BLOG - Books

Perhaps it's all of the gloomy days we've been having in New York lately, or our latest project where we're custom building floor to ceiling bookshelves, but I can't get my mind off of books and bookshelves! Here's to curling up on a rainy day with a good book!

A few weeks ago I saw the film, Anna Karenina. This Tolstoy tome has been sitting on my shelf for many years and I just haven't gotten to it. However, I was excited about it due to a director, cinematographer, production designer trio I've come to adore. Joe Wright, Seamus McGarvey and Sarah Greenwood have all collaborated before with the film, Atonement. Wright and Greenwood have also worked together on the remake of Pride and Prejudice. Anna Karenina may have gone over as so so with the critics, but to my eyes it was a visual splendor. As always, sets and costumes are important to a film, but this one seemed especially rich to me. The opulence of the baroque style and the jewel tones contrasted with stark neutrals. 

The production design had the film taking place primarily within a theater. The theater itself was fairly pared down with only carvings in the wood to draw attention. After watching the film, I realized I was painfully ignorant of Russian architecture and interiors apart from the famous St. Basil's in Moscow. Russian architecture is filled with a colorful history and curling baroque forms.

St. Basil in Moscow

Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood in St. Petersburg

Peterhof Palace in St. Petersburg

Baroque Interior

St. Petersburg Chamber Opera House

Alexandrinsky Theater

For as long as I can remember I have been a huge lover of books. Not so much reading, per se, but rather the book as an object. Perhaps this is why I have such a hard time reading anything other than the news or emails on my iPad. When I sit down to read and retain, I need a book in my hands and the sound of pages turning and marking my progress.  There is something quite ancient and fascinating about books.  Few things have survived in their original design and intention for so long. From the time of Gutenburg and the invention of movable type in the mid-Fifteenth century, our use of printing, binding, and distribution of literature has remained the most important advancement of mankind.

A printer's press, like the one above (c. mid 16th century), could print up to 240 pages per hour.(From Wikipedia)

Books for me have been an escape and obsession.  I began collecting art books in high school and by the end of college my "library" outgrew my dorm room. Perhaps this is why I was initially drawn to my first apartment in New York. Once the broker told me that it was originally the library of the foundation that previously occupied the building,  I was sold. Two walls of the living room were lined with beautiful old bookshelves.

Georgia and I are kindred spirits in this regard, and it shows in much of the design work that we do and the furniture we have created. Both the Bibliophile's Dining Table and Collector's Coffee Table were born out of a need for some way to contain our amassing collections. When my husband and I were beginning to plan the layout of our new apartment, we  knew that we wanted and needed plenty of bookshelves. As planning turned to design, I began scouring the internet (and my books of course!) for images of the perfect home library. Over the course of the past few years I have found a new obsession-photographs of libraries and books. Below are a few of my favorites. Starting out with one of my dog, Bailey, happily resting on one of our new shelves.

All images above, except for "Bailey with Books" and where otherwise noted can be found on favim.com and or tumblr.com

One of my favorite things about Summer is lying about on the weekends and catching up on my reading.  Color: A Natural History of the Palette, by Victoria Finlay has made a prominent appearance in my rotation.  The book itself is as vivid and gorgeously written as its cover illustration.  While i am a collector and lover of books, I have recently run out of space in my cramped Manhattan apartment. After picking up an IPad, i pledged to myself that I would no longer purchase paperback books unless their packaging was something special. The cover of this book is just gorgeous!

What lies beneath the cover is equally as beautiful.  Color is at once informative and intriguing.  Did you know that green is not really green but rather the way a surface absorbs rays of light? Finaly's quest for the origins of color's uses throughout the ages brings the reader around the world and back in time.