For many years clutter was seen as the enemy as homeowners attempted to recreate the minimalist interior design they saw in magazines.
But it seems the trend for hotel style bedrooms and bathrooms and beige living spaces with harsh edges and stark white furnishings could be dying out.
Auction house Christie’s has seen an increase in popularity of its decorative arts sales as buyers seek items to make their homes individual.
“There’s a greater understanding today that buying into this area is a way of displaying individuality and celebrating originality. A piece can become the focal point of the room, a talking point, or embellish a scheme,” Dirk Boll, director of Christie’s Europe, Middle East, Russia & India, told The Sunday Telegraph.
“Many hotels themselves are recognising that people want to stay in a space which has character and reflects a home environment rather than the more clinical ‘greige’ approach.
“This more characterful approach, as exemplified by designers such as Kit Kemp for Firmdale Hotels, can also allow the geographical environment to be represented rather than a ‘could be anywhere in the world’ feeling.”
While collecting allows individuals to put their own unique stamp on a property, environmental concern is also a significant factor. ‘
People want to soften the hard lines in their rooms, and feel that living in a beige environment is not very interestingLucinda Sanford
“The increased awareness of the environment today, particularly among the younger generations, is driving them towards purchasing in this space rather than new furniture. It’s a reaction against the ‘throwaway’ culture,” said Mr Boll
“Collecting is a big part of the British mentality. The excitement of a rare find, the obsession, the loyalty, the passion.”
Designers have also seen a change in interior styles. Interior designer Lucinda Sanford, feels that the move away from uniform interiors and a love of clutter maybe part of a uniquely British inheritance.
“People want to soften the hard lines in their rooms, and feel that living in a beige environment is not very interesting.
“In England our buildings are old we have great heritage.
“Many of us have grown up in homes with our parents collecting things, it’s very English to collect things, it’s in our DNA. I think it’s also in our genes to be eclectic, eclecticism is inherently English.’
Kings Road based interior designer, Natalie Tredgett she said: “There’s a renewed interest in a more maximalist, coulourcentric, mixing and matching.
“There is also a very important movement around the environment, the idea that things just shouldn’t be purchased and then disposed of, people are looking at objects differently.
“They are seeing them as ‘is this something I would like to keep in the long run, and why?’ It’s creating these craft based artistic led, one of a kind purchases with the idea of collecting.”’
This year Christie’s reported a year-on-year increase in the first half of 2018 for new buyers in the decorative arts category, which suggests that the resurgence of interest in collecting is here to stay.
Mr Boll said: “Whatever the definition, and whatever the budget, there’s a potential collection waiting for everyone.”
From the Telegraph
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