Eoin Lyons with news and views on home decor.
BOOGIE NIGHTS If you're looking for a lighting system with a wow factor, but can't find anything sufficiently cutting-edge in Ireland, check out Irishman David Collins's design for Kabaret's Prophecy next time you're in London. This new nightclub in Soho is an experience as much as an environment.
Booth seating creates intimacy and a bar studded with Swarovski crystals adds sparkle, but the real joy of the place is the ever-changing colour from a computerised backdrop on the walls. The moving images are made from modular pixel blocks and are used to superimpose graphics and animations by a visual DJ each night. These images curve around the contours of the walls and wrap themselves into alcoves. The result is an environment that continuously evolves. At any given time, a red, blue, or green glow might be infusing the otherwise grey palette.
Collins also brought in artists such as Chris Levine, a light specialist who created a canopy of moving lasers around the club; Natasha Law, who embellished glass doors with line drawings of couples; and Jamie Hewlett, creator of Tank Girl, who came up with gritty-looking characters that crouch in corners. An antique-lacquered black chandelier with jet-black crystals once belonged to Collins himself and hangs in the entry, wired with a combination of blue and red lasers.
The effect is a reminder of what innovative technology combined with a clever, creative mind can do: create something glamorous, amusing and ever changing - the best nightclub recipe, and maybe just the thing for a technophile's living room. Kabaret's Prophecy, 16-18 Beak Street, London. 0044-20-7439-2229; www.davidcollins.com
HAWKING ITALIAN Now is the time to plan a trip to Milan for next year's annual furniture fair (Salone Internazionale del Mobile). Unlike fashion week, which is basically a closed shop, this enormous show is open to everyone (April 17th is public day). Just about every design store unveils new collections here. The fair takes place at the Fiera exhibition centre in north-west Milan (take the tube to Amendola Fiera). The area to head for first is Hall 20, where the big names such as B&B Italia exhibit. Also make sure you see Draide, a family-owned company that employs designers such as Philippe Starck and Patricia Urquiola to produce furniture at reasonable prices. It always sets out the trends of the season - colours, shapes, materials - in everything from kitchens to storage, sofas and accessories. Back in town visit the Draide store at 30 Via Manzoni. You should book your hotel soon or you may have difficulty getting a room. Tracy Tucker of Costume travels to Milan often and recommends Hotel Spadari near the Duomo cathedral, with rooms starting at €190. She also suggests Una Hotel Tocq (from about €120). It's located in Corso Como, one of the city's most fashionable districts.
MATERIALS GIRL One of the biggest stars of the furniture world today is Italian Patricia Urquiola, but women designers in the past had a rough time. Frenchwoman Charlotte Perriand (right) was a member of the Parisian avant-garde in the 1920s and 1930s, and although she achieved considerable success, she was overshadowed by her 10-year collaboration with Le Corbusier. The connection began when Perriand was 24 years old - and her skill at creating practical solutions to everyday living still influences furniture design today. One example is the dining table of flexible length, now so popular, or the tables shown here (left), which can work together as a large table or as separate pieces. Cassina, the Italian manufacturer, has now reproduced some of Perriand's designs, and they are available in Ireland through Haus, Crow Street, Temple Bar, Dublin 2 (01-6795155)