The furniture we'll keep when we move - Page 4

You must visit Sketch restaurant next time you are in London.

To what are you referring?

Ah, but most of the famed interior decorators were male, from David Hicks to Mark Hampton to Emile-Jacques Ruhlmann.

Since you speak about Schiele and Klimt, are you fond of Art Nouveau? Budapest has some magnificent examples.

Louis XIV is both French and rather masculine-heavy in its gravitas. It's really the Louis XV style that tends to be more "feminine," thanks to Madame de Pompadour.

Indeed, I however, only peruse art, and interior design with acquaintances, by day I'm a banker.

Though I cannot say that Art Nouveau is a penchant of mine, at times it can be rather pleasing. I'm also partial to Art Deco, though it is over rated.

Impressionism has to be my real penchant, my wife Rocco.

Louis furniture is nice, but too much of something that is hard to live with, but nice to look at; rather like my wife!

Thank you.

Ah, another fan of the Viennese Jugendstil painters. Off topic, would you happen to know which Schiele self-portrait was turned in to the logo for the MUMOK? I've been looking for a print of it but not having any luck.

For me, I have an eclectic mix of furniture. Some of it is disposable, like the Ikea table and chairs in my kitchen. Some is "designer" but utilitarian, meaning I'll keep it as long as it serves its function as well as or better than anything else I could buy. I count my home desks (both George Nelson's ur-Action Desks for Herman Miller, with white tops) and task chairs (a Teknion Contessa and Humanscale Freedom Chair) in that category. Other stuff I'll probably keep forever, like my Biedermeier-era dresser and wardrobe.

Ahhh...in that case, I have to plug some friends of mine (I did once before, but I think it was lost in the great crash: http://www.norwaysays.com/main.html They started out doing furniture and interior design, but right now, they're branching out in all sorts of industrial design; doing porcelain, bicycles, mp3 players, etc.

I looked at tehir Aalto desk before I settled on a similar design by Barber Osgerby.

It is terrific for them to get products manufactured by Offect and David Design. Being associated with Claesson, Koivisto and Rune can only do good things for their future.

Here's a favorite interior of mine:

Andre Breton's apartment at 42, Rue Fontaine.

Oh man, I would kill for a high-quality Schiele print. I was in Vienna this summer and was fortunate enough to catch a Schiele retrospective at the MUMOK if I remember correctly.

There's a Bay Area artist whom I enjoy whose work is slightly evocative of Schiele's work, her figures have a similar decrepit form, but she does lacquered black and red inks on wood. It's an interesting mix of nods to woodcuts mixed with Schiele and other influences.

Le Corbusier didn't design for comfort. Have you heard what he intended to do with Le Marais?