of Israelow's work, "narrates the story of its materials, creating innovative and precise designs with a timeless aesthetic." We totally agree; there is a definite timelessness to these pieces - they could be just as at home in a 21st-century Manhattan penthouse as they would be in a mid 20th-century Danish hotel designed by Arne Jacobsen. 

Another element of the designer's work that we admire is how he sources the material for his furniture, "all the materials [we use] are ethically and locally sourced, building upon the importance of origins." And, on top of all this, we love to see makers like Asher taking advantage of the many beautiful varieties of walnut in their work - which is one of our favorite species. With such a thoughtful ethos toward timelessness, durability, and sustainability in mind, it's not hard to see why The Hudson Company is quickly becoming big fans of Asher's stylish furniture.

You can learn more about the designer and his work by visiting his website and by following Asher on Instagram.

All photos from www.asherisraelow.com.

The 'Miner Table' in maple

The 'Contour Bed'

Anamorphic Console in walnut and brass

Chairs from 'The Lincoln Collection'

'Dante Table' in walnut

Asher Israelow

Detail from 'Serenade Series' table

All photos from www.asherisraelow.com.

INSPIRED BY: AMEE ALLSOP

Binburra Beach House, Sydney.

Elegant Minimalism and Natural Style 

Australian Amee Allsop considers space, proportion, light and materiality when working with her clients. Her emphasis on quality materials and craftsmanship is key to creating a space that transcends time and trends. 

Based In New York, Amee designs in the spirit of Australian living by elevating the simple and beautiful essentials of a space and creating a minimal yet quality lifestyle. 

A great example of Amee's fulfilled but paired-back interior design can be seen in the Binburra Beach House in Sydney. Open spaces and broad windows fill Binburra house with natural light and highlight the custom wooden cabinetry and trim that are contrasted by concrete flooring and counters. Amee has also worked in commercial design in Chelsea, New York. 'The Kitchen is one of New York City's oldest nonprofit spaces, showing innovative work by emerging and established artists across disciplines.'

In the East Hampton, Red Dirt Road to be precise, a unique home that connects indoor and outdoor living partly in thanks to a large wrap around deck, a distinctive Australian home feature. This A-framed house was built in 1980 with good bones but needed a large gut renovation. A large skylight was inserted and a slot window in the master bedroom were added to capture natural light to flood the interior with. Amee used a palette of fresh whites with black hardware accents, subtle features reminiscent of the beach lifestyle.  Extra wide wood flooring softened the predominantly white interior and added a dose of organic material to soften the monochrome theme. 

There's lot's more of Amee's excellent work on her website. You can also follow her on Instagram.  For more on wood flooring get in touch with The Hudson Company. 

Australian designer Amee Allsop.

INSPIRED BY: FRAMA, COPENHAGEN

Frama Showroom, Copenhagen.

Frama's free-standing kitchen.

St. Paul's Apotek, home of Frama, Copenhagen

Frama CPH: crafting elegant, innovative, and classic forms

This week we are taking a good long look at the inspiring work of Copenhagen design house Frama.

Specializing in minimalist forms with a classical aesthetic, Frama is turning out some of the Scandinavian design world's most coveted stoneware, furniture, lights, and custom-built kitchens.

Located in Copenhagen's historic Nyboder neighborhood, the Frama showroom and offices occupy the lovingly preserved St. Paul's Apotek (a pharmacy from the 1800's that has saved much of its original woodwork and architectural elements, see above at right). Much of the Frama studio is painted in 'St. Paul's Blue,' their custom brand color, created in partnership with Jotun paint makers.

One of Frama's most exciting and ambitious innovations is their new line of custom-built kitchen designs (see above left). Unlike traditional kitchens, a Frama Kitchen is a completely free standing unit and is not permanently mounted to floor or walls. The Frama Kitchen's steel frame and steel box drawers are more like pieces of furniture within the kitchen environment than the traditionally built 'in-storage' style kitchen. 

In addition to their drool-inducing custom kitchens, the current Frama Collection contains furniture, accessories and lighting made from a variety of high-quality, high-character materials, including cork, wood, marble and metals. With their impecable eye for clean, modernist aesthetics and their appreciation of timeless materials, Frama is not only a 'brand to watch,' they are also a design house whose approach to creativity and craftsmanship are certain to inspire us at The Hudson Company for a long time to come.

See more from the Frama Collection here.

The 90 degree wall light by Frama.

