Rick Owens: Furniture

"In an accompanying book, which will be published by Rizzoli in February, Owens emphasizes the contributions of Michele Lamy - his wife and creative partner, whom he affectionately calls "Hun" - in both the conception and creation of the furniture. 'Michele has always said in interviews that we didn't get together to have babies, and that's true,' Owens allows (when they married in 2006, he was 45 and Lamy was 62). 'But this is kind of our baby, because this is very much a story of a relationship. This is my aesthetic and I pass the ball to her, and then she responds and passes the ball back to me. That's what the furniture has become.'" -New York Times T Magazine "I love beautiful books," said Owens, explaining the reasons why he decided to develop the project. "And I want to preserve my work on my terms with my edit." The book collects a range of images showing Owens' different working environments, as well as his creations infused with his distinctive style combining contrasting forces. Art Deco, leather bars, World War II concrete bunkers and Egyptian tombs seen in black-and-white Thirties Hollywood movies are the major sources of inspirations, which Owens mentioned as references of his work." -Women's Wear Daily, The Scoop "Take a stroll through Rick Owens's new SoHo store and you'll find a series of rock crystal and camel hair-covered benches as perches for trying on the fashion designer's signature sock sneaker boots or structural cantilevered heels. Make your way up the colossal concrete stairwell, and there are geometric marble chairs puzzled between silver racks filled with leather jackets, funnel-neck dresses, and asymmetrical tanks. It's the perfect convergence of fashion and furniture, with everything single-handedly crafted by Owens. And while he's best known for constructing imaginative gothwear, Owens's creativity also expands into just-as-inventive furniture design. What started as a hobby with his wife, Michele Lamy, soon transformed into a full-fledged collection of antler chairs, bark tables, and marble plinths that originally occupied his Palais Bourbon home in Paris, as illustrated in his recently released tome, Rick Owens Furniture (Rizzoli, $60). AD caught up with the designer at his Manhattan flagship to discuss his interior influences, location-specific design, and the development of his "anti-cozy" crusade." -ArchitecturalDigest.com "This past weekend, Rick Owens and Michele Lamy feted the release of their latest Rizzoli book, Rick Owens Furniture, with a signing at their flagship store in New York City's bustling SoHo neighborhood. As can be expected from the cult designer, known for his dark, drapey layers, exaggerated silhouettes, and aggressive-looking footwear he once described as "monster trucks for your feet," devoted acolytes and industry friends came out in full force. The line snaked around the block of the two-story flagship store, and continued up the staircase where the books were being signed. Rick Owens' furniture line further fleshes out Owens' brutalist aesthetic. Lamy, Owens' wife and longtime creative partner whom he lovingly refers to as "Hun," does a lot of the work on the furniture line, liaising with the numerous artisans responsible for bringing the stark silhouettes into fruition." -HighSnobiety.com

Rick Owens is an American fashion designer and winner of the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Award.