Geoff Howell Studio Inc.

Giorgio Armani Holiday 2011

2012-01-26T18:15:00.000-08:00

Bronze was the color of Giorgio Armani's Christmas decor and this past December, we were asked to produce the risers with thick beveled acrylic tops, reflective floors and backdrops for their New York flagship store and 10 other luxurious locations. Mirrored bronze plexi-glass was specially etched in a diagonal pattern that added a subtle sparkle as you moved by, highlighting the glamour and subtle beauty in the clothing.

Our giant lampshades for Victoria's Secret go nationwide!

2012-01-15T14:17:00.000-08:00

These giant ribbon wrapped lampshade may look familiar as we have blogged about them in the past when we did the flagship Victoria's Secret stores in Chicago, Hawaii, and New York. What makes this post different is that our production of elements likes the lampshades have now been expanded to include boutiques nationwide. Below is another, closer look at our lampshades both big and small!

Sunglass Hut: Tiffany & Co.

2012-01-10T14:02:00.000-08:00

Nestled on Fifth Ave. just a block south of Saks, the Sunglass Hut Flagship store hired GHS to produce and install the windows featuring Tiffany and Company's new line of sunglasses.
Tiffany's design department directed all the details, and created a wonderful winter fantasy forest. We produced the trees, risers, organized the entire project and installed it. Each tree was meticulously painted white and detailed with silver paint and carefully applied glitter to make them sparkle!

Christmas at Tiffany's: Behind the Scenes

2011-12-07T16:10:00.000-08:00

This post takes us through a behind the scenes look at the installation of the holiday decor at Tiffany's on the main floor, the most involved of all floors we did. The images walk through a process of unwrapping and putting together pieces made back at the studio, setting up scaffolds, and putting up the giant wreaths and the step by step assembling of the six 17ft Christmas trees. They also offer a glimpse of Geoff and his dedicated and talented crew at work!

Never Hide!

2011-12-07T15:55:00.000-08:00

SSunglass Hut pulled out all the stops to promote their amazing new collection of Ray-Ban sunglasses. For this project, GHS created and installed all the props, signage, risers, etc to make for a dazzling display that is sure to catch your eyes (behind sunglasses).

Christmas at Wilderstein

2011-11-08T18:48:00.000-08:00

It is approaching Christmas once again at Wilderstein and in keeping with the recent snowfalls in the Northeast, Geoff created a giant snow-filled panorama that references the natural surrounding and landscapes of Wilderstein. Sitting atop the mountain of snow covered 19th century ballroom furniture, sits a small replica of the Wilderstein mansion. An evergreen forest cascades down, much like an exagerated bird's eye view of the historic site. Look carefully and you'll see a few miniature people climbing the hill and enjoying the view, or perhaps a decorated christmas tree and its miniature admirers as well as Santa with his reindeer launching off the chair!

Click Here to see Geoff's Previous Wilderstein Installations

and

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Indian Summer

2011-10-13T16:20:00.001-07:00

In a shimmering tumble of coral, rose, ivory, gold and beige, this season's window is showcasing D. Porthault's latest collection of embroidered and hand silk-screened sheets and towels cascading off chocolate colored manzanita branches against a hand painted striped background.

Silhouetiquette

2011-10-06T10:26:00.001-07:00

Steuben.

Glass.

Wood.

Beauty.

(the beautiful silhouettes of this well-mannered collection of Steuben's glassware inspired the design for this window. Large cutouts in Walnut book-matched plywood re-create the profile of the product, displayed against a backdrop of rift-cut oak.)

Giorgio Armani

2011-09-10T14:00:00.000-07:00

For Fashion's Night Out, Giorgio Armani clearly focused their attention on their Fall Collection with waterfalls of light refracting and reflecting plastic film. It was put together in a complex pattern of cascading loops creating amazing optical effects as you walk by. Each piece of this special film is micro-grooved similar to a lenticular process with an added holographic element. We die-cut the pieces and assembled them for the flagship on Madison Ave (pictured below) and many other boutiques across the country.

As below, so above

2011-09-09T14:03:00.000-07:00

The ground floor at Tiffany's, famous for its cases full of sparkling, and glittering diamonds was taken to new heights for the Fashion's Night Out celebration, 70's style. To help their ceiling sparkle above like the diamonds below, we were given the task of rigging these 5 36-inch discoballs through opening in their original suspended plaster ceiling.

What you can't see from the photos, but you can see in this video (by the event's lighting company Frost Productions) is that we attached these discoballs to our own customized motors that slowly raised and lowered them approximately 12 feet. These motors were carefully rigged to the structure above the ceiling. This was but a small part of the evening's festivities, including special model appearances in the store and its windows, and special projections on the building's exterior.

