San Francisco–based designer Charles de Lisle has built a reputation creating interiors with an edge, including a slew of residences and commercial spaces in New York and California, a restaurant in Mexico City, and the SoHo flagship store for fashion designer Rachel Comey—all with bespoke furnishings of his own creation. His latest project is a new lighting collection, produced in collaboration with the New York–based gallery The Future Perfect.
In conceptualizing the Linden collection, the designer, who has a substantial background in ceramics and welding, took his cues from—of all things—cherry blossoms and bicycles. “I envisioned the twisted, leafless form of the cherry blossom branch pared down to its essence and reimagined [it] in extruded hexagonal brass conduit, its faceted structure and simple geometry playfully evocative of early computer graphics,” says de Lisle.
“The idea of the raw branch came from a project I did in 2004 at the William Wurster Ranch in Woodside, California. The property had previously been owned by a horticulturist who planted myriad fruit and flowering trees that had aged and become incredibly graceful. The original Linden Branch was a way to translate the landscape into a machined, decorative reflection in the dining room of the house.” When it came to the design of the fixtures for the new collection, de Lisle says, he looked to bicycle construction in developing the joint angles on the hexagonal form.”
A sconce from Charles De Lisle’s new Linden Collection, a collaboration with New York and Los Angeles gallery, The Future Perfect. Photo: Daniel Dent, Courtesy Charles De Lisle
The series includes hanging fixtures, table lamps, sconces, and flush mounts—all of which are available in polished brass, brushed brass, dark antique, faux pewter, and antique nickel. Collectively, his light fixtures are akin to functional sculptures. As for the collaboration with The Future Perfect, it was born out of a chance meeting with gallery owner David Alhadeff at Salone de Mobile in Milan well over a decade ago.
“Through our common love for design, we realized there may be an opportunity for a collaboration. We started with the original Linden Branch fixture from 2004 and thought the custom milled hexagonal tubing was so beautiful that we should grow the idea into a collection of clean and simple lighting that would work in many different applications. The forms were considered by the function of each specific design, both classic and contemporary, such as the simple and elegant candlestick lamp. It’s clean, unobtrusive, and can fit in any interior.”
