With Salone de Mobile 2013 kicking off in Milan this week and bringing together design world VIPs, NOWNESS visited the London home of Marc Newson, and the St Moritz home of Rolf Sachs as part of NOWNESS‘s  “In Residence” series, helmed by Matthew Donaldson.

In Residence # 2:

Marc Newson – London historic home

A Fascination with Scale and Materiality Informs the Star Designer’s Home

Sharing the space with his wife, stylist Charlotte Stockdale, and their two children, NOWNESS described Marc’s home as  …… “A space-age aesthetic dominates Newson’s home, an unlikely look for a period building but one entirely reflective of the superstar designer’s streamlined visual language.”

The futuristic interior gives way to mock-Victorian details such as a wood-paneled library, one of several flourishes authored by Newson’s wife, fashion stylist Charlotte Stockdale

In Australian-born Newson’s most celebrated work—cabins for Qantas Airways and the Ford O21C concept car, for example—his finely honed eye for materiality reigns supreme; here that is reflected in the marble that lines his bathroom, the massive wall of river rocks from Nova Scotia (a “big deal” to achieve, he confesses) and the composite linen that forms his giant dining table.

His passion for metal is betrayed by a small display of unusual knives in the library ….  “I trained as a jeweler and a silversmith,” he explains. “I love the way metal is worked, and certain techniques and processes are best illustrated in objects like knives, which are, essentially, tools. They display an incredible level of ingenuity and skill.”

For Australian industrial designer Marc Newson, the sky is no limit. From mass-produced objects to limited edition furniture to fashion, Newson has blurred boundaries, mapped new territories, and made himself an international superstar.

Newson’s next projects will be a private jet interior for a member of the Qatar royal family and a fountain pen for Hermès.

“What holds my attention is variety,” says the consummate aesthete.

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In Residence # 1:

Rolf Sachs – St. Moritz Hideaway

Rolf Sachs hurtles down a toboggan run made from natural ice and invites us into his high art-bedecked Swiss mountain retreat in the first installment of our new film series, In Residence.

Directed by Matthew Donaldson, the video tells the story of the building that was originally erected for the 1928 Winter Olympics, when officials and VIPs filled stands on the roof and a band played national anthems from the balcony.

Sachs rescued the structure from dereliction, restored it to its former glory and brought in a period-relevant collection of design.

“It is very clearly a Bauhaus building, a functional building. There are no decorative aspects,” says Sachs, who has paired the utilitarian architecture with pieces from Dutch furniture maker Gerrit Rietveld and the Suprematist movement.

Sachs is at the heart of St. Moritz life. “I’m very involved with everything in town. The locals accept me as a local,” says the 57-year-old designer, a committee member of many clubs, including the St. Moritz Tobogganing Club that maintains the town’s famous Cresta Run.

His connection to the Engadine region was the subject of his recent exhibition Herzschuss in St. Moritz, in which he poetically reinterpreted some of the familiar motifs of the region.

“Having been brought up here I understand all of the materials, the originality of this place,” he says. “One aspect that is especially fascinating is the light. It is crystal clear, making it look like the horizon has been cut out with scissors.”

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