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The Star Online: Lifestyle: Arts & Fashion

Posted: 16 Oct 2011 01:24 AM PDT

An exhibition of luxury goods demonstrates a uniquely British sense of art and design.

WILLIAM Asprey is the first to admit that having items from his luxury emporium on display in an art gallery seems incongruous. More than promoting products, however, the William & Son, The Best Of British Brand And Design exhibition is about celebrating design, particularly the uniqueness of British design and workmanship.

Encompassing everything from watches, jewellery, sterling silverware, leather bags and even lovingly handcrafted leather board games, the exhibition, currently on in Kuala Lumpur, gives a glimpse of the diversity of goods produced by William & Son. More than that, it provides an interesting example of how art can be incorporated into otherwise functional objects to create something quite special.

William, 45, is no stranger to the world of British luxury goods and objets d'art. As a seventh-generation member of the Asprey family, renowned founders of the jewellery and luxury goods retailers on Bond Street, London, he has been thoroughly immersed in it since childhood.

To him, being involved in the business is not just about selling products, but educating his clients too, on design as well as the importance of fine workmanship when it comes to luxury goods.

It is undeniably an ethos William learnt from his years with Asprey, and despite parting ways with the company about a decade ago – the Asprey brand is no longer owned by the family, and William lost the legal right to trade under the name – he still carries those lessons with him.

"I very much see myself as carrying on my family traditions. But what we are doing is taking those traditional values, like customer service and emphasis on quality, and putting a modern twist to them," he says.

It is an approach that has obviously served William & Son well. In the 12 years since it began at London's Mount Street, the brand has established itself as one of the go-to places for quality objects of wear and decor. In 2009, it received its first Royal Warrant for Goldsmiths and Silversmiths from Queen Elizabeth II.

For William, who serves as company chairman, art is an inseparable aspect of his business.

"When it comes to quality luxury goods, the line between art and functionality is often blurred," he adds during an interview in KL early this week.

"The way people live now has also definitely gone the way of wanting that artistic element in their objects. We at William & Son want to be seen as producing wonderful things that are a little quirky, thereby making it art."

British design, he explains, can be characterised by its attention to detail and a desire to add an unusual twist to something familiar.

"British designers have always been wonderful engineers, but their eccentricities help too. Look at the people we think of as prominent British designers, like Alexander McQueen or John Galliano. They were always thinking of these mad things!"

Such whimsy is abundantly on display at the exhibition, such as an eye-catching set of handmade silverware with bubble detailing on the exterior, or the elegantly-tooled leather backgammon sets. Also on display are a series of gorgeous bags made of unusual skins such as crocodile or ostrich, in vibrant shades like mustard and orange.

The exquisitely handcrafted jewellery, on the other hand, features creative yet wearable designs set with precious and semi-precious stones in an array of hues, while cufflinks in a multitude of styles feature everything from elegant metals and stones to quirky motifs.

Despite being in the retail business, William & Son is not so much concerned with appearing trendy as being eager to please its clients.

"We're fashionable rather than fashion. We make things to last, and we don't overly brand our products. We want the quality and design of our objects to speak for themselves, not shout our name," William says.

With three in-house designers, as well as longstanding relationships with suppliers and craftsmen, the company is able to maintain its extremely high standards.

Working as far as possible with local craftsmen who have been plying their trade for generations, particularly with silver, leather and jewellery, the brand maintains that intrinsically British quality.

"One of the jewellery firms we work with, the current owner's father and grandfather worked with my father and grandfather!" William says.

He points out that employing such companies allows him to be much more involved in the manufacturing process. Furthermore, a long-term relationship with craftsmen is what enables William & Son's world-renowned bespoke service.

"We create what the client wants. It's about listening to your customers rather than telling them what to have. We'll come up with designs to give them choices and ideas, but at the end of the day, we want them to walk away feeling delighted with what we've made for them," he adds.

William & Son, The Best Of British Brand And Design is on at Shalini Ganendra Fine Art @ Gallery Residence (No. 8, Lorong 16/7B, Petaling Jaya, Selangor) until Oct 31. Viewing from 11am to 7pm, Tuesday to Saturday.

For more information, 03-7960 4740 or go to shaliniganendra.com.

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Photo surreal

Posted: 16 Oct 2011 01:21 AM PDT

Artfully abstract images find unexpected ways to celebrate the ordinary and everyday elements of life.

THE field of photography in Malaysia has been expanding rapidly over the years with new technology becoming affordable and more spaces springing up to showcase works.

Despite the advent of sophisticated digital technology and tools, though, British photographer Paul Gadd is resolute about his emphasis on film photography and dark room technology. In July this year, Gadd opened The Print Room in a spacious bungalow along a quiet lane in Section 16, Petaling Jaya, an upmarket residential area in Selangor.

The Print Room serves as Gadd's centre for visual arts especially in classical fine art photography. This is where he also conducts classes in such photography with a studio and darkroom where students can develop film processing and printing the good old fashioned, manual way.

"Photography is an art form," Gadd says firmly. "The original photographs were fine art. Nowadays this form of art is being killed by digital photography, which tends to make photographers lazy.

"People snap hundreds and delete most of them instead of thinking, planning, focusing and composing the perfect shot at the moment. Film makes you think about the moment and the composition, and you make significant choices before you press the shutter.

"We passionately believe that only with a foundation in classical photography techniques can the photographer begin to approach photography as a fine art.

"Our specific emphasis and pride is to offer students an opportunity to learn to handle a traditional manual film camera, to process film, and to print photographs in the classical way. My students are sent out with just one roll of 25mm film and they have one hour to shoot."

Gadd's first exhibition at The Print Room coincided with the launch in July of his book, People Of Malaysia: Five Minutes, which features 150 images of Malaysians throughout the country. The gallery's latest exhibition is 10 – Abstract Works Of 10 Photographers, showcasing examples of abstract photography by both professionals and amateurs.

The Print Room called for submissions online and received responses from around Asia and from as far afield as Britain and Australia.

The final 10 selected to show their work alongside Gadd's were Britons Richard Kaye and Roger Dean; Malaysians Alex Lee, Chan Kin Wah, Shahrizuan Shaharuddin, Yong Yen-Nie and Yoong Khean; South Korean Chris Sang-hwan Jung; and Welshman Aled Rhys Hughes.

The images feature what are otherwise everyday subjects captured in surreal and dramatic views. The images "appeal to our primal sense of colour, curves, forms and textures".

They can be both confusing and delightful at the same time, and subjects are isolated or exaggerated; vague shadows fall across a wall, or a vast ocean conveys both peace and isolation at the same time. The images elicit varying responses like this, as each appeals in unique ways, another common trait in abstract photography.

"The pictures were formed from multiple exposures, camera movements, collage of images, compositions construed from multiple negatives, surreal juxtaposition of subjects, visual manipulation of perspective or scale....

"There are also examples of figurative works that take on abstract meaning simply from compositional framing or play of light and shadow all created through the eye of the photographer to achieve his artistic agenda," explains Gadd.

"After my earlier Five Minutes, we decided that the next phase was to involve other film photographers. Five Minutes was more on portraits and people don't really want a portrait of strangers on their walls looking down on them at home.

"Abstracts allow the photographer to explore his creativity where each image is an opportunity to express an emotion or an idea."

10 – Abstract Works Of 10 Photographers is on till Nov 13 at The Print Room, No. 49, Lorong 16/9E, Section 16, Petaling Jaya, Selangor. Enquiries, % 03-7931 2227 or visit theprintroomkl.com.

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Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

Ahad, 16 Oktober 2011