Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/793905
70 ART + DECORATION F or BeDesign owners Adrian Dueñas and Marcelo Saenz, the more great Italian names they can bring to Houston, the better. Zanotta, Paola Lenti, Casa Desus, and Fendi Casa are among those represented in their Houston showroom, and a freestanding Kartell store (with a corner space devoted to Missoni Casa) owned by Dueñas and business partner Vassili Tsipianitis opened in November i n R i v e r O a k s Shopping Center, next to the historic theater. Now Houston's first Molteni&C home furnishings shop-in-shop debuts within BeDesign showroom — 600 square feet of some of the world's top designers and their works designed for Molteni. Included are Molteni creative director Vincent Van Duysen's just-launched Paul sofa, inspired by the masters of Flemish painting; celebrated Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola's molded and sinuous Glove-Up chairs; London- based Foster+Partners' sculptural Arc tables; and Giò Ponti's famed D.153.1 armchair, designed in 1953, which comes in Ponti's Punteggiato velvet or fabrics and leathers from Molteni. BeDesign, 2016 W. Alabama St., 713.623.1177, be-design.us. Rebecca Sherman MOLTO MOLTENI E ver since Courtney Barton founded her textile line, Mela & Roam in 2011, fans have had to track her down at design fairs and gift markets to stock up on the goods — namely, ethnic- printed dohars, pillows, quilts, and other textiles from India. Even the name was a nod to gypsy transience: "Mela" is Hindi for village fairs, while the word "Roam" represented how she would travel to market to sell her product. But Barton's brand — especially the dohars, which are hand-loomed ultra-lightweight 100 percent cotton blankets in unique prints — became so popular that it was time to put down roots and drop the old name in favor of the eponymous Courtney Barton. She found a special spot above Jardin de France for her first retail shop, where she designs and sells her own hand- printed textiles, as well as those from India, custom bedding, global finds, and her beloved dohars. "It's a gem of a space," she says. "Follow a brick path through a precious plant-filled courtyard and enter Jardin de France, which sells antiques and design books, and my shop is upstairs." Al fresco events in the courtyard will follow — Barton tested the space out on her girlfriends, hosting a charming fête under the twinkly cafe lights. Courtney Barton, 4819 Durham St., above Jardin de France, melaandroam.com. Anne Lee Phillips UPSTAIRS DOWNSTAIRS Galerie Novella ARRIVES G a l e r i e N o v e l l a opens early this month (by a p p o i n t m e n t ) , s h o w c a s i n g i m p o r t a n t e x a m p l e s o f French and Scandinavian furniture and lighting, most dating from the late 1920s through the 1960s with a few cool exceptions, says owner Robert Willey, who recently relocated from New York to Houston. Situated across from St. Anne's Catholic Church, at 2131 Westheimer, Galerie Novella will be open business hours by end of March. More to come in our April issue. Galerie Novella, 2131 Westheimer Road, galerienovella.com. Anne Lee Phillips THIS JUST IN M ove over 19th-century masters of curvaceous furniture Michael Thonet and John Henry Belter. Now a Colombian collective is bringing a fresh take on folding and bending wood, and producing art and design objects that garner attention at international fairs from Art Basel Miami Beach to Artbo in Bogotá. Colectivo Mangle — husband-and-wife duo Diego Fernando Alvarez and Maria Paula Alvarez — contort, manipulate, and perform acrobatics with all manner of wood. The resulting sculptures wink at traditional Wooden Wonders objects, from doilies to fencing, even potted plants and a mop and broom. See the collection, $2,000 to $20,000, at Guerrero-Projects, the latest addition to the 4411 Montrose gallery building (throughout March). guerrero-projects. com. Catherine D. Anspon A rare floor lamp by the French designer Maurice Pré, circa 1950 Courtney Barton Colectivo Mangle's Carpeta 2, 2016, at Guerrero-Projects JENNY ANTILL CLIFTON COURTESY THE ARTISTS AND GUERRERO-PROJECTS