Archives for posts with tag: luxury

Anyone lucky enough to have been invited to pop along to Walpole’s Press Day at Liberty back in July, might well have caught a glimpse of something quite remarkable.

Pride of place on the Ettinger stand, sat the beautiful ‘Ettinger Flowers’ – a sculptural leather piece designed and made by Bridget Bailey of Bailey Tomlin, commissioned for the event by Ettinger and made entirely from Ettinger leather.

'Ettinger Flowers' - Bridget Bailey (photo credit Gareth Davies)

'Ettinger Flowers' - Bridget Bailey (detail)

We love seeing collaborations in any sector, but this one is particularly special.  Robert Ettinger, CEO of Ettinger is mentoring Bridget through the Crafted mentoring programme, developed by Arts & Business in partnership with Walpole.  Generously funded by American Express, who were seeking to fund and create a bespoke initiative to support heritage, Crafted matches craft makers with leaders from the luxury sector, with the aim of growing a range of diverse and entrepreneurial craft businesses and to nurture an environment which values and appreciates the handmade.  Crafted’s main ambition is to increase self-sustainability & stimulate business growth amongst craft entrepreneurs by providing them with vital mentoring and business advice, while connecting luxury businesses with a new generation of skilled craftsmen.

Ettinger are one of the few remaining British luxury leather goods companies still manufacturing in the UK, producing the most exquisite leather items with a commitment to craftsmanship and heritage, and are a proud holder of a Royal Warrant to HRH the Prince of Wales.  Robert Ettinger’s involvement in Crafted has been invaluable – not only helping Bridget develop her business in a meaningful way, but also contributing his incredible expertise at two of the Crafted workshops series… You can download and listen to the recordings for free here, on the Crafted website.

With year one of the programme drawing to a close, Arts & Business will be announcing the second year of partnerships in the Autumn, drawn from an incredible shortlist of craft makers, and an incredible portfolio of luxury leaders.  Watch this space!

Rose Enright

A rendering of ReardonSmith's proposed design for Corbin & King's new hotel in Mayfair

Corbin & King Hotels, aka Chris Corbin and Jeremy King, aka the management whizz team behind the wonderfully decadent luxury establishments The Ivy, Le Caprice and The Wolseley are to open a new luxury hotel in London’s Mayfair.  Ok ok, London’s not short of superluxe places to rest one’s head, but I’m pretty certain you can’t sleep in an artwork by a Turner Prize winner.

An inhabitable sculpture of a crouching man, entitled ‘Habitat’ and designed by Antony Gormley, will be a key feature of this new development, in partnership with Grosvenor.

Rather than an add-on or after thought, the integration of art, design and culture into the heart of hotel developments is rising in popularity.  The beautiful Andaz Liverpool Street – a member of Arts & Business – is no stranger to working in innovative ways with art and artists on-site; Damien Barr as reader-in-residence, official hotel partner for London Design Festival 2010 playing host to a wealth of world-class installations, and supporting Crafted – a mentoring programme developed by Arts & Business and Walpole which matched craft entrepreneurs with expert mentors from the luxury sector.

Jeremy King, speaking on working closely with art and culture on the new development on Balderton Street, Mayfair notes; “We believe that the art element will be symbiotic with the scheme rather than purely a decorative addition. This work by Antony Gormley is an exciting integration of a sculpture within the functions of the hotel, while providing a new landmark. The design has been developed so a unique guestroom can be accommodated within it.”

The new Corbin & King hotel is set to open in 2013.  We can’t wait.

Rose Enright

Sketch London

Michelin-starred restaurant Sketch and Arts & Business Principal Member GSK are coming together in a meeting of minds with a pop-up patisserie and cafe inside the Royal Academy from the start of December, coinciding with the opening of GSK’s second annual Contemporary season.

GSK Contemporary: Art of a Changing World will feature international contemporary artists, both established and up and coming using a multiplicity of media including exhibitions, film screenings and talks concerning environment and the modern world. It mixes the political, the environmental and the cultural, creating a series of works set to inspire debate. In its first year East London’s Bistrotheque set up their pop-up restaurant in tune with the exhibition called Flash made from art storage boxes.

Sketch will also be following the ethos of GSK Contemporary by using seasonal ingredients produced solely in Britain and using recyclable materials such as recycled heavy duty cardboard for furniture. Despite the eco-friendly credentials expect this pop-up cafe to be the height of glamour and design. The Sketch restaurants themselves went over a multi-million pound makeover at the turn of the century, and have strong links to art and music. They hold exhibitions in their own gallery, the last being of Noam Gonick and his works on Queer culture and human rights abuses in August. Exhibitions change every six weeks and they engage with new media with the use of projectors in their space.  Furthermore, the space will have input from Sketch’s Artistic Director Mark Lawson Bell who has also worked with Absolut Vodka, Hendrick’s Gin and Body Shop.

Of course with the gorgeous surroundings there will be sublime food. Imagine oyster bars and creperies, along with Michelin standard afternoon tea and lunch. The outside section – where you can order takeaways – should be comfortable with the cafe providing hot water bottles and blankets.

With this event we see the finest, most chic food mixing with innovative, radical art that pushes the boundaries. The pop-up restaurant opens on December 3rd and will be keeping the public enchanted and well fed for three months.