A Piano Fit For Royalty
The Edelweiss ‘Vintage Floral’ G66 Flugel created with Oliver Burns Interiors, London
In 2022 Edelweiss Creative Director, Mark Norman, began work with highly recommended ‘thoughtful luxury’ interior design company, Oliver Burns, to design a bespoke marquetry piano for their London property project.
Taking inspiration from the Palace Gardens, the latest project from Oliver Burns is the
development of luxury apartment House of Walpole located adjacent to Buckingham Palace. This development was in conjunction with Northacre Properties and included the most exquisite bespoke interior design items from the UK.
The piano, a standard Flugel Grand, is taken and re-invented as a complementary statement piece which becomes the talking point in any interior; the self-playing system adds a further refreshing dimension, enabling the combination of live acoustic music with a unique art piece: Art and the Art of Music combine.
For this brief a design was needed that could reflect the grandeur of the setting whilst combining with a whimsical contemporary twist that could both delight and surprise.
The classic baby grand piano design with custom ‘vintage’ turned legs was opted for to provide a link back with traditional English heritage; then to add a surprise element a completely colour contrasting interior, hidden out of sight until the wing lid is opened, was also specified there still needed to be a connection with the beautiful view over the Palace Gardens, and for this the client favoured marquetry work – but there wasn’t budget to cover a complete custom veneer piece – so a contemporary compromise was suggested.
A distinctive floral design, was championed and exquisitely crafted into a magnificent
feature inlay design across both the main lid and music desk flap, the case was then finished in a pigmented lacquer excepting where the inlay was, which was finished totally clear, then the whole was burnished to a high gloss.
The resulting effect is a very pleasing contemporary take on the traditional chinoiserie style, with the feature inlay providing a splendid ‘depth of field’ perspective, creating an almost three dimensional effect.
For more information on our bespoke projects and how we work with Interior Designers click the link below.