Sunglass Hut

2011-09-07T14:13:00.000-07:00

For Sunglass Hut's special promotion of a 'Return to Glamour' the flagship store on 5th Avenue had us fill their windows with stylish curly-q's and breath-taking images of actress, and now Sunglass Hut artistic advisor, Rachel Bilson. The theme continued down the store's 'runway' to the interior.

Fashions of the 19th century; an Athens Cultural Center exhibition by Geoff Howell

2011-07-21T20:28:00.000-07:00

(For those of you that missed the actual installation of the Athens Cultural Center's exhibit on fashion of the 19th century, curated by Geoff. Please check out the online version below!)

Out of the Wardrobe, Trunk and Attic:

Curated, designed and installed by Geoff Howell.

In doing some research last year on the history of architecture in Athens, I found, amongst photos of old houses, some shots of people that lived in them as well- It struck me how formal and stylish they were. It was partly due to those photos that I thought it would be great to build a costume exhibit,
presenting the clothes people wore in the 19th century, the period during which most of Athens came to be, so that we could get a better sense of who the people were that lived here then. This supposes that how they dressed tells us something about who they were-and in this instance, I think it does: it is helpful to know what conventions people upheld, fashion-wise and otherwise as it informed every part of their lives. Advances in technology have always changed the way the people have presented themselves, as well as the outside and the inside of their homes- some things remained consistent throughout the 1800's: building the nicest house they could afford, and wearing the nicest clothes they could make, or have made-and doing both in the most stylish way.

This exhibit attempts to give a sense, through period photographs, antique clothing, and a few related artifacts, of how styles changed during those 100 years, how it influenced some 20th century fashion,
and also to be able to see garments up close from as long as 170 years ago-clothing that was all sewn by hand, often made of silk that would have been woven in France or England and imported to maybe even the old dry goods store we are in now.

Special thanks to the following people who have helped with this show: Michele Saunders and David Ludwig for donating their time in helping with the installation, Tim Albright for loaning many historic family photos, Howard Zar for loaning several very special items, and to the Coxsackie Antiques Center for the loan of some bust forms, engravings, and garments. Realistic mannequins courtesy of Rootstein Mannequins, New York and London.

This show is dedicated to my mother, Elizabeth Howell, 1920-2001, who was my first fashion icon.

As you enter the space, the first wall to left is covered with a montage of actual antique photographs as well as copies of other dating from roughly 1840-1910 showing great examples of styles as they changed through the decades.

Below are close-ups of local Athenians from period photographs:

Moving back to the exhibition...

To the right, is a period wardrobe made in New York State containing a collection of men's clothing including a mid 19th century Parsons coat -completely hand-sewn, a variety of hats from 1860-1915, hat and collar boxes and some wonderful period photographs in their original frames.

In this photo is shown a collection of women's dress-making forms from 1890-1940, showing the continously changing 'desirable' silhouette. Also included are some mid 19th century undergarments found in my attic for supporting bustles and a hoop skirt. Also in this photograph is a wool-plaid two piece dress with silk, velvet trim from the 1890's.

This silk brocade and silk velvet dress from the 1870's is shown in front of a mirror from the same period. This dress came from a local Athenian collection.

Displayed in mid 19th century hand-painted, cottage-style dressers are shown a collection of hand-sewn 'crazy quilts'. Crazy quilts were very stylish from the late 1860's to about 1900 and were always made of fine dress amking fabrics. This was included in the exhibit to highlight the great variety of colors, textures, and patterns used in the fashions of that period. Shown on top is a Singer sewing machine from around 1890. Sewing machines were first used domestically in the 1850's

This wall contains an illustrated fashion time-line from 1800-1910 including original engravings and some period photographs. Also included are photographs of houses built in Athens throughout the 19th century.


In the main gallery were showcased 32 original period garments from 1830-1910. Starting at the left is a silk brocade with hoop skirt from the 1840's shown with a silk lace shawl from the same period. The rest of the dresses from left to right show examples of the changing silhouette up through 1900 at the far right, including the bustled dresses of the 1870's and the ever larger leg of mutton sleeves.


In the above photograph is a hand-loomed wool and silk paisley shawl from 1830's. Below it is a brown and garnett plaid bodice from the 1850's and three other period silk dresses from slightly later on in the century.

This collection of silk bodices (the top part the dress) are all mid 19th century with the exception of the black and white-striped piece from the 1890's. The forms were designed and made at Geoff Howell Studio. Most of these bodices are entirely hand-sewn.


