Designer Nicolas Aubagnac and his partner Delphine Read have focused on private interior design commissions for 16 years and what wows me is some of the furniture and lighting designs they’ve crafted for their clients – both for private and high end decorators.

What I appreciate about Aubagnac’s contemporary pieces is that they have a nod to the past, whether in technique, finishes, materials and shapes, but are still very TODAY.  He uses exquisite and rare materials like parchment, shagreen, lacquer, leather, gold and bronze to craft exceptional pieces that are signed and stamped as part of a limited series.

Featured today are my favorite cocktail tables designed by Aubagnac – each different yet timeless in their impossible quality, style, beautiful proportions and luxurious decoration.

Byzance is a rock n’ roll table whose base is made from forged iron meticulously covered in 24 karat gold and a wood top articulated with different size roundels of brown, green and sand colored lacquer.

Helios, on the other hand, is Byzance’s preppy older brother – call it classical contemporary.  Made from tinted ash wood and sunburst marquetry, it exudes unpretentious luxury at its finest.

Nowadays, people think “tradition” is a bad thing … something stale, old and un-hip. It’s people like Aubagnac who show us it’s nothing but!

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

image credits: Thierry Malty courtesy of  Studio Nicolas Aubagnac, Paris