Aj Otto Stoneware by Frama.

Frama Studio, Copenhagen, Denmark.

Photos courtesy of Frama and Kinfolk.

Inspired By: California Craftswoman Aleksandra Zee

Photo by Trinette Reed for Huck Magazine.

This week, we are featuring the inspiring work of Oakland based artist and woodworker Aleksandra Zee. Zee's stunning, reclaimed wood mosaics first came to our attention via her impressive Instagram feed, which led us to her growing portfolio of large and small-scale wooden wall hangings.

Trained in the fine arts, Ms. Zee is deeply inspired by the desert landscapes of the American Southwest and by Native American handicrafts and textiles. She has described her work as, 'recreating Navajo blankets out of wood.'

Speaking to Huck Magazine in 2014, Ms. Zee described her passion for working with reclaimed wood materials:

"I believe in working with a material that inspires you. For me, reclaimed wood has a history and I want to add to that history and give it a new life: rustic, worn, warm, and reminiscent. I love that transformation process. First I choose the lumber I am going to use. Then I separate it into colour palettes. Then I lay out a rough pattern, play around with it a bit, and when it’s perfect I nail it down. After the pattern is created I seal the piece and go to town with a sander."

We are excited to see where Ms. Zee's inspiration and passion for reclaimed materials take her in 2016.  

You can learn about Aleksandra Zee and her work at her site. Unless otherwise noted, all photos are from aleksandrazee.com.

Aleksandra Zee for the Buchanan Hotel, San Francisco. Photo by Laure Joliet.

INSPIRED BY: VITRA CAMPUS

Rolf Fehlbaum is the son of Willi and Erika Fehlbaum who founded Vitra, a company who began producing Eames chairs in 1957 when Rolf was only a teenager. 

Now, taking charge of the company, Rolf has crossed new boundaries bringing together such diverse inventory has that included Mies van der Rohe, Noguchi, Aalto, Corbusier and Lloyd Wright's Peacock chair. Before long Fehlbaum had gathered enough pieces to open his own museum near Tüllinger Mountain in Germany, which is now one of the largest collections of furniture on the globe.

Currently though Rolf has moved into collections of a much larger scale, specifically that of architecture, for the Vitra Campus. In a recent article from Cereal Magazine we see a look into this very diverse design playground which is summed up quite well with this quote from the author.

"Vitra’s stake in 21st century design is such that the shape it takes affects they way our homes and our workplaces look, and how the products we buy are made. In this wonderland curated by Erika and Willi’s eldest, drawing visitors in from near and far, design is a game played with deadly seriousness."

Photos from Cereal Magazine.

INSPIRED BY: APPARATUS STUDIO | NEW YORK, NEW YORK

Part II in our Friday series features a multi faceted design studio in Manhattan founded by Jeremy Anderson and Gabriel Hendifar. APPARATUS was born from their first lighting fixture creation called Twig 5, which was the result of necessity when they wanted to light art in the hallway of their apartment. 

Available to visit by appointment only, their showroom, impressive lighting selection and collection of accessories result in a visually captivating scene. Apparatus has also combined with Brooklyn ceramicist Alice Goldsmith to create the Link Porcelain pendant as an examination of "the strength and vulnerability of the artist's porcelain chain".  

APPARATUS' distinctive products fill a void that they see is missing from the current market. Chandeliers, sconces and picture lights are created by a varied number of materials from around the world including spun brass, etched glass, horsehair and handmade porcelain.

Photos from APPARATUS Studio.

“Strata Study explores the organically occurring phenomenon of strata: layers of earth of vegetation in nature.”

Inspired By: Oliver Gustav Studio | Copenhagen, Denmark

We are beginning a new weekly series here at The Hudson Company Blog. Every Friday we will be featuring the people, places, or products that inspire us.  We hope that this new 'Inspired By' series will also be an inspiration to you.

Today we begin by sharing images from the beautiful studio of Oliver Gustav located in Copenhagen, Denmark. 

A creative consultant whose focus is on "artisanal and holistic interiors", Oliver's Studio also functions as a shop whose contents compliment the designer's tastes acutely. Here you'll find one of a kind pieces made of wood, stone, linen and ceramic along with marble or leather boxes by Michael Verheyden and with a variety of texturally compelling pieces that suite Oliver's signature look. His collection of larger scale works such as lighting and seating by Poul Kjaerholm complete the ensemble with flawless curation.

All photos from olivergustav.com.