This collection of capelets and bodices range from the 1880's to around 1910 and are all made of silk. Many of these include machine stitches.

Here's a simple black wool and cotton lace trimmed day dress.

The proverbial 'high-button shoe'

Here's an 1880's wardrobe, fitted with three rows of pegs at the top for hanging garments and is showcasing mostly summer clothing in white cotton silk and linen, including a pair of bloomers, an embroidered shawl and three silk fans trimmed with feathers. The form shows a very fine cotton lawn dress from the turn of the century. Also shown are two pairs of women's brown leather boots.

his extravagrant pastel portrait in the large aesthetic movement frame was produced in the 1880's and is shown above an early 20th century carriage with a hand-embroidered wool felt Victorian baby blanket.


These 3 black dresses with white lace collars were worn by Geoff's mother in the late 1930's and are included in the exhibition to show the resurgence in popularity of a romanticized version of mid 19th century styling featuring, for the first time in 30 years, fitted waists, tight-fitting bodices and full skirts. The high fashion mannequins were generously loaned by Rootstein.

The piano stands ready for the opening night celebration.

Athens Cultural Center

Swingin in the breeze

2011-07-20T10:22:00.000-07:00

Our new summer window at D. Porthault features a Hamptons inspired vignette with a tall boxwood hedge, vivid blue sky with matching butterflies and a luxurious hammock filled with D Porthault's latest summer collection of pillows and sheets.

Surf's Up!

2011-07-20T09:56:00.000-07:00

Its high tide at Steuben Glass, and to showcase their sea life collection, Geoff designed a colorful display unit using surfboards painted in bright lacquered colors on a life guard post inspired stand. The unit is nestled in a bed of sand with white seashells against a sky blue background.

As usual, Geoff restyled the interior and below are some closeups that highlight the oceanic collection:

Hugo Boss Art Collector's Beach House

2011-07-18T18:21:00.000-07:00

This summer's Hugo Boss Clubroom recreation was based on the idea of a Hamptons art collector's home. To achieve the light and airy quality of a beach house, the normally black theatrical ceiling was cleaned up and painted white.

Custom single pane doors were made for the entrance

Custom art was produced to create the environment of a serious art collector

Here's an interpretation of an iconic Alexander Calder mobile.

in the above and below photos, you can see the custom steel light fixture we built and installed above a extra long pure-white corian topped dining table

Here you can see the large window and door-ed wall we built to create an 'inside' and an 'outside' area

A look at the sheer white curtains that we custom made to cover the windows

Here we installed an ultra-modern faux fireplace that uses LEDs

A look at the 'outside' of the beach house showing gray weathered wood in a boardwalk inspired pattern.

Sail shaped 'awnings' hover over the 'outdoor' seating areas surround by gray weather clapboard.

Athens Lighthouse Project

2011-07-18T07:25:00.000-07:00

A local resident was inspired by a project in Catskill where local artist have been decorating fiberglass cats that have been displayed on the main street in Catskill. To raise awareness and help fund the Athens historic lighthouse in the middle of the Hudson river, this project was created. Geoff Howell, along 29 other creative Athenians were asked to decorate a bird house that is a miniature replica of the lighthouse. Below is Geoff's fabulous result! Inspired by the original purpose of the lighthouse, to emit light, Geoff's creation is covered with light-reflecting and refracting jewels, a fitting home for the most discerning of Athen's fine feathered friends.

Geoff's and 29 other lighthouse-bird houses will be auctioned off on September 11 to raise money for the preservation of the Athens Lighthouse and the Athens Cultural Center. Up until the auction, Geoff's lighthouse will be on view at FACE Stockholm in Hudson, NY

Photograph of the actual Athens Lighthouse

For more information and to see the other artist entries, check out these links:

Historic Hudson-Athens Lighthouse

Athens Lighthouse Project

Athens Cultural Center

Veuve Cliquot Summer

2011-07-15T09:30:00.000-07:00

Here's a look at our latest Veuve Cliquot summer window for the Sherry Lehmann store on Park Ave and 59th St.

Thomas Cole Historic Site Benefit 2011

2011-07-05T12:18:00.000-07:00

The third in a series of Thomas Cole fundraisers, this year marks the 10th anniversary of the Thomas Cole Museum. This year's photo-op backdrop consisted of two 8-foot numbers surrounded by mylar stars, modeled here by two local 10's (Brett and Justin) who generously helped for 3 days with the event.

The design focused on the birthday theme, hinted at by the invitation which included a single balloon tied to Thomas Cole's easel.

