Artisan House Announces Las Vegas Market Introductions

Furniture World Magazine

Artisan House announced that those entering Artisan House, Inc.'s® Las Vegas Market showroom will have an opportunity to experience the energy and fascination of a piece of kinetic, or moving, artwork. The firm's new freestanding contemporary sculpture, "At Last," is not only stunning to behold but can be "eco powered" by the wind or the breeze of a blowing fan, says John Shilling, the firm's president. "With its sleek stainless-steel design and ingenuous construction, we expect this handcrafted, U.S. made sculpture to launch Artisan House into an exciting new product category," Shilling says. Designs like "At Last" will also fill the gap between custom pieces seen in public and private institutions worldwide, and unique, investment-quality designs priced far less than traditional high-end pieces, he adds. Artisan House plans to introduce two additional freestanding kinetic sculptures to its line-up by the end of 2009. "At Last" has a mid-century modern design with three rectangular, elemental pieces connected by bearings that are welded and sealed at the joints. "When the bottom element is pushed, the other two play off its movement," says Shawn Coffey, head artist. "At Last" is ideal for indoor or outdoor display. Indoors, the freestanding kinetic sculpture can also be coupled with two other similarly-styled Artisan House pieces including "Inclusion" (wall décor) and "Cubicle" (coffee table). Other new Artisan House designs to be showcased in Las Vegas include "Fontage," "Purity," "Pixels," "Open Windows" and "Power Point" "Fontage" is an interpretation of a classic C. Jeré Studio design introduced in 1965. The idea to reintroduce the wonderfully-retro piece came when Shilling saw one of the originals featured in a home installation in a recent issue of Architectural Digest magazine. "We actually created 'Fontage' from a picture because there were no records of the original design - not even the name of the piece," Shilling says. Coffey christened the new design "Fontage" after the name of a font. "Like the piece itself, the word 'fontage' has a hip yet elegant, European feel about it," Coffey says. "Fontage" has long, wispy metal pieces, with centerpieces crafted of flame-treated solid copper. Its neutral colors will fit companionably with a variety of decorating styles. The three-piece wall décor set called "Purity" also rocks a retro vibe, thanks in part to the shiny "river" that meanders throughout each piece and lends a sense of movement. The "riverbank" on either side has an organic look formed by hand-cut pieces of metal tinted with blues, purples and reds. The power of purple is expressed in "Pixels," with a monochromatic look created by different shades of purple including deep dark purple and lighter pinkish purple. The sculpture's layering effect comes from different sizes of ground steel. "The overall design is like when a Direct TV system isn't working," Coffey says. "That frustrates most people, so I wanted to make a piece that had the same effect but wasn't upsetting." Although sold as one piece, two or more "Pixels" can be interlocked together to form a larger wall presentation. The brightly-colored "Open Windows" boasts a wavy, undulating design with a parallelogram shape. Its retro, pop theme is the result of the combination of "waves" with the polished hard wire in the piece's armature. Colored plates are made of ground tinted steel. "Power Point" has a cause-and-effect design generated by the explosive energy of a copper circle and tapered copper element introduced to the tapered, ground-steel bursts that form its outer spokes. Artisan House pieces are sold in home furnishing stores, art stores, outdoor furniture stores, and at billiards, pool and spa retailers. Commercial customers include major department stores like Nordstrom, restaurants, bars, hotels and casinos. The firm's permanent showrooms are located in High Point (IHFC Design Center, Space D208) and Las Vegas (World Market Center, Space A-300). Artisan House has also exhibited at the Tokyo Furniture Market; Interiors Birmingham; Atlanta Gift Market; New York Art Expo Show; Maison et Objet; ASEAN Furniture Show (Singapore); Ambiente Frankfurt; Furnitex, Melbourne; and Interiors UAE (Dubai). In November 2008, Artisan House announced its expansion into the European market. The firm is committed to having an international avenue for its product and being a leader in its field throughout Europe. To help assess, develop and implement the company's European market, Artisan House turned to John Breckman. Breckman has served as a fashion agent in the United Kingdom for over 40 years. Breckman, who sees Europe as a "largely untapped market" for Artisan House's fine metal art sculptures, will work to build the structure that is needed to successfully introduce the company's designs in Europe. This involves an ongoing dedication to building a network of sales agents and warehousing and distribution capabilities. For additional information about Artisan House visit www.artisanhouse.com.