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Furniture company, The Source was established by the British designer Adam Collins at the start of 2012 with the aim of creating a small and exclusive collection of hand-crafted furniture designs, as well as working on one-off commissions from his small workshop.
Despite originally gaining a degree in sports technology, Collins had a strong desire to move away from that field in order to develop his own furniture designs and learn the craft skills that were needed to become an artisan. Having grown up around wood and steel boatbuilding, Collins’ father builds steel boats and restores old wooden canal boats, Collins wanted to combine both the materials and techniques in an innovative approach to designing and making furniture.
“I have grown up around him doing this and have gone on to help him with aspects of the building and finishing, painting and so on. I have learned some of the skills involved but have also gained a knowledge of the tooling and techniques,” says Collins. Under the tutelage of his father and business partner, Collins began to bring his designs to life.
The distinctive Archie Collection is inspired by the bold shapes, forms and materials from Britain’s industrial past, but by using colour and combining the raw steel with warmth of wood, they present a fresh and contemporary take on furniture.
With his studio based in Rickmansworth, on the outskirts of London, Collins makes a limited number of each design from with high quality materials being used to create long-lasting, collectible pieces of furniture. He encourages his customers to select the wood type, colour and finish of the item being commissioned, whether a desk or seat, in order to create a truly bespoke piece.
The Archie Desk was the first design to be made. The main arched beam is fabricated from sheet steel, providing a strong, stable base for the desk. The wood and steel laminates support the glass top, which displays the elegant structure beneath. Just 25 of the desks will be produced with each one individually made to order.
The Archie Bar Stool is the latest design from the Archie Collection and will be launched at Interiors UK, the design show starting this Sunday. The stools are constructed with an innovative laminated steel and wood blade that supports the cantilevered seat. The solid wooden seats are shaped by hand for comfort and swivel for ease of use. On the eve of the show “I am excited to be exhibiting as part of the new designer makers gallery at Interiors UK.” Collins comments, “The show gives me chance to display the custom nature of my work and to reach the people looking for something a bit more exciting and bespoke.”
Later in the year an office chair and dining chairs will be added to the collection. These will be the final pieces in the Archie Collection and will complement the other pieces in the range. At the moment, Collins has some new designs in the pipeline following on from the Archie Collection as The Source continues to experiment with new materials and techniques.
by Runa Mathiesen
The Source will be exhibiting for the first time at the Interiors UK show from January 19-22 at the Birmingham NEC.
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