American lighting brand Apparatus opens the doors to its first London space, a gallery in the heart of Mayfair that is set to become the company’s European base (joining a network of spaces in New York and Los Angeles).
The New York brand was launched in 2012 by its current artistic director, Gabriel Hendifar, whose background includes theatre costume and production and a decade-long stint in the fashion industry before he moved to lighting and product design. Conceived and produced in New York (with manufacturing at the company’s Brooklyn factory), Apparatus lighting designs result from a constellation of inspirations that include film, music, visual art, and human emotion. ‘I believe that the objects in our homes have the power to help us understand ourselves more clearly,’ says Hendifar. ‘Design is an expression of who we are and what we value. It is about identity, connection and humanity.’
Step inside Apparatus’ London gallery
For the new space, Hendifar was inspired by London’s architecture and its tradition of members’ clubs, creating an interior that merges contemporary influences with local cultural heritage. Materials set the tone for the space: guests arrive through a vestibule clad in patinated brass, while the main gallery is defined by Italian Calacatta Classico marble and architectural motifs in plaster.
At the back of the space, a dramatic staircase takes visitors to the lower floor’s lounge. The staircase references the 1930s interior architecture of London’s Eltham Palace and Milan’s Villa Necchi Campiglio. On the walls are portraits of Hendifar’s maternal grandmother, Shazdeh, and his mother, Afsaneh.
‘In many ways, the London gallery is conceived as a fantasy home for my grandmother,’ says Hendifar, whose parents moved from Iran to LA in the late 1970s. ‘It is through these Persian matriarchs that I developed my own understanding of gracious hospitality, and what it means to welcome people into a space.’
Apparatus, 7 Mount street, London
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