RH’s New Contemporary Line Is a Statement in Svelte Forms
Fresh off the grand opening of RH San Francisco, the Gallery at the Historic Bethlehem Steel Building, Bay Area shoppers were treated to yet another perk form the furniture company: a first look at RH Contemporary, a new division posing RH’s take on minimalist design.
Within the collection, svelte silhouettes are enhanced by a material selection that harkens back to Italian postmodernism and Art Deco design (think loudly grained burl veneers and ultrachic Italian travertine). It’s “clearly the best work we’ve ever done,” Gary Friedman, CEO of RH Contemporary, said in a recent earnings call. But more so than that, he continued, “I think [it’s] the most dramatic evolution of our brand towards where we want to go.”
Featuring collaborations with more than a dozen designers, RH Contemporary poses a sophisticated, materially-elevated story told from global perspectives. Brooklyn-based ceramic artist Dina Nur Satti draws on motifs from her East African heritage when sculpting the clay Acacia vessel, and the handwoven fabrics designed by New Delhi–based textile artist Neeru Kumar are found as neutrally hued throws and pillow covers within the assortment.
It’s that spirit of collaboration, in fact, that Friedman uses to differentiate not only RH Contemporary, but the company itself. “We do what we love with the people that we love for the people who love what we do,” he wrote in a letter introducing the new division. Opposed to the description of a “lifestyle brand,” Friedman continues on his collaborative stance, writing, “If you have to give us a label, call us a love-style brand.”
