We were thrilled to host an exciting panel discussion with some of Australia's top designers, as part of our We Live In Your World campaign. Industry professionals and design enthusiasts gathered in our flagship Richmond showroom to hear Simone Haag, Brahman Perera and Shona McElroy in a conversation on creating warm and connected interiors. Dan Swart, Hali's director introduced the discussion with the idea, "Design isn't just about how a space looks, it's about how it feels, the stories it tells and the life lived within them.
Image: From left - Designers Simone Haag, Brahman Perera, Shona McElroy with HALI director Dan Swart. Stage furniture supplied by Domo.
Simone, Brahman and Shona were all in agreeance that story and narrative enriches a home. Brahman further offered, "...when you pick up a nice piece of pottery oryou are lying, playing with your children on a beautiful handmade rug and you feel all the textures and all of the>workmanship that goes into it, I think that from a very sensorial aspect you can understand the work that goes into a piece. And your body reacts, your emotions react. And you can understand that, workmanship, craftsmanship, time,someone's time, like the most valuable thing that you can give to someone else is all imbued in what that product is or what it is that you're holding. I think that's why people are attracted to pieces that are made by hand".
Authenticity came up again and again in the context of what gives a home personality and soul. Shona talked about daily rituals, if you are designing a space, the daily rituals and lifestyle of the family are a great place to start to create a space that truly serves its inhabitants and reflects the reality of their daily lives. And decorating with pieces that genuinely excite and resonate with you. Be it items collected from travels or books about subjexcts of genuine interest as Shona explained, "I think a good place to start is with personality and things that you like if you're sort of starting from a clean slate. Like a good coffee table book of something that you actually really love is a really cool place to start. If you like Bauhaus or you like an artist or you like Andy Warhol, whatever, whatever it is - boats, cars, whatever it may be, there's a coffee table book for it. Let me tell you."
Simone made a great argument for investing in quality pieces, such as a handmade rug "There is sometimes an idea of, oh, let's not get the good rug until the kids have grown up, or let's not get the good whatever, and I think what I know about Hali and the family and the approach to longevity and quality is that - don't wait for that moment for that good rug because you know, it's the, "Oh, you know, my daughter took her first steps there," or those kind of things. So it's actually not reserving selections for later in life, but actually having them as the canvas."
It was fabulous to welcome such an engaged crowd of interior designers and design enthusiast to enjoy this informative and warm discussion from the industry experts.