On the back on all 330 chairs was tied a single red or fuchsia balloon on a red string in various lengths conforming to the height of the tent. The coolest effect of this design is that not until you physically enter the tent do you see the 300+ balloons, making for a great (birthday) surprise! The color scheme continued with red and fuchsia tablecloth and contrasting napkins. Locally grown and donated centerpieces ( by Story's Farm in Palenville) with geraniums and other flowers in a 4th of July color scheme finished off the design.


As you can see, the event was held at an estate with a breath-taking view of the Rip Van Winkle Bridge and Hudson River ( and two of Geoff's helpers, Will and Brian)

Special holographic laser lighting by Hudson Talbot.

A spectacular fireworks display, set off down the hill from the main tent, capped off the evening's festivities with BANG and some OOOHS and AAAHHS

Thomas Cole National Historic Site (where American art was born)

LYONEL FEININGER DINNER AT THE WHITNEY

2011-07-01T16:54:00.000-07:00

To celebrate the opening of the late German expressionist artist Lyonel Feininger's exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art, we were asked to design the members only dinner party. Inspired by Feininger's frequent use of architectural imagery (in particular, arches), Geoff designed zig-zag folding screens made of homosote to create a whimsical architectural folly. The chartreuse tablecloths and soft pink palette of the floral centerpieces are reminiscent of his color palette. The next evening, the same decor was re-used for the public opening, an event for several thousand people.

Here's a look at a few of Feininger's paintings which inspired Geoff's design:

Lyonel Feininger: At the Edge of The World
June 30 - October 16 @ The Whitney

Geoff Howell Studio: behind the scenes on 22nd St.

2011-06-15T09:42:00.000-07:00

Here's a recent look at our team of trusty carpenters and crew in the midst of production for various projects. Photos snapped by one of our own talents, Angelo.

Sunglass Hut

2011-06-05T09:46:00.000-07:00

NEVER HIDE! is the new slogan of Sunglass Hut's latest promotion for interchangeable lenses. For the window on the right, we produced a series of mechanized lenses that moved up and down, behind the FLIP OUT vinyl on the window.

Inside the store, we installed a series of floor-to-ceiling photographs interspersed with video projections of floating lenses which you can see above in the 'shades' of blue.

Elite Enclave

2011-06-01T09:37:00.000-07:00

Back in sparkly Las Vegas, a fancy jewelry fair was held at the Mandalay Bay. And in that fair there was a special location for high-end designers, the new and exclusive Elite Enclave...

Within the Enclave, New York designer Temple St. Clair had a special niche, made more special by us! Working with their team, we created and installed framed images, jewelry vitrines, vinyl signage and cabinetry.

What is black and white and red all over?

2011-05-28T09:53:00.000-07:00

Hugo Boss hired us to design and create a Mondrian-inspired display for their moment in the Bloomingdale's windows in Soho. Three windows hold three dimensional wooden structures with red plexiglass panels insets, all 11 feet high, the fourth window is a flat vinyl application, for design continuity, as there is no display area there. Retro-fabulous!

Photo by Gary Lupton

Through the Looking Glass

2011-05-26T16:59:00.000-07:00

Thus grew the tale of Wonderland:
Thus slowly, one by one,
Its quaint events were hammered out —
And now our tale is done
And home we steer, a merry crew,
Beneath the setting sun.

-opening poem, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

Samuel & Sons, a specialist in the world's finest passementerie and APF Munn, a custom mirror maker of the highest order joined together for this year's Hospitality Design Conference & Expo at the Sands Convention Center in Las Vegas. Samuel & Sons came up with the brilliant and fitting notion of a 'Through the Looking Glass' theme. To bring this idea to life Geoff was brought on to come up with clever ideas to make it all come together. Making the booth stand out in a heavily corporate-looking show was an important goal of all involved. Inspired by the beautiful collections in Samuel & Sons repertoire, Geoff selected a vibrant color palette for the walls that would highlight the different products. Geoff chose a light 'champagne' colored carpet to help reflect light upwards and make the booth even brighter. In the center of the booth, fours chairs were custom upholstered, fit for a queen!

The time frame was challenging, but working with the delightful, helpful and committed people from both companies made the job so much more satisfying! The crowning glory of the presentation were perhaps the hand painted cut-outs of the story's main characters inspired by the original Tim Dennial drawings for Alice in Wonderland, exquisitely dressed using Samuel and Son's trims, tassels, crystals, and fringe along with fine fabrics from Jim Thompson.

The fancy white rabbit checks his watch before hopping through the looking glass

Opposite the white rabbit, Alice's growing and shrinking potions await!

