It wasn`t too long ago that artist-cum-interior-designer Neraldo de la Paz could be found scouting thrift shops and flea markets in search of ”raw material” for the homes he was hired to refurbish. A chair here, a couch there-whatever the cast-off was, 33-year-old Cuban-born de la Paz would dramatically transform it (and often the room it graced) using paint, upholstery, fringe, beads and rhinestones, earning him a reputation for creating high flamboyance on low budgets.
But recently, de la Paz expanded his creative repertoire, thanks to a client who dared to give the visionary designer creative carte blanche free of budgetary restraints. To execute the mammoth project-a 3,000-square-foot, two- bedroom, three-bathroom apartment-de la Paz became an art director of sorts, assembling a team of local talents to help create a living gallery of art and design. The result gives new meaning to the term ”built-ins.”
”The job was just too big for me to do alone,” said de la Paz matter-of-factly about commissioning seven other artists for the project. ”And, because I wanted everything to be unique, I just drew upon talented people whose work I respected, who were capable of pulling the project together and whom I could work well with. Each commission ended up being something of a collaboration: I told everyone what I had in mind, and then they interpreted it. It was great because, as artists, we spoke the same language. This just couldn`t have been handled by conventional handymen.”
Besides the overall design, de la Paz, whose artwork is represented by the Betsy Rosenfield Gallery, contributed a number of accouterments himself, including a coffin-like television cabinet, a suite of den furniture, several befringed tables and yards of pearl-studded black velvet material that swaddles the master bedroom. Hand-sewn in Asia, the celestial-inspired fabric is now being sold through the Karl Mann showroom at the Mart.
This is a far cry from the ”sleek California beiges and chrome” de la Paz said the client, an international businessman, intended for the Old Town apartment. Indeed, standing in the living room with views to eye-popping hues of red, yellow, turquoise, purple and phosphorescent green, plus myriad unusual textures and surfaces, it`s hard to imagine anything less West Coast neutral. Apparently, the client was open to change. ”Well, he definitely responded to the direction I took,” said the detail-conscious de la Paz, who wanted to meld his design vision with the client`s persona and infused the abode with esthetic references to Greek, medieval and contemporary art and architecture, along with a dose of sushi bar and airport design. ”And even though I had a free hand, everything was approved by him.”
Despite the singular nature of the project, de la Paz doesn`t think he did anything beyond the traditional call of any designer`s duty. ”I just took care of what any interior decorator should have. The only difference is that lots of the decisions were carried out by artists.”
Reviewing the 18 months it took him to complete the challenging project, de la Paz has nothing but enthusiasm and hopes to do many more on this scale. ”Working with artists is more rewarding than just going to wallpaper companies or mainstream merchandisers,” he said, ”and that`s why more and more designers are taking this route. There are also many more showrooms in the Merchandise Mart handling artist-made furniture. In the end, you get something special that won`t be duplicated in other homes. And you get to know some interesting people.”
(By the way should you be struck by the inspiration to commission one of these artists, don`t be bashful: We`ve included their phone numbers for your convenience.)
Tom Livo, painter
Camouflaging two large banks of windows was one of de la Paz`s main concerns, because the client doesn`t like curtains and blinds are far too banal. Enter Tom Livo and Kim Larsen, two local artists commissioned to create one-of-a-kind sliding panels that transform each window area into art-filled installations.
Livo, who moved here two years ago after receiving a bachelor of fine arts degree at the Center for Creative Studies School of Art and Design in Detroit, for the last three years has been creating multipaneled grids using actual portraits. He saw the commission as a larger extension of his interests. The eight-panel screen boasts 32 acrylic heads sporting various expressions, in vibrant colors that complement the spacious living room.
”Instead of using `real` people, I chose anonymous faces randomly from the television set, photographing them as they went by,” Livo explained about his contribution. ”I ended up with hundreds of images that I sifted through, looking for unique features, interesting expressions and colors, and then I painted the final selections from the photos.” Although Livo tended to like emotional expressions, he realized more peaceful ones would be much easier to live with, and the crowd of faces appears benign rather than menacing. ”I think it turned out really well,” he admitted, examining his handiwork. ”It functions as a screen by completely blocking out light, but it`s an artwork first.”
