Thanks to the lovely Desiré of the blog Sukio for the shout out to Raji and her home featured on the cover of Luxe Interiors + Design!
Check out the full post here - Sukio
Living room designed by Raji RM; Photography by Rikki Snyder
Online Press: Thank you Decor Arts Now! /
Thanks to Lynn Byrne of the blog - Decor Arts Now for featuring Raji's Kips Bay Show House Room as the room of the week!
See Lynn's post here - ART RULES: My Room of the Week - Decor Arts Now
Raji RM designed room at the 2012 Kips Bay Show House; Photography by Trevor Tondro for The New York Times
Divine Architecture: Crisp Architects /
Inspired by a Federalist style barn complex, Crisp Architects created this country home with it's set of small outbuildings that repeat the materials and details to give consistency and a sense of community between them.
One of the fundamental joys of being a designer is working on wonderful homes. It has been a long time passion of mine to spend weekends hunting - both houses and treasures. I absolutely enjoy studying architectural gems worth a few millions as much as I enjoy discovering an unusual sixties glass vase for a song at a flea market. In both cases, I'm equally delighted with the contemporary or modern as I am with the classical and traditional. But the best discoveries are the ones I come across when I'm actually treasure hunting but end up finding a gem not in all the things that are for sale but the house that they sit in or the one I just drove by on my way.
That's how I discovered Crisp Architects - a very well regarded and respected firm in New York. Indeed there are many architects both in Washington DC and New York who I admire very much, each for different reasons. I find the work of James Crisp of Crisp Architects very soulful and in tune with the local vernacular (New England and sometimes a little California Wine Country in spirit). In all their projects though, they seem to have a gentle approach to both the exterior and interior architecture and most importantly to the surroundings. I particularly love how the firm can bring an old house to the 21st century while completely preserving the old part of the house and yet integrating them with all the new additions and transformations seamlessly. They don't just blend them, they actually seem to capture and enhance the very soul of the old house in it's new version. Not an easy feat by any measure and something that deserves a complete and thorough study. The homes they create are the kind that inherently have a lived in feel even without a stick of furniture in it. Windows, doors, beams and rafters are all so thoughtfully placed or enhanced, naturally framing views and throwing rays of light in the most beautiful moments of the day. And they seem to do all of it while infusing a sense of humility even in a rather large home. That to me is pure magic!
All photos via Pinterest and Houzz
A historic expansion by Crisp Architects
Front entry and hallway of a historic home expanded by Crisp Architects
An addition like a stone barn designed by Crisp Architects
A stone barn addition by Crisp Architects featuring a dutch door
A stairway designed by Crisp Architects with reclaimed wood and copper pipes.
A Massachusetts Farm House by Crisp Architects
Stair hall in a Massachusetts Farm House renovated by Crisp Architects
Mud room in a Massachusetts Farm House
A quintessential country home kitchen renovated by Crisp Architects
A modern farm house renovated by Crisp Architects
An old farm house renovated blends beautifully with it's surroundings
A fabulous garage conversion by Crisp Architects
Online Press: Thank you Brilliant! /
Check out the tumblr blog Brilliant - Random bits of inspiration for showcasing Raji's work!
See the full post here - BRILLIANT
Design by Raji RM & Associates
Inspired Monday Morning: Line Vautrin /
Interior Detail by Raji RM & Associates; Photography by Rikki Snyder;
Most in the interior design and fashion industry have heard of Line Vautrin, thanks to 1stdibs and Maison Gerard. Her ecclesiastical mirrors, quixotic boxes, whimsical trinket trays and gorgeous jewelry are coveted and collected by many including Madonna, Paloma Picasso and Kawakubo, the founder of Comme des Garçons. Born into a family of Parisian metalworkers, Vautrin learned her casting, chasing and gilding skills in her father's foundry workshop. I love the fact that she started out as a greeter for fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli, albeit very briefly. Later, when she was just 20 she started making her "little somethings" and offered her creations door-to-door. Sometime later she also worked with one of my favorite designers, Jean Royère who included her mirrors and gilded boxes in his commissions and soon she opened her own showroom and finally ending up with an atelier on the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré.
My encounters with the works of Line Vautrin (1913 - 1997) were quite serendipitous. The first time I saw her work in person was while walking down a street in the Marais district in Paris in 2007 and I stumbled upon a beautiful shop lined with several (I'm talking over a hundred of them) Line Vautrin mirrors, poudriers et boites! I was first speechless and then a bit giddy standing in the middle of that little shop staring at the incredible pieces. The kind and very discreet French gentleman who owned the shop (which only had works by Line Vautrin, Georges Jouve and a few others) very sweetly indulged my questions and deer with antlers gaze until I very reluctantly left the shop. If I say I am inspired by Line Vautrin that would be quite an understatement.
In a recent interview, I mentioned how an art work - one that you don't even own - can inspire a room's design. That is precisely what happened several years after I saw Line Vautrin's work in that little shop in the Marais. It was a particular gilded bronze poudrier, called La Mer, that inspired a modern ceiling medallion I commissioned the lovely Eva of Christianson Lee Studios to create for the ceiling in my room at the Kips Bay Show House. It was quite literally jewelry for the room and a surprising one at that when placed on the ceiling.
Last year, when a collection was on display at Maison Gerard in New York, I finally got my hands on a couple of pieces by the Poetess of metal (as Vogue dubbed her). What can I say other than il est tout ma tasse de thé!
p.s. If you like Line Vautrin, you must read this beautifully written obituary by The Independent.
