Tuesday 13 April 2010

Objects of Desire 3

Leather bench
Strange where inspiration for designs crops up - this is the second time I have been moved to photograph seating in an airport or station, in this case in the new terminal at Toulouse airport on the way home from a very relaxed Easter break with friends.  I can easily see this shape, or something like it, appearing in a garden design soon.  I love the sinuous curves, the narrow blunted ends, the shallow taper towards the floor and, in this case, the gently ogival form. 
There were others - worm-like, kidney-shaped, amoebic - but this one caught my eye especially.  There is something of the sickle or the adze in its shape, and something too of the curves of ancient Cycladic sculpture.
There were plenty of great design details at the airport - squiggly metallic lines on glass screening, smooth cast concrete walls and beautifully finished timber screening that looked, at first glance, like random temporary cladding attached to the windows during construction, but which had a coloured glass joint at every intersection.  The benches were the stars though - all highly desirable...