Archibird, A Combination Birdcage and Console Table by Gregoire de Laforrest.

Made of bleached oak, stainless steel cables and glass 'Archibird' is the blending of sculpture and furniture. A one-off piece by designer and architect Gregoire de Lafforest, the birdcage (which functions as such complete with small washing pool, eating area and the ability to be opened for cleaning) is integrated into a bleached oak wood console table.




The original idea behind the piece was to reinterpret a bird cage that would radically change the way the feathered creatures are viewed and combine it with a functional piece of furniture to showcase the birds.




The glass domes or cloches represent taxidermy and serve as a reference to curiosity displays of the past.




The main intention was to strive for lightness as exemplified by the suspended nature of the bottom part of the cage held up by steel cables (close-ups shown below) and the tapered legs help achieve this aerial-like feeling.



The piece was constructed by les Ateliers Seewhy , measures 150 centimeters tall,  72 centimeters deep and is available through Galerie Gosserez.

Construction photos:







The final product:


DIMENSIONS: H: 150 cm - l: 200 cm - D: 72 cm
MATERIALS: Bleached oak, stainless steel cables and glass
Unique piece, price upon request
See more here 

Photos courtesy of Jérome Galland for Les Atelies Seewhy, Galerie Gosserez and the artist

About the designer:

Gregoire de Laforrest is an Interior designer and architect by training, Grégoire graduated from the ESAG Penninghen. He successively worked for some of the most prestigious interior design studios in France, namely Bruno Moinard, Noé Duchaufour Lawrence and Gilles & Boissier where he collaborated on major projects such as Hermès corporate headquarters in Paris, the Cartier jewellery shops, a private hotel for Veuve Cliquot and most recently for the “Ciel de Paris” restaurant at the top of the Montparnasse tower. -

A shout out to HellooDesigner where I first spotted this awesome project.

The "Fun"ctional art of Nicola L. Whimsical Aquariums & Furniture

French born Nicola L. (that's right, just an L. for the last name) is a conceptual artist who creates everything from performances, films and functional art. Having had a hugely prolific career for over five decades, she has shown in many galleries and has a clear affinity for heads, eyes and snails as you can see from some of her functional art pieces I've chosen to share with you below. Some of the following pieces were created as editions and may still be available for purchase via the galleries listed at the end of this post.

Heads:


above: plexi head fish tank

above: head aquarium and bar

above: detail

above: head library

above: wooden head bookcase

above: green head sofa

above: white vinyl head sofa

above: little heads tables

above: plexi head planter

above: giant head fountain

above: little fire head

above: giant fire head

above: the 12 faces rug

Eyes:

above: plexi eye ceiling lamp

above: Glass eye coffee table

above: large plexi eye wall lamp

above: plexi eye wall lights and lips floor lamp

Snails:

above: snail birdcage

above: blue snail sofa

above: snail wardrobe cabinet

above: snail table on snail rug

above: snail bed reflected in snail mirror

The artist:


A bit about her:
In the thirty years since her first exhibitions, Nicola L. has returned to the body on numerous occasions, producing extremely limited editions of lamps, see-through planters, aquariums, storage containers, tables, and her famous "Femme Commode" and "Femme Coffre Fort".

She had her first show at Daniel Templon Gallery Paris in 1969, followed by many exhibitions in european galleries and museums, with also a show in New York at Wadell Gallery in 1973. She moved to New York in 1979 where her functional work was featured between 1986 and 2004 in numerous galleries including: Alan Moss, Vrej Baghoomian, Peder Bonier, Wooster Projects and also recently at Twentieth Gallery in L.A. She is currently showing her work at Galerie Patricia Dorfmann, Galerie Pierre Alain Challier, and Galerie Catberro in Paris. Her last show in New York City was a retrospective at Ingrao Gallery in 2006.

Nicola’s work is frequently featured in auctions at Christie's, Sotheby's, and Bonhams & Butterfield. Her work is part of the permanent collections of the Museum of Beaubourg, Antwerpen Museum of Contemporary Art, The Museum of Modern Art of Glasgow, The Collection of The Frac Bretagne and many private American and European collections.



Recently, in 2008 she has had two shows in Paris, in April and May 2008, respectively, "Planet Eye" at Galerie Pierre Alain Challier, and "Functional Art 1989-2008" at Galerie Catberro, Paris.


above: THE RED COAT FOR 11 PEOPLE (1969) Last performance for Canal Plus+ at Galerie Favardin de Verneuil, Paris, Sept. 30th 2008

She is also continuing the performance with The Blue Cape, named now "The Blue Cape Of Human Rights".

The Book:



Buy it here


Learn more about Nicola here and see more of her work here.