Below are some of my favorites by Line Vautrin. Photos from Pinterest, WSJ, Wallpaper*, Financial Times;
Line Vautrin: The artist at work
A Talosel mirror by Line Vautrin reflecting a floor lamp by Jacques Adnet
Line Vautrin Cuff Bracelet from Maison Gerard/1stdibs
The artist and her works on display at Maison Gerard, NYC
Detail of La Mer by Line Vautrin
2012 Kips Bay Show House Room designed by Raji RM & Associates featuring the ceiling medallion inspired by Line Vautrin's La Mer; Photography by Marco Ricca.
Detail shot of the ceiling medallion I designed for my room at the Kips Bay Show House which was executed by Christianson Lee Studios;
Raji's Home Is On Washingtonian! /
We are excited and thrilled to see Raji's home on Washingtonian.com! Thanks to Michelle Thomas for the write-up and house tour feature!
Click here to see the full story - Washingtonian.com
Design by Raji RM & Associates; Photography by Rikki Snyder
Online Press: Thank you Art by Karena /
A very nice interview with Karen Albert of Art by Karena. See how art drives Raji's design and her advice to young up and coming designers. Read the full interview here - http://artbykarena.blogspot.com/2014/07/raji-rm-associates.html
Raji Radhakrishnan, Raji RM & Associates; Photography by Abby Greenwalt
Letter To My Children /
1997 Silhouette of my daughter and I at Disneyland
A decade ago my husband and I both decided to pursue our dreams. He quit his job to start his software consulting firm and I quit mine to start my design firm. Like most businesses, we have both faced so many trials and tribulations and thank god for having each other to talk to. As parents watching our children grow has been our greatest pleasure and we both make it a point to share with our children as much as we can the most important life and business lessons we've learned. Even when we thought they were not listening, time and again they have surprised us with their actions and observations showing us perhaps they did listen. My husband teases our son that he was born with a surround sound system and picks up every little thing happening around him!
These days, with our daughter (also a designer) in New York, my "advisory" communications tend to be via text and email. BTW, Parents - texting to children works wonders! I can say what I really want her to hear without a major retort! I guess it gives them the time to process what we are saying and actually see how much sense it makes. When I come across good articles I would email her and today I thought I'd share some of those right here. I adore the loving, happy, independent and wonderful person our daughter has become. And as she navigates a new chapter in life I want to share this article - 10 habits of people who follow their dreams. I thought this was very nicely put together both for life and business and a wonderful reminder to just keep at it and follow your dreams.
If you have children, don't forget to tell them everyday how proud you are of them and how much you love them. They actually enjoy hearing it especially from you.
- xo Raji
Press: Thank you New York Spaces! /
How exciting to see that one of Raji's blog posts on Fashion & Interiors has been credited and quoted by New York Spaces Magazine! Thanks to Kerry Howard for including Raji's room in the Kips Bay Show House and mentioning Raji RM murals in the article!
Check out the article in NewYorkSpacesMag.com!
Jump here to see Raji's original post on Fashion & Interiors!
Valentino's Alto Moda creation (Fall 2013) from Vogue & Raji RM & Associates Room at the 2012 Kips Bay Show House
Eduardo Chillida /
Eduardo Chillida
What do you think of when you see a work of art? Or how do you react? When I walk through a museum or gallery my emotions tend to run the whole gamut. Everything from no reaction to "whoa" to complete entrancement. Of all these emotional reactions, I don't recall stepping back and thinking "strength" or "strong and masculine" as I have when seeing the Spanish artist, Eduardo Chillida's (1924-2002) work. Mind you I'm not looking at sculptures or paintings of men flexing their muscles or torsos with six packs here. These are modern art. I want to say abstract but I'm afraid the artist may not like that. So, let's just call it "Modern Compositions" for now.
I first discovered Eduardo Chillida's work in a small art gallery in Munich, Germany. It was a collection of black and white lithographs. Compositions in black and white is nothing new, in fact, it is one of the oldest type of works in modern art and are part of nearly every major artist's work till date. But there was something very strong about these compositions that made me ask the gallerist more about them and eventually buy them. As I explored Chillida's works, I realized most described his work as having movement and tension. And that is true. But, for me the one word that comes to mind is still Strength. Perhaps, it has something to do with his early works in clay while in France and how he associated clay with the white light of Greek sculptures and they eventually manifested in his hands as re-interpretations in a stronger material and in a more undefinable form.
An artist who not only studied art but also architecture, Chillida's most famous and celebrated works are monumental outdoor sculptures made in steel and concrete but he also worked beautifully with so many other materials including alabaster, wood, clay, gypsum, bronze, felt and of course hand made paper. Some of his stone sculptures seem almost primitive yet are so modern it reminds me of advanced intelligence. Think Fifth Element (I love that movie). My favorite among Chillida's works is "The Basque Liberties Plaza", 1980, reinforced concrete and steel. I think that might be because it reminds me of a different time and place - my grand father and his home where I spent much of my childhood. More on that later...but for now, I'm happy just rediscovering this artist whose work I relate to at so many levels and I think a trip to the Basque Country side is very much in order.
I hope you have an inspired Monday morning! - xo Raji
Photos from Flickr and Pinterest
Chillida modeling a clay sculpture in 1973; Photography by Ernst Scheidegger
El Peine del Viento (Wind Comb), a public space in San Sebastian
"The Basque Liberties Plaza", 1980, reinforced concrete and steel.
A painted clay sculpture, 1973 - Photography by Ernst Scheidegger
