In the shadow of the Bibendum in Brompton Cross once nestled a bar called The Crescent.
Run by, amongst others, Paul Medhurst (a friend, and now purveyor of the chicest hampers known to man, at whiskhampers.co.uk) and stewarded through thick and thin by Norman Ellard, it was the best kept secret in South Kensington. Before my wife was my wife we would regularly rendezvous here on any evening remotely near a weekend (5 out of the 7 evenings available). These were gentler times, when the hedge funds were mere cuttings and The Beach was nowhere near The Fulham Road, and one could easily find oneself jostling with Madonna and Guy Richie as they sought a discreet nightcap in this sliver of modernity on the sedate Chelsea-Knightsbridge borders.
I think I’m right in saying that The Crescent was one of the earliest projects by a young design duo then known as BOA. They were already a perfect fit for that Wallpaper generation of newly nourished design-savvy Brits and, as if to re-kindle an enduring romance, quickly went on to design for Vitra, Cappelini and others, in that familiarly symbiotic marriage of British design and Italian ‘make-happen’. BOA soon became Barber Osgerby and I later found out that the aforementioned Mr Medhust had studied with Jay Osgerby. An early break for BOA and a canny call by Mr Medhust.
Fast forward about 15 years: it is with only the faintest shot of envy and with a magnum of pride that I read about Barber Osgerby’s most recent project: The Olympic Torch. The design duo has managed to effortlessly blend the cheesiest of Olympic symbolism with 21st century geometry, raw practicality, and sinuous structure to create a truly potent contemporary symbol of the London 2012 Games.
As some of our more outspoken design luminaries begrudgingly exit the stage there are thankfully a few pretenders. Designers like Barber Osgerby and Thomas Heatherwick have quietly proven themselves as world class purveyors of progressive British inventiveness, apparently unencumbered by the bluster that used to accompany any emerging British design talent.
Thank goodness the powers somewhere (and not just Mr Medhust) have seen the light…
image: www.barberosgerby.com
chicest hampers known to man: www.whiskhampers.co.uk
