There are some extraordinarily talented young furniture makers in Ireland, craftspeople who sell one-off pieces and work almost exclusively on a commission basis. Working like that it is difficult to turn a modest income into a business and we have a poor record here of contemporary furniture designers who are able to design with even small scale production in mind.
Tadhg and Simon O'Driscoll are attempting to do just after several years working together in a design partnership. Up to now the two brothers have concentrated on commercial and private commissions but in the past year they have been assembling a core collection of furniture that includes lamps, sofas, tables and chairs.
"We're known particularly for our tables and we want to make sure that people know that we do more than that," says Simon, the younger of the two brothers.
The brothers have done work for nearly all the stylish new hotels that sprung up in Dublin in the 1990s including the Clarence, The Morgan and The Fitzwilliam. As well as hotel work they have designed furniture for Chase Manhattan Bank's Dublin headquarters and the new Bord Ga∅s headquarters while students at DCU will soon be sitting at their oak tables and chairs in the university canteen.
With the new range and the opening of their showroom at Lomard Street East, off Pearse Street, they hope that their client list will be equally balanced between commercial and domestic clients.
"We've noticed in the past three years or so that people are getting more comfortable with the idea of contemporary design," says Simon. "People have travelled more extensively and have more confidence in their own taste."
That is most certainly true but there has always been something rarefied about an individual commissioning a piece of furniture. Even the most design savvy person can feel intimidated about approaching a furniture designer and commissioning a piece, either because they don't really know what they're getting into moneywise or what the piece will end up looking like.
"Another reason for producing a catalogue of core production items is that people can see what we do and either buy from the range or else opt for a variation," says Simon.
There are several variations in nearly all 19 pieces in their collection. Each of their two sofa styles, for example, come in a choice of three sizes and an enormous range of fabrics and leathers.
The furniture is not cheap but the prices are balanced by the high quality of materials and design. Sofas start at £1,800 (2,286) and their solid oak six-seater dining table costs £2,160 (2,743,20). Oak dining chairs cost £223 (283,21).
O'Driscoll Furniture: 01 671 1069
