Regular attendees at the Monaco Yacht Show will know that there’s far more to see than the beautiful boats. Art galleries, interior designers and bespoke craftsmen all come to show the best of their stunning wares, and a highlight of these is always Linley.
Over the last 30 years, David Linley’s eponymous interior and furniture design firm has fitted out stunning saloons for superyachts including Predator and Aurelia and worked with yachting legends including Bannenberg Design and Andrew Winch. The latest instalment in the Linley Extraordinary Furniture range, Lightscape, will be launched at the Monaco Yacht Show in September, but if you can’t wait until then you can also catch it at next week’s Masterpiece London 2015 art fair.
Sunrise – The Gentleman’s Valet Cabinet
The overarching theme of Lightscape is the interpretation and scaling down of modern architecture into exceptional home furniture. This is plain to see in Sunrise, a steel and glass cabinet inspired by skyscrapers bathed in early morning sunlight. The cabinet’s stunning façade has been created using Linley’s signature marquetry technique and incorporates mother of pearl, bleached sycamore and eucalyptus.
Cabinet doors and pivoting drawers swing open to reveal a handsome walnut interior with everything a man needs to prepare him for the day. Drawers and compartments abound – each designed for a specific purpose. Padded watch rolls, two SwissKubik winders and a Bamford Watch Department tool kit come in handy for the horology enthusiast while cashmere and tweed brushes and a bone shoehorn will ensure the discerning gent always looks dapper. There’s even a discreetly hidden Bramah safe tucked away so neatly that Linley will only reveal its location to the owner at the point of purchase.
Noon – The City Bureau
Guaranteed to increase the appeal of working from your superyacht, the mother of pearl, black sycamore and grey eucalyptus outer of the Noon bureau reflects the image of a building cast in shadow during the mid-day sun.
With an interior organised for efficient productivity, there is a fold-down leather writing surface, drawers for stationary and pigeonholes containing leather bound notebooks. As well as compartments for laptop and tablet storage, integrated technology comes in the form of an Odyss infotainment device, a beautiful marine chronometer that displays time, maps, photographs and videos on a mirrored touchscreen. Of course, an object this beautiful should not be used purely for work – a bespoke humidor with space for a dozen cigars has been artfully hidden in the bureau’s base for some real me-time.
Dusk – The Cocktail Console
Based on the way a building is lit from within when the sun goes down, the Dusk console is the ultimate piece for cocktail hour entertaining. Dark ash burr, grey eucalyptus and black sycamore contrast against iridescent mother of pearl which lights up each ‘window’, all of which is crowned by a stunning silver leaf map of London.
In an unexpected twist on the traditional cocktail cabinet, the main bottle storage slides out from the side and is complete with Linley’s Trafalgar cocktail shaker, ice bucket, two crystal decanters, a silver spirit measure and a dinner bell. A silver leaf panel unhinges to provide a drink making surface while a more conventional cupboard opens to reveal the Trafalgar crystal collection, Evolution tray, shot glasses, cocktail sticks and silver cocktail stirrer. Finally, an expertly camouflaged marquetry drawer opens to provide a knife and solid walnut chopping board. This is the stuff of your mixologist’s dreams.
Prices from £80,000, visit davidlinley.com