Dead spaces in our homes are full of untapped potential. These underutilized corners and oddly shaped alcoves present the perfect opportunity to integrate a piece of art and completely transform our interiors. Chrissy Teigen and John Legend demonstrate this concept with a stunning design beneath their stairs.
The couple's Beverly Hills residence is home to the 'Lily Pad Tree' sculpture by Nacho Carbonell. Its position beneath their curved staircase simultaneously highlights the beauty of the stairs' organic shape and brings a natural warmth to an otherwise empty space. As an artist who designs furniture-like sculptures, Carbonell's works are always in conversation with their surroundings. Homes & Gardens interviewed the artist at the opening for his 'Escaping Forward' exhibition at the Carpenters Workshop Gallery to understand how he views this intersection and how it works in Legend and Teigen's home.
For instance, the way the couple has decorated with art makes both the house and the work look more complete. This interaction between interiors and art is part of Carbonell's creation process. He states: 'Everything is in conversation with something else within the context and with the people that live with it. So, an artwork does not exist if it does not interact with you or with the context. That interaction is always on my mind when I'm designing.'
While it's easy to assume the Lily Pad Tree work was made specifically for this dead space based on the perfection of the design, Carbonell doesn't believe that the interior design comes before the work, or vice versa. Instead, they mutually inform one another in a flow of gut feeling. He states: 'The interior design is always kind of a vague idea, but I let the process guide me to the final piece. So l I might start with a very clear idea and I might end up with the opposite. At the beginning of my career, I tried to create lights and I failed for about five years. Every time I tried to create a light, it became a chair.'
Furthermore, Carbonell believes that his sculpture found its perfect home in Teigen and Legend's cozy corner. 'The piece has been created and somehow it found the right context to exist in,' he tells Homes & Gardens. 'The dialogue between the stairs, the open places, the light, everything fits. It's kind of like the perfect marriage. You never know who is the person that you are gonna cross in your life that you're gonna have this special narrative or this special connection with. Pieces and interiors, they happen to be the same as finding your soul mate.' Together, artwork and interior both make one another more beautiful.
Browse work from a collection of creative minds who transcend boundaries between art and design. Maybe you'll find the next perfect piece for your home
When you are choosing art for your home, Carbonell advises following your bliss, and not letting dogmas about design or art coming first get in the way. He states: 'It's never a linear process. It's like when you create and it's like, which comes first a sketch or the final piece? I've had both cases. So it depends. Sometimes you own things that you love so much that you make the context around that piece and sometimes the context is asking you, because you love that context so much, that corner, that window that you look for something that really matches. Again, it's all about the conversation between the object and the place.'
Whether it's a work from Nacho Carbonell or a piece from your favorite local artist, it's the narrative between interior design and artwork that creates something bigger than both could be individually. If you're feeling unsure, don't forget to follow your heart.
