Friday 28 March 2008

Who are you?



Just to be clear. This is not about bashing either the architect or the couple, or the magazine, for that matter. It is an observation of something that use to be random, but is now occurring with far greater frequency, to the point of almost being acceptable. It's not.

The spread on the Venezuelan house in April's Elle Decor illustrated everything that is wrong with contemporary interior design and possibly, today's culture.

First and foremost there was no connection between the decor and the architecture, and, I suspect, its inhabitants. Every bit of the furniture could have been purchased from any design store anywhere in the world. The interiors could have been anywhere and belonged to anyone. That is not a house, that is an hotel.



While the couple's choices appear to be informed, they do not appear to be heartfelt. How can they be? How does that house reflect the where, the who, and the why? It doesn't and it can't. The house screams for some Nakashima and some Latin American art. Instead of all that Panton, Saarinen, and Linge Roset they should have looked at contemporary and vintage Latin American designs. Then, and only then, would the Scandinavian pieces have made sense. Within the larger and more relevant context of where and who, they would have served as exclamation points rather than big question marks asking why?

Wanting and having something is not always enough. There really needs to be a deeper connection between us and our possessions, otherwise it's all just Disneyland.

Here is the link to the spread -
http://www.pointclickhome.com/elle_decor/articles/perfectly_clear

BTW : Coffee + Schnauzer + Laptop = No pictures and a new Dog Rug

11 comments:

Pigtown*Design said...

what a bummer... connor sits under my desk, since he's too big to be on my lap(top).

bon weekend!

HOBAC said...

Shit happens - just wish it could be fixed faster. They weren't even open to bribery, what's this world coming to?

Pigtown*Design said...

eejits!

Reggie Darling said...

Hullo,
Have been following your blog for some time now. I believe you NAILED it with this post. I had the same reaction looking at that soul-less house. Beautiful, yes, but no "there" there.

katiedid said...

Sigh. I have to agree, but if it is the article I am thinking of, I was sort of fascinated by the fact that they cannot venture outside for fear of being kidnapped or worse. If you have the cash, why would you want to be held prisoner in your own home. They have bullet proof glass! For G's sake move.

HOBAC said...

Hullo Reggie - thank you. It is nice to know it's not just me.

HOBAC said...

Katiedid - that was the only bit that I found exciting! I get that kind of life, though, which is more common in developing countries that one could possibly imagine. There is a certain frisson to having an armed escort.

Easy and Elegant Life said...

Hello HOBAC,
Yes, that's the rub isn't it? I think that these people's tastes are formed by lives spent in boutique, designer hotels.

Mrs. E is from Venezuela and would argue about the armed escort.... of course my father-in-law is an ex-Navy SEAL. Now, a private helicopter, on the other hand.

HOBAC said...

E&EL - Though that is where my parents were married (at the time my father was a marine attached to the embassy), I have only been twice. I loved it.

Easy and Elegant Life said...

Well! My father-in-law was the head of the English Department at the Instituto Pedagógico de Maracay. Would have been somewhere around 1967.

HOBAC said...

They were married in November 1962, and left in 63.