In a natural extension to Salt Mine Project’s defining credo of collaboration, Duane Park Studio Design Collective was recently formed to encourage and support a wide range of creative endeavors where functional design and fine art cross-pollinate.
Nancy Boas
With the painstaking patience and hand of a jeweler, Nancy Boas carves forms out of wax that find primary inspiration in the world of flora and fauna. The structure of flowers about to bloom and the architecture of the supporting leaves and stems are a particular obsession and form the basis for a series of candle sticks, bud vases, and incense burners cast in bronze and silver. Her watercolors and carved insects made over the last 5 years, along with Andrew Zuckerman’s startling images from his celebrated book FLOWER, will accompany Ms. Boas’s presentation.
John Calcagno
John Calcagno, a revered and respected member of the design community for over 50 years and a legendary eye for balance, beauty, and legacy, has turned his attention to a pair of old hand forged iron chairs, found in a favorite shop in West Palm. His intervention with frayed vintage caning and twisted twine has turned function into pure form in a celebration of the contrasts and conflicts of fragility, transparency and stability. A photographer as well, John’s chairs are accompanied by a limited edition hand bound book of black and white images documenting his process.
Carini
Duane Park Studio Design Collective also introduced a curated collection of vintage Tibetan Sleeping Rugs, disarming in their minimalist simplicity and utility. Assembled largely in the field by the ever astute and creative eye of designer and dealer Joe Carini, these rugs are first hand spun and then woven on small back looms using undyed wool. Produced under nomadic conditions, these body friendly rugs embody the unquenchable creative impulse for beauty and comfort, even when under the duress of forced movement.