The fashion-turned-fabric designer Kenzo Takada has reinvented the modular sofa with his mouth-watering new Mah Jong series, shortly to be unveiled at the Roche Bobois showroom in Beacon South Quarter. Inspired by the colours and textures of the ancient kimonos used in Noh theatre, the sofas come in three colour schemes: Asa (Morning), composed of gentle pastel tones; Hiru (Midday), a series of warm reds, and Yoru (Evening), a symphony of blues. The idea is that customers can mix and match shapes and colours.
Kenzo, a giant of the Paris an London fashion scene in the 1980s and early 1990s, was best known for voluminous yet carefully cut garments – think tent dresses, big sleeves, dungarees – in riotous colours. In 1993, he sold both his empire and his first name to luxury giant LVMH. Once he retired from fashion in 1999, he become known as Kenzo Takada and now works with a number of high end interiors brands, channelling the same east-meets-west aesthetic.
His work includes, Lights of Asia, a line for French crystal company Baccarat, collections for one of Japan’s oldest eyewear firms Masunaga, a custom carpet and rug range for Tai Ping, called Dreams of the Orient, and now Roche Bobois.
Roche Bobois is celebrating its 10th birthday at the Beacon with a special customer event featuring goodies, gifts and a 15 per cent discount on any orders from the new autumn/winter range. The event will run in the newly furnished showroom from 10am to 6pm today (Saturday October 7th); the discount will continue until Sunday October 15th. The ensemble in the photo will cost you upwards of €20,000, by the way – but you can bag yourself a Kenzo cushion for about €90. roche-bobois.com
