Fresh From the Foundry
SA Baxter Design Studio & Foundry’s latest collections show what happens when clients become collaborators. Aesthetically divergent but united by their detail, Flauto (above left) was designed by Drake/Anderson, led by Jamie Drake and Caleb Anderson, while Shark (above right).is the work of Sasha Bikoff, known for her colourful maximalist style.
“As a creative professional, one always wants to do new things,” said Jamie Drake, speaking with Bikoff and SA Baxter’s Scott Baxter as part of London Design Week 2021’s virtual programme, with Drake talking from New York and Bikoff from Florida. “Knowing the fabulous quality of Baxter’s product, it felt like a perfect fit.” Flauto was inspired by classical architecture and fluted columns in particular, “from the Acropolis to the Jefferson Memorial,” said Drake. “We have a passion for historic design, and we think that the beauty of antiques can be transferred to a contemporary fashion.”
Bikoff’s suite of products, which include a door knob, knocker and cabinet knob, were derived from something more unexpected: the tooth of a megalodon shark, gifted to her by her builder at her East Hampton home while she was renovating it. Bikoff explained how, when she’s spending time by the sea, “they basically call me ‘nature girl’ – I’m surfing, paddleboarding, I fish…. I wanted something that reflected my lifestyle out there.” For her, collaborating is a means of bringing to life what resides in her imagination: “When I have all these ideas in my mind – something I want to make – it generally comes from things I can’t find myself. I consider myself in many ways an artist but I need another artist to realise that dream. I can sketch things on my notepad, but if I want that dream to become a reality, I need a partner.”
Both collections were made at SA Baxter’s Hudson Valley foundry using lost-wax casting, an ancient and painstaking method of manufacture traditionally used for sculpture or jewellery making – the results, however, speak for themselves, with the crisp detailing of Flauto and the faithful representation of every bump and curve of the original megalodon tooth only made possible by this technique.
Watch the ‘Spotlight’ talk here
SA Baxter Design Studio & Foundry,, Third Floor, Centre Dome
