PARED-DOWN DESIGN: LIM WINDOW DISPLAY
Being fortunate enough to live just off Kloof street, I have the luxury of walking where I need to be. It allows me to experience the city by foot and in old European fashion, spoil my designer eye with a variety of architecture, restaurants and window dressings.
One day I passed a little Art Deco entrance and on second glance realized the furniture from an account I followed on Instagram. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw Lim Furniture situated just up the road from my apartment.
ITEM: BLACK CUPBOARD
Photograph: LIM Furniture Art director: Jan de Wet / Annina de Swardt
Artwork: Jan de Wet
What captured my eye immediately was the way old and new came together in the conceptualizing of the merchandise. Clean lines, sharp corners and simplicity are adjectives that come to mind when thinking about form. However, what gives it its elegance and charm is the way its married with beautiful traditional materials and fabrics like velvet, bronze mirror and marble. It also struck me when I left the shop, that the architecture itself embodied this character - a space shared between a Victorian house and Art Deco shop.
ITEM: VELVET
Photograph: LIM Furniture Art director: Jan de Wet / Annina de Swardt
Artwork: Jan de Wet
Shortly after, I met with Denise Francklin [general manager] to discuss the possibility of working collaboratively after-which the idea of a window dressing was born.
Being an architect, my mind immediately started organizing shapes. Furniture and merchandise became pure forms and much like the abstract expressionists I planned by grouping geometric lines and shapes to create a composition.
ITEM: CUBIC SIDE TABLES
Photograph: LIM Furniture Art director: Jan de Wet / Annina de Swardt
Artwork: Jan de Wet
The challenge, I realized only when we started implementing the design, was working in a very limited space. Being project architect for the renovation of a shopping center, I had to condition my mind to consider the space a vase or lamp consumed, and regain an appreciation for confined and negative space.
ITEM: ARCHED LAMP
Photograph: LIM Furniture Art director: Jan de Wet / Annina de Swardt
Artwork: Jan de Wet
In this post I have selected 5 items that we used in the window dressing and incorporated them into a geometric arrangement. The artworks show the thinking behind the design for the windows and they way they were put together.
ITEM: BENCH
Photograph: LIM Furniture Art director: Jan de Wet / Annina de Swardt
Artwork: Jan de Wet
Pauline Mutlow, founder of LIM, has created a studio that can pride itself for the attention given to detail. Every piece is designed to be no more than it has to be, simple and refined with packaging that is done delicately and precise.
A personal note of thank to Pauline and Denise for allowing us to work with their beautiful merchandise.
