"Fortune favours the bold" they say. Well, by that logic I should be exceptionally fortunate as I have committed this week to putting together a stand for this year's Chelsea Flower Show in a total of 5 weeks. That's 35 days in real money. To put together something that usually takes months of painstaking preparation, including the build.
Squeak.
Still, the opportunity to show our pieces to 147,000 garden fanatics is too good an opportunity to pass up. The response from the artists has been fantastic, there are some truly wonderful pieces to display on the stand. We've been offered a great plot right by one of the exits from the Great Pavillion in the new 'Fresh' area, a feature new to Chelsea aimed at showcasing innovation and future trends. Exactly where we want to be.
The Fresh area features 3 tower installations by Jo Chapman
It is a great chance to talk to a large audience about how we are different from traditional galleries and sculpture gardens, engage with industry and clients alike and showcase some smashing pieces of art. Still, not to over-dramatise, the volume of work needed over the next few weeks will be herculean. I'll keep you posted of our progress through this blog, for the highs and lows, stresses & celebrations of assembling a show of this scale just keep reading...
If this blog were a film it would now cut to a montage of phonecalls, meetings and stressed looking people hammering nails into pieces wood. You'll just have to use your imagination for now.
Well, the site has been live for just shy of a week (they grow up so fast?!) and the most consistent feedback has been regarding the visualisation options that we offer. I thought I'd take the opportunity to give you a bit more detail on where and how it might be useful.
The point of visualisation is to offer our clients something that neither a furniture supplier, gallery or a sculpture garden can. You may see a piece of furniture/ sculpture in any of the above and think it is exactly what you are looking for, then take it home only to realise that it is just not right. 2D images can mislead, gorgeous photography is designed to sell products. A sculpture park may highlight a piece of work in the most idyllic situation, this same piece may look out of space in your own garden or you may wish to see it in a number of locations before paying to lay footings etc.
We offer three visualisation services; digital editing (photoshop), 3D modelling and Augmented Reality. For examples please see the embedded video below:
Which one(s) will prove most useful to you depends on what you are looking to visualise. For furniture
we usually find that a combination of 3D modelling and AR wrk best. When considering where to put your exterior dining/ seating there are a number of sensible rules to adhere to, e.g. for a dining area of 8-10 people you should allow a 4m2 space, excluding any thoroughfare. However, you may wish to highlight a particular part of your garden or are concerned that your furniture may look out of place. 3D videos are a great way to get a feel for what the set up would look like.
For an even better idea of how your pieces would look we can offer AR; we would meet you on site with a tablet device, through which you can see your own garden with the furniture/ sculpture in place. It really is an incredible piece of software.
Finally we offer digital editing, the most straight forward and cost effective way to visualise your piece. We send you some guidelines on what information we would need, you then send us a photo of where you would like the piece to sit, any additional requirements etc, and we send you the edited image(s) via email. It couldn't be easier and may help you make a different choice or simply confirm your decision.
When looking to invest in sculpture or quality furniture we think it wise to really scrutinise your choice, we would rather lose a sale than sell you a piece that you were not happy. This is not anti-capitalist altruism, purely a sensible approach for a brand that is based around product quality and excellent customer care. If you would like to discuss this further then do get in contact and one of our design team will be happy to help.
'Launch' seems an odd word for the release of a new website out into the big world wide web. It conjures up nautical images of grandiose ships in dock under bright blue skies, champagne bottles opulently smashing against their hull. This all seems a very far cry from the late nights I have spent huddled over a flickering screen, checking for defects in the dark and fuelled by coffee. Still, both have that heady mix of excitement and nerves about setting out on a new journey across unforeseen waters. I'm tempted to make some nautical puns about pushing 'full steam ahead' or 'choppy waters' etc, but I'll hold off in the interest of good taste.
Yesterday was the first day of Spring, March 20th 2012, a date chosen for its symbolism of fresh starts and optimism about the coming year. It is that wonderful time when people start to emerge from their winter bolt holes, squinting at the alien sunshine, and begin to consider spending more time in the great outdoors. Spring is my favourite season, I love the promise it holds and the range of nature's prizes we're given for making it through one more English winter.
Our site has launched with an initial range of furniture and sculpture, though there are a number of designs that we have deliberately held back. We shall slowly drip feed these out through this blog and our social media sites, seeking feedback and input from you, our loyal readers (well, hopefully one day you'll be loyal readers - I'm aware that this is our first blog entry).
We love feedback, whether regarding the site, our range, our sculptors or our message, so please do get in touch if you'd like to discuss anything with us. Collaboration is the driver of innovation, nothing gets created in isolation, which is an approach that we apply to everything that we do; from a specific product to our entire way of working. If you love something we do, tell us. If you hate something we do, tell us. Opening a design studio to the online world provides us with an unprecedented opportunity to grow and better ourselves, we want to continually improve and your feedback is an essential part.
For now I'll leave it there and sign off by saying a sincere welcome to this site and blog. Now, how best to clean the broken shards of champagne bottle off my laptop....?