A 9 foot tall Alice looks on in shock at her new size.

A closeup of Alice's dress with all the trimmings!

The Queen of Hearts, dressed in her finest, points a recriminating finger at Alice

The Caterpillar, fancier than ever before, sports his silk and glass trimmed jacket, complete with genuine jade fringes along his silk body suit.

A bedecked Mad Hatter awaits Alice to join him for Tea. The party boasts a new fringed tablecloth and trimmed cake!
A beautiful etched mirror floats above!

The stripes of the Hatter's coat and trousers are made from black velvet and silk borders

Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum 'mirror' the circular mirrors on the wall nearby in their spiffy striped jumpers and braces!

Detail from Tweedle Dum fringed outfit showing off the Roger Thomas designs.

Taking a cat nap on one of the mirror tops, the Cheshire Cat reposes.

Here you see his wild stripes are actually made of brush-fringe (which comes in at least 70 colors!)

Here's a peep at the Queen's Rose Garden, made from mirror and fringe.

And finally, here's are some of the beautiful Samuel & Sons product in a more traditional display.

The Making of 'Through the Looking Glass':

A plethora of Samuel & Sons trimmings awaits

The Mad Hatter, freshly tea-stained is ready for some definition and a sharp new outfit

Alice got more than she bargained for when she sampled the contents of this bottle!

Don't be a drag, just be a queen...

The naked caterpillar hits on the queen in her speed tape undergarments!

All dressed for a reigning day, someone's head will roll!

Aramis in Miami

2011-05-26T15:46:00.000-07:00

Aramis Designer Fragrances which includes Tom Ford, Coach, Donna Karan, DKNY, Michael Kors, Devon, Aramis Lab Series and Aramis itself (amongst others) had their annual sales meetings in South Beach Miami in mid-April, the decor for which we built, delivered and installed. This included building the product displays, and room changes to promote individual product presentations, graphics production and installation up to three times a day. Most of what we did was to promote products that have yet to hit the market, so we are unable to publish photos yet, but the beach outside the Palmsotel was beautiful!

Getting Wysterical!

2011-05-26T15:19:00.000-07:00

Spring comes to Porthault! Lucious vines of silk Wysteria create a dreamy hammock for the beautiful hand silk-screened linens and the latest colors, showcased in front of a lime green silk background.

The side windows repeat the vine theme with a twist.

Inside a bed of flowers awaits.

Pretty posies decorate the place settings

Wedding Bells

2011-05-15T10:51:00.000-07:00

Wedding bells are ringing at Steuben! This traditionally being the time of year when people tie the knot, Steuben asked us to create a window to showcase their beautiful wedding crystal gifts. Geoff's response was to fill the window with a lush cloud of white tissue paper wedding bells in various sizes ringing over a white plexi tiered 'wedding cake'.

The crew hard at work

The interior of the store was also restyled to carry the them of gift-giving within.

Gilt City and Food Network celebrate Lee Brian Schrager

2011-04-23T20:47:00.000-07:00

For a special event celebrating the famous chef Lee Brian Schrager, Geoff Howell Studio was asked by GILT CITY to design and create the ambiance for a cocktail party in Schrager's honor at 202, a new restaurant at the Chelsea Market. Several events took place during the week long celebration. This one celebrating Schrager's influence across the country particularly with three renowned food and wine festivals (The NY, South Beach and South Western Food & Wine Festivals) Taking the cue from the existing chalk-drawn menu boards, four 24 foot long chalkboard table tops were created featuring chalk drawings of food, utensils, various cities and iconographies. Along with the hand drawn table tops were 14 six foot high arrangements of forsythia and scattering of hundreds of votives mimicking the sparkling lights above. Lee Schrager was all a-twitter at the event, posting lovely comments and photos!

Photo by Billy Ferrell Agency

a look at Geoff drawing during production.

Erin adds some color to LA

What's the EFFEN DIFFA?

2011-03-18T19:43:00.000-07:00

EFFEN vodka generously sponsored both a booth and a bar for the prestigious Dining by Design, put together by DIFFA. Working in conjunction with the fabulous Tracy Reese, Geoff was asked to design and produce both the booth and the bar. The booth was 10 x 10 feet and 8 feet high and spoke to the modernity of EFFEN and Tracy's love of pattern and texture as well as including a natural element informs a lot of her pattern design. Geoff designed and created four large crimped, folded, crumpled and bent metal wall sculptures that were originally used as the backdrop for her fashion show this past Fashion Week at Lincoln Center. The sculptures were made with brass copper galvanized steel and aluminum and were set in large silver-leafed frames. Additional walls, completely silver-leafed separated the backlit sculpted panels and sat on a floor of brushed aluminum that was laid in absket-weave pattern. Sitting on top was a custom made round table and hanging light fixture. The stemware was generously donated by Stueben Glass.

