Notes on our most coveted art & design pieces and collaborations.
£50
This year, we’re turning our Christmas tree into a gallery for artworks by leading lights. Figures kiss under the mistletoe on these shatter-proof baubles, hand-painted by British-Nigerian artist Sola Olulode, known for her wistful images celebrating Black identity, womxnhood, non-binary people and queer love. Who doesn’t love a little romance at Christmas time?
£17.50
Snarkitecture’s Daniel Arsham and Alex Mustonen have given traditional tree decorations a subtle twist for Seletti. Among their perfectly imperfect creations is a melting snowman, broken bells and a disintegrating bauble. All come in their trademark white, of course.
€4.50
True to form, the British artist Luke Edward Hall turned to classical inspiration for his Christmas decorations for Svenskt Tenn. Named after the Greek god of the sea, Triton is a collection of brass pendants with a tinge of the baroque, including this galleon pendant that makes us want to sail back in time.
€550
On this Black Friday we’re forgoing the sales, instead suggesting gifts that give back to communities in need of support. Art-loving skaters shouldn’t go without this triptych of boards bearing Jean-Michel Basquiat’s 1984 work, Trumpet. Inspired by his passion for jazz, it features classic Basquiat hallmarks, such as a stick figure and crossed out letters. Perhaps more suited to a wall than a half pipe, it’s one of many artist editions sold by The Skateroom, which puts a share of its profits towards empowering youth around the world, building new skateparks and developing education facilities.
£456
Your loved ones will sit pretty on this stool by sculptor and ceramist Emmely Elgersma for The Sarabande Foundation, knowing that proceeds from your gift will support its mission to provide artists with studio spaces and new opportunities. The pistachio-coloured stool is made from a confection of papier maché, recycled IKEA Mammut, polypropylene, newspaper, acrylic and varnish. It looks good enough to eat.
£5,000
Ishkar is a London-based business that sells artisanal wares by makers in war-torn and politically unstable countries, giving them economic opportunities and helping to keep regional crafts alive. It was only a matter of time before Ishkar co-founder Edmund Le Brun tapped his artist father Christopher to collaborate with the artisans. He has designed a series of rugs in limited-editions of five that are made to order by highly skilled hands in Afghanistan. It takes two weavers up to six months to translate his colourful, abstract designs into Ghazni wool, known for its luxurious finish. Weaving is one of the few professions that women are still permitted to do by the Taliban, because it can be done in their own homes. Gift yourself or someone you love a rug, and you’ll be giving the weavers a vital lifeline.
€140
For serving spoons with a difference, turn to L’Oeil de KO. This platform for artisanal objects is brought to us by Studio KO, the Paris and Marrakech-based architecture practice behind the Yves Saint Laurent Museum in Marrakech. Anything will taste good served from this curvaceous brass beauty by Lisbon metalsmith Sebastião Lobo.
£50
Louise Bourgeois is best known for her giant spider installations, but textiles also played a lead role in her work, perhaps as a result of working in her parents’ tapestry restoration workshop in Paris when she was young. This quartet of corkboard placemats from the House of Voltaire features eye-popping textile designs from her archive to give some geometric drama to your tabletop.
£495
Add a pinch of surrealism to your dining table this festive season with a pair of salt and pepper grinders by American artists, the Haas Brothers. With wooden bases, topped with gold heads, the condiment holders bear the typically playful spirit of twin brothers Nikolai and Simon, who like to blur the line between art and design.
Freya Bramble-Carter’s ceramic vases have a visceral quality – you can’t help but reach out and touch their glaze-laden surfaces. The London-based artist trained under her father Chris Bramble but she likes to ‘unlearn’ the rules, taking a highly experimental approach to her craft and allowing the making process to determine the final result. Named after the Greek goddess of flowers, her Antheia Vase for the House of Hackney is a bulb-shaped beauty with a luscious concoction of glazes that appears to run down its surface. It gives a humble bunch of flowers a spiritual dimension.
