Furniture designer Martin Szekely (b. 1956) has produced some remarkable limited edition furniture in stainless steel honeycomb mesh, stone and wood that is understated yet infinitely chic and sophisticated – just the type of pieces I love to get for the hard to please clients with a classic contemporary aesthetic.

The first, is the 2 cylinder console above.  It’s great, no? Because of tradition, most of us tend to think that a “console” should be a slender table with two legs and a single top most likely used in a vestibule, entrance or small hallway.  Szekely asks us to question this view and presents us with a pair of unattached cylinders that serve the same purpose, yet look remarkably different than what we normally associate with a console table.  Perfect in a room with dark floors and slate blue walls!

Less of a stretch to traditional thinking is the round table by Szekely made of the same materials.  Of a brutalist visual weight, the table could easily have been something from the 1970s, but its precious and exacting finishes could only be 2013.  It’s quite the looker. It’s also a no brainer in an industrial loft with concrete floors and a ton of metal accents.  But it’s also a superstar in a well-polished, colorful and warm interior where tension is created between the coldness of the stainless and finer furnishings in the rest of the room.

And just because you haven’t heard of Szekely, don’t think he’s one of the many designers that come and go.  He’s definitely here to stay. His work is in the collections of important museums from the Centre Pompidou to MoMA to the Israel Museum.

Galerie Kreo is one of the well-established galleries in Paris offering A+ contemporary design.  Located on the rue Dauphine on the Left Bank in the Quartier Latin, it is the brainchild of Clemence and Didier Krzentowski.  Together they present limited edition pieces created especially for the Gallery by an impressive roster of international designers.  In addition, the gallery has a serious selection of vintage lighting, mostly from the 1950s to present.  It’s one not to miss if you’re shopping design in Paris!!!

richard rabel
principal
richard rabel: interiors + art
interior design and art advising
new york city

image credits: Galerie Kreo, Paris