Tom Livo, 772-1478.
Kim Larsen, artist
In the den, light is allowed to filter through an entirely different kind of screen that blends Japanese craftsmanship with vanguard technology. A series of 15 wood-framed shoji panels (built by cabinetmaker John Okumura) is divided into 75 black-and-white photographic images by artist Kim Larsen, who printed them on fiberglass, sun-screened on the back for protection.
Archaic Greek statues, airplanes, the Great Wall of China, stuffed and mounted animals, the Statue of Liberty-all are part of the compendium of softly glowing images that, in some way or another, are connected to de la Paz`s client. ”There`s an almost narrative feeling to the screen when you really look at it,” said de la Paz, who worked with his client and the artist to select the group of images for this visual diary. ”For instance, the views of foreign cities and modes of transportation refer to trips abroad, while the Statue of Liberty has to do with his moving to this country years ago.”
Kim Larsen, 527-0344.
R. Thomas Tedrowe Jr.,
designer/craftsman
Housing bulky TV and stereo equipment has been the bane of interior designers for decades, and de la Paz was no exception. He turned to woodsmith Thomas Tedrowe for assistance, having been captivated by the artisan`s penchant for exotic and faceted wood. The end product is a towering, 9-foot-tall cabinet that combines macassar ebony, purple heart and satin wood, entirely studded with small carved pyramids and resting on conical spiral legs specified by de la Paz, whose inspiration was a Jell-o mold.
”It`s the most complicated piece I`ve ever done. It took three months to complete,” said Tedrowe, who received a master`s degree in fine arts from Rhode Island School of Design.
After launching his own full-time business in 1983, Tedrowe became known for using all-natural woods and finishes, with an emphasis on contemporary, almost architecturally structured designs. ”I`d call myself a `designer-craftsman,”` he said when pressed for a categorization, ”since I spend half my time on designing and the other half on building.” His unique creations, ranging from bedroom sets and dining tables to chairs and cabinetry, hint at a variety of inspirations, blending Oriental esthetics with Art Deco and Victorian Chicago. ”Chicago architecture really inspired me when I moved here in 1982,” offered Tedrowe, whose work has been included in design shows from Los Angeles to Boston. ”I borrow ideas from old buildings all the time.”
R. Thomas Tedrowe Jr., 738-1645, exhibits work at Hokin-Kaufman Gallery, 210 W. Superior St., 266-1211.
Jan Carmichael, artist
Fine artist Jan Carmichael spent five weeks painting the walls and ceilings of de la Paz`s project, contributing to the fantasy aspect of the home using seven different surfaces that ranged from faux marble and metallic glazes to three-dimensional crackling filled with phosphorescent pigment.
”I`ve worked on lots of residential projects, but this was by far the most ambitious,” said Carmichael, whose work has been admired in such Chicago hot spots as Cairo and the Wild Onion.
But success as a painter ofsity of Cincinnati. ”I never planned to have this kind of business, but it pays the bills,” said the artist, who has exhibited her work at the Betsy Rosenfield and Compass-Rose galleries in River North.
Carmichael`s ghostly renderings of domestic objects and appliances are far from faux marble, and she has purposely limited the time spent painting special finishes to work in her studio. ”I`m keeping the business small,”
she conceded. ”I don`t have a crew, I`m not hustling for work and I turn down some jobs. But I do enjoy using cutting-edge materials and putting paint on walls in odd combinations.” Having worked with de la Paz on other projects, Carmichael knew there were no limits to her imagination. ”Neraldo would say what he wanted for one room, I`d make up some samples, and he`d invariably pick the wildest one.”
Jan Carmichael, 738-2642.
Mike Krypel,
furniture designer
After two decades as a construction worker, Mike Krypel was injured three years ago. That caused him to strike out into the world of furniture design.