The EFFEN vodka bar spoke completely to their brand's aesthetic with a a central tower in brushed silver with a niche for highlighting their bottle, and back lit logo panel. Everything else was in sleek high gloss black. The front bar itself was faced in brushed aluminum and down lit from under the lip of the front bar top.

For those of you who'd like to know more about the charitable works that DIFFA organizes to help those fighting AIDS (read the descriptions below, pulled from the DIFFA website):

DIFFA: Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS is one of the country’s largest supporters of direct care for people living with HIV/AIDS and preventive education for those at risk. Merging care and commerce, supporters of DIFFA come from all fields of fine design and the visual arts, including: architecture, fashion design, interior design, photography and consumer product design.
With fundraising efforts bolstered by strategic partnerships and unique events showcasing innovation and creativity, DIFFA has mobilized the immense resources of the design communities and granted over $38 million to hundreds of AIDS service organizations nationwide.

DINING BY DESIGN brings together internationally celebrated designers and local talent to create three dimensional dining installations that awe, inspire, and delight. These extraordinary dining environments—from the lavish and romantic to the outrageous and whimsical—set the stage for five days of fun and fundraising.

Coco Chanel

2011-03-05T20:40:00.000-08:00

In a recent ad campaign for Chanel's fragrance Coco, the ravishing Keira Knightley was photographed in front of a beautiful hand-painted Chinoiserie panel with a gold-leaf background.

For an event staged in the US, we were asked to replicate the feeling of original but in a smaller scale, this time on a folding screen, sans gold leaf, in a very tight deadline. Working from a few photographs, Geoff was able to re-create the design effortlessly with his team of craftsmen. The project including production of the white lacquer paneled folding screen took less than two days!

works in progress, before added details

Through the Looking glass

2011-03-01T13:41:00.000-08:00

For the first time in eighty years, Steuben is introducing a line of colored glass. To amplify the subtle shades of blue, gray and rose in the Steuben bowls, Geoff designed a window that creates multiple reflections by using a series of mirrored risers and background screens at sharp angles. The curved riser at the base echoes the curvature of the glass bowls and adds to the reflective illusions that deepens as you come closer and kaleidoscopes as you walk by.

Bailey House charity event

2011-02-24T14:07:00.000-08:00

Celebrating their 23rd year of existence as a NY institution dedicated to providing housing to people and families with HIV/AIDS, Bailey House felt that it was the perfect time to emphasize their roots and theme the party around NYC itself. With only a shoestring budget, Geoff came up with a clever and soaring design that takes advantage of the 130 foot ceiling of the Lexington Ave Armory at 26th street using long sheets of black spray painted white paper featuring NYC skyscrapers and other iconic imagery, held aloft by 225 36-inch black helium-filled weather balloons that disappeared into the dark recesses of the ceiling...

(And a note from Geoff Howell: I would like to thank all the wonderful people that worked so hard and gave so much of themselves to make this event a great success for Bailey House.
the GHS team expended tremendous effort and dedication to the cause, the lighting was greatly discounted (New City Video & Staging, Inc.), and the whole A/V and lighting team did an extraordinary job making the most of a small budget! )

Geoff's original sketch of the design

The Lexington Ave armory just before the installation began.

The Silent auction items were showed in 40 by 40 feet square pavilions that you can see going up in this photo. Anchoring the center of the space was the large bar.

Meanwhile, a few days before Geoff and his team rented an industrial space in Ridgewood big and long enough to paint line drawings of the skyscapers, the tallest (the Empire State Building of course!) being 75 feet long/high. In keeping with the street-tested medium of graffiti, Geoff chose to sketch out the buildings in spray paint.

Here you can see the 'elevations' in progress where some of the paper panels have already been lifted up by the balloons while others are patiently waiting their turn to fly.

The design of this building was loosely based on Edward Hopper's painting "Early Sunday Morning" now on view at the Whitney Museum of American Art.

The first panel of a skyscraper goes up!

A nod to the fact that the greatest amount of silent auction items are works of art, one of the pavilions was inspired by the art district in Chelsea featuring a High-Line Park facade, a giant billboard simply stating ART and an interpretation of the Chelsea Hotel sign.

Looking up at the tallest group of skyscrapers you can see the balloons above.

