Barbican and Made.com launch homeware collection celebrating iconic London estate
The Barbican Centre shop has launched a homeware collection with online retailer Made.com, which includes furniture and lighting modelled on details of the brutalist housing complex in central London.
Geometric, gridded and curved architectural references feature throughout the 23-piece MADE x Barbican homeware collection, which also includes textiles and accessories.
According to the Barbican, the collection was developed following research into the original Barbican Estate apartment layouts, including the work of designer Miriam Howitt, who created five show homes for the estate in the 1960s.
The pieces are designed to be used together or independently and prices start from £32.
"The ambition was to create a complete product range that works both in isolation and together in an open living space," said the Made.com team.
"The final designs reimagine products, graphics and architectural details through a new lens, and into a cohesive product range that captures Barbican living: bold, considered and inherently social."
The Barbican Estate was designed by Chamberlin, Powell and Bon in the 1950s and opened in 1982. It is one of the largest examples of post-war brutalist architecture in the UK.
Within it is the Barbican Centre – an arts and culture venue with theatres, galleries, cinemas, as well as a conservatory, a library and eateries.
A pair of stand-out pieces in the collection is the Curve Table Lamp and Curve Floor Lamp, which have adjustable, tubular shades that draw on the acoustic panels in the Barbican's concert hall.
The lights have chrome bases, with shades available in burgundy, green and blue, contrasted by their fabric cables.
Other lighting pieces include the Coffer ceiling lights and wall lights, which mimic the estate's iconic waffle ceilings, seen throughout its indoor and outdoor spaces.
Furniture pieces in the range include the Dual chairs, with statement side panels made of wood and modelled on the estate's concrete pillars, and the modular Plinth coffee table that echoes the sunken seating next to the Barbican lake.
Other furniture pieces include a dining table and chairs, two sofas, and shelving and storage.
Among the accessories is the Brute Rug, which takes visual cues from an original show flat designed by Howitt in 1967, in which she paired plain off-white flats with bold patterned carpets.
It is made from hand-tufted wool with a long shag pile, which the team said was intended "to deliver a retro feel".
The final pieces in the collection are a series of cushions and textile wall art, each depicting the facades and elevations from the estate.
Warm, neutral tones including mossy greens and rusty oranges are used throughout the collection for a mid-century look, contrasted with stained ash and chrome accents.
To celebrate the launch, Made.com will be curating an installation at the Barbican Centre from 12 September that both showcases the collection and interiors of homes at the Barbican.
Other Barbican news recently featured on Dezeen includes the upcoming revamp of the complex by British architecture studios Allies and Morrison and Asif Khan Studio, and a 30-tonne earthen installation at the estate by Delcy Morelos, which was informed by a mother's womb.
The photography is by Felix Speller.
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