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David Rockwell
David Rockwell
POINT OF VIEWS
POINT OF VIEWS
David Rockwell is a near iconic figure in
the design world – from interiors to
furniture to stage sets – he is a defining
visionary whose interdisciplinary
practice has transformed how we eat in
restaurants, stay in a hotel, and even
experience a piece of theatre. We are
swept up into the vision when entering a
Rockwell designed home, sit under a light
fixture or on a piece of furniture, all of
which stay true to character:
sophisticated, confident, stylish, with
something of a cosmopolitan attitude,
not specifically New York City, where his
design studio, The Rockwell Group was
launched in 1984, and a city that clearly
has an influence on his style and energy,
but but which seems to perfectly capture
the pulse of whatever city where the
project is located. No added flourishes,
though nothing close to minimalist, David
Rockwell sets the stage perfectly and
lets us all enter in and enjoy the scene
fully. In 2016 he designed his first
furniture collection, Valet, with Stellar
Works, a 14-piece collection, which
includes a bar cart, lounge seating, and
customizable shelving, among other
pieces. Designed to work alone or in
combinations for both private and public
spaces, Valet is a perfect example of
Rockwell’s intuitive sensibility to what
clients need as well as Stellar Works
open embrace of creative collaboration.
Would you talk about the Valet collection-
its inspiration, how it came to be, and how
it was informed by the craftsmanship and
technologies available with Stellar Works?
David Rockwell: Valet for Stellar Works
is our first-ever furniture collection. We’re
always looking for new challenges, and ad-
mire Stellar Works’ ability to combine fine
craftsmanship with technical proficiency
to create beautiful, high quality furniture at
a reasonable price point. So collaborating
with Stellar Works seemed like the perfect
opportunity.
Our collection was inspired by the old-
er, traditional concept of a domestic
valet—a person who served as a personal
attendant responsible for the clothing and
personal accessories of his employer. We
5.
6.
7.
5 — David Rockwell, Valet Collection
6 — David Rockwell, Valet Lounge Chair
7 — David Rockwell, Valet Coffee Table
Quelle nouveauté apporte Stellar Works
au secteur de l’hôtellerie, grâce à son
positionnement culturel unique à la croi-
sée des héritages chinois, japonais et
français ?
D.R. : Stellar Works repose sur l’ex-
pertise d’une entreprise française
spécialisée dans l’ébénisterie, d’un
dynamique directeur général japonais et
d’une usine hautement performante de
Shanghai. La mise en commun de leurs
connaissances en matière de fabrica-
tion de mobilier a permis de façonner
des pièces combinant un haut niveau de
savoir-faire et les compétences tech-
niques de l’équipe de production de
Shanghai.
Notre studio a longtemps caressé l’idée
de produire une collection en Chine,
d’où provient une grande partie du
mobilier hôtelier. Le besoin de pouvoir
communiquer directement avec l’équipe
de production des pièces peut toutefois
compliquer l’établissement d’un par-
tenariat en Chine, mais l’ouverture de
Stellar Works sur le monde et son équipe
multilingue nous ont permis de rapide-
ment lancer le processus de création.