”I just applied my knowledge of and training in construction to the design of desks, tables, beds and stools,” said Krypel, who considers himself a functional artist and whose company is appropriately named Functions.
When he first set up shop, Krypel focused solely on stainless-steel furniture with a high-tech slant. Today, his imaginative furniture has taken on a more sculptural, classic style and incorporates many other materials. ”I just finished a bookcase out of concrete!” said Krypel, who designed a neon floor lamp, two stools and a tall, narrow table for de la Paz`s client.
With its industrial steel cables and rich green marble, the table ”looks like a cross between Art Deco and the Jetsons,” according to its creator.
”But it`s very versatile: wide enough to be functional, thin enough to move into the hallway, depending on how the client wants to use it. And it`s even built on casters.”
Like his other work, the table (with accompanying adjustable stools) is one-of-a-kind, beautifully crafted and seems to float almost weightlessly, thanks to the delicate but tensile steel cables that are strung through it.
”Those cables allow me to dematerialize the piece,” Krypel said, ”since I don`t like furniture that dominates its surroundings.” Not surprisingly, he mentioned an interest in minimal art. ”One day I hope to move into the realm of pure sculpture.”
Functions, 343-5040.
Lee Weitzman,
furniture designer
While Krypel is evolving from furniture to sculpture, Lee Weitzman started out as a sculptor who began to design and fabricate furniture in 1981 after attending graduate school in art at the University of Illinois.
”For a while there was an overlap when I was doing both sculpture installations and fine furniture, but I slowly became more focused,” said Weitzman, who rode the crest of the art-furniture wave. ”It was an exciting time, when art furniture was just becoming really big.” Now he commands a crew of six craftsmen who carry out designs that range from one-of-a-kind commissions to limited edition works, including tables, chairs, beds, cabinets and settees, many of which have been exhibited in design shows from coast to coast.
Known for fine quality and a ”contemporary classic” look, Weitzman favors wood, stone and other traditional materials, but with the occasional
”surprise” element like taxidermy fish-eyes and holographic plastic.
”There are so many materials today that weren`t available to designers 50 or 100 years ago, and it`s fun to experiment with them,” said Weitzman, who used dyed bird`s-eye maple with ebony and maple detailing to create a custom bed for de la Paz`s client. Nearby, in a Medieval-esque, nailhead-studded bathroom, Weitzman`s ebony, maple, black lacquer and mahogany ”Rocket Cabinet” is poised to soar. ”That`s a sort of mystical artwork to me, with references to the sea and stars and night,” Weitzman said about the spiral-handled cupboard that de la Paz selected for his client`s approval.
”That`s definitely a piece for someone with unusual taste.”
Lee Weitzman Studios, 243-3009.
Virginio Ferrari, sculptor
Many Chicagoans are familiar with sculptor Virginio Ferrari`s circular steel sculpture on State Street, but few are aware of the more intimately scaled table designs created by the sculptor. ”I became more involved with designing furniture in the last five years as an offshoot of my sculpture,”
explained the Italian-born Ferrari, who came here in 1966 to be artist-in-residence at the University of Chicago. ”In fact, the tables really are just pieces of sculpture that become functional with glass on top.”
Because de la Paz`s client already owns several works by Ferrari, commissioning the artist to create a coffee-cum-dining-table seemed a perfect way to complement them. With de la Paz`s input, the sculptor scaled down a 20- foot-high outdoor sculpture proposal consisting of several monumental steel geometric shapes covered with steel spheres. Now a 1-inch-equals-1-foot prototype, the table required nearly 2,000 steel ball-bearings, each of which Ferrari affixed himself.
”Go ahead and count them-it took me forever to attach them all,” he said, adding that ”if the client ever gets tired of the table, all he has to do is remove the glass and he`ll have a pure work of art. In this, I think my approach is very different from most furniture designers: I treat these as sculpture that can be turned into something practical-not the other way around.”
Virginio Ferrari, 226-6022.
