Having just received the most beautiful book in the post, a two volume set on Jean Royére, I thought I’d finish off the week with one of the French designer’s most iconic pieces, the Applique Liane, or Liane wall lamp. Made of painted metal and in various forms throughout the 1950’s and 60’s, it seems the Liane was first made for the Beirut hotel, Le Capitole in 1953.
Royére’s most significant source of inspiration was the ‘vegetal realm’, with clover, bouquets, mushrooms and particularly creepers. The Liane wall lamp, based on a creeper, is the most elegant expression of this realm, unfolding sinuously along the walls, sometimes even onto the ceiling. At the same time, the creeper’s simple cylindrical shades hang like small bell-shaped flowers from its stems.