In this shot you can see the reflection of light from the 100 monofilament lines between the balloons and the buildings

One of the pavilions highlight the fashion items up for auction. Rootstein generously donated the use of their sexiest mannequins for the central display of the pavilion. In this photo during installation, the 'models' nakedly await their chic ensembles.


During the installation of the Step and Repeat, one of the GHS crew members makes sure to keep the backdrop clean and wrinkle free, also becoming his own celebrity moment.

TV personality Sherri Shepherd photographed in the traditional manner in front of the Step and Repeat. She was one of the many stars that came out to help the event to sparkle.

One of two artists seen here making impromptu portraits of the event's guests.

The event is full swing!

Geoff's soaring design catches the attention of the press!

BIZBASH

Edge Boston

MR NY

Nicole Miller

2011-01-26T17:31:00.000-08:00

Working with the innovative designer for Nicole Miller's new Washington DC area store, Geoff Howell Studio fabricated and installed the components seen in the photos below, including the angular jewelry display cashwrap desk, the floating cabinet behind it, the fitting room doors, metal mesh screen panels and polygonal display risers topped with thick frosted plexi.

Here are snapshots from the complete installation:

NICOLE MILLER

Going Back to Your Rootstein

2011-01-26T17:19:00.000-08:00

Rootstein, maker of the finest mannequins in the world, has a showroom on w. 19th st. Famous for its spectacular window displays, the showroom behind the windows is equally as mesmerizing. Every 6 months, the showroom is re-done with a new theme in mind. For this market week, they have re-created an imaginary evening in the late 70's at Halston's infamous apartment in the Olympic Tower (at the end of this post we've included photos of his actual apartment)

Elements from his apartment were creatively re-purposed to fit the showroom space, making a dramatic backdrop for their new mannequin collection. We built all of the black lacquered oak platforms, the floating staircase and faux mezzanie and the glassed in life-size terrarium.

Below are more photos of the decked out 'celebrity' mannequins reposted from The Bespoken: For Gentlemen blog. Amazingly, all of the clothing is designed by the creative director at Rootstein using the finest fabrics and incredible design details worthy of Halston's own work.

ROOTSTEIN

Halston's place

Like a Boss, social.

2011-01-26T16:44:00.000-08:00

The Social House

Once again, this year we were asked by Hugo Boss to build and install their new clubroom and showrooms at their palatial headquarters in Chelsea. The goal for this market was divide the clubroom space into intimate seating, dining, gaming, presentation and social network areas, and even a capacious shoeshine banquette! Thus, the overall vibe is a warm, chic, modern and inviting social club. From start to finish, it took a few months from planning to the construction of walls, floors, ceilings, risers, furniture, stands and finally to the installation.

As you enter the Clubroom the first thing you see, besides all the beautiful people that inhabit Hugo Boss, is a dining/ conference area featuring a dropped sand blasted wood soffit, along with matching risers for the models. The paneled walls, throughout the clubroom, were custom made for this installation.

The TV room section also features a sand-blasted wood soffit and matching back wall.

Behind the TV room you can see the Clubroom entrance and bits of the reception area beyond.

Standing on the sand blasted risers we made, real models were hired to wear grey spandex full body suits , then model Hugo latest line of clothing over it. Of course, those are real people, obviously not.

Across from the long dining table is the cafe section. Again you can see risers, and back walls we made from sand blasted wood.

Behind the cafe chefs serving up tantalizing little dishes for the fashionistas, are a series of 3 lightboxes that we built with a panoramic oasis.

I love orange and cucumber water.

Here in the media/gaming/social networking room/bungalow we installed more sand-blasted wood paneling along with vertical room dividers that allow light to flitter in much like blinds.

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Here you see some of the brick work we incorporated into the clubroom's structure.

Here you can see the shimmering decorative chains we used as 'tre-chic' room dividers

To complete the luxury hotel ammenity vibe, the clubroom features a shoe-shine station complete with shoe-shiner working to keep everyone's footwear chic and shiny.

lovely ladies lavishing in the luxurious lounge after lunch

The Showrooms

Adjacent to the clubroom are two showrooms featuring all of Hugo Boss' collections inlcuding Hugo Boss Black, Green, Orange as well as accessories and men's underwear.

Here we lined the giant bookcases with wood patterned wallpaper.

In the accessories area, we built these gorgeous rift-cut oak display cases with built in lighting as well as the risers.

The shirt and tie area features a large black lacquered wall fitted in recessed, lit niches for shirts and hang bars for ties.

Here various women's boots, heels and handbags are resting upon hanging steel shelving units that we built and installed.

In this shot we can see the beautiful hand blown glass linked chandelier that we hung with care as well as the hanging shelves and hanging bar lined with Hugo's latest looks lurking in the background.

Flower Tower

2011-01-18T15:03:00.000-08:00

In the dead of a monochrome winter, it was our pleasure to construct a set of three colorful and 'springy' Issey Miyake beauty towers for the Saks 5th Ave flagship in midtown. Making beauty towers is a common occurence for us, but this particular set was unique in that is was giant pink lightbox covered in hand-made paper with folded petals backlit in pink light.

Here you can see the fibrous texture of the paper, hand torn along the edge for a softer look.

The Engrave Yard

2011-01-12T14:20:00.000-08:00

Steuben's latest window focuses on the art of engraving on their spectacular crystal and so Geoff designed a stark and simple series of hanging panels of plexi featuring various examples of the kinds of engraving Steuben is offering for a limited time. Mirroring the hand engraved quality of the examples, the back wall is hand-sanded mirrored plexi. Mixed in with the hanging panels are hanging plexi boxes that feature an assortment of actual engraved Steuben crystal. As usual, the inside of the store was beautifully re-merchandised to reflect this theme.

Christmas at Tiffanys: The Making of....

2010-12-01T10:19:00.000-08:00

What follows is a series of photographs taken by Geoff during the installation of the monumental christmas trees and wrought iron arches on the main floor as well as the crystal staircase on the third floor. Overall, the installation took ten nights and Geoff's team of riggers, carpenters, movers, shakers, hangers and trimmers.

Christmas at Tiffanys

2010-11-30T10:06:00.001-08:00

This year, Geoff Howell Studio was honored to be selected to design and install their holiday 2010 interior throughout all 4 floors of their flagship store on 57th st and 5th ave. Working in collaboration with their design team, the theme was built around a fairytale that was written just for this holiday season, hence the motif of books, birds, and animals that runs throughout the store interior and the windows as well. Below are some preliminary photos of the complete presentation, with more to follow on future posts, including the the original concept drawings, installation photos and shots from the opening night party!

The first floor consisted of five 15ft high christmas trees in custom made planter boxes, one 22 foot high spiral staircase filled with Tiffany gift boxes and books, six large wreaths and two custom made wrought-iron soaring silver and gold arches spanning the center walkway at the entrance and creating and creating a vista to the signature marble wall and its handsome stainless steel clock.

On the second floor, a forest of trees grows from planter boxes throughout the room. The largest one is the first tree you'll see as you step off the elevator, standing in a bed of snow and surrounded by a wrought-iron arch

Leaving the second floor, our next stop is the fourth floor. From the elevator, you're greeted by a wintry scene showcasing a silver and Tiffany blue antique sleigh filled with presents, pulled by a flock of bejeweled birds and coming to a halt in front of an arched doorway leading to the splendid world of Tiffany gifts. Throughout this floor, more Christmas trees abound spreading Holiday cheer. On the other side of the floor is another vignette featuring a dining table designed by Geoff, surround by chairs upholstered in frosty blue velvet and bedecked with hand painted dishes and other wonderful gifts, also framed by a large arched doorway. This vignette stands atop a flight of curving stairs that go down to the third floor. For this staircase, Geoff designed cascading crystal curtains, and the structure that holds them, mimicking a light sparkling snowfall onto the rows of Christmas trees below.

Oh Crystal Christmas Tree

2010-11-29T23:22:00.000-08:00

The beautiful holiday Steuben window in vivid red plexi glass, features a shimming tree with its branches hung with crystal Christmas ornaments surrounded at its roots with be-ribbonned boxes showcasing holiday gifts.

And a Peacock in a Porthault Pear Tree

2010-11-28T09:25:00.000-08:00

These peacocks made their debut in Silver during last September's Fashion Night Out and were so popular they turned into gold just in time for the holidays. Porthault's signature pink hue was the color of the season and was used throughout the store to highlight their beautiful new merchandise. The back panel of the window display features large flower outlines in brilliant gold and dotted with pink lights.

Geoff's original sketch of the window's design

a trio of lovelies on the 58th st side.

The store throughout was merchandised with pink and gold and a matching background was placed behind the bed at the back of the store, inviting you to explore further...

A Conde Nast Christmas

2010-11-27T10:03:00.000-08:00

A Christmas tradition with our studio is to 'deck the halls' of Conde Nast and their family of magazines with some holiday cheer. Over 40 floors and 7 different locations in Manhattan and Delaware kept us busy with the installation over the Thanksgiving weekend.

Ross Bleckner for Steuben

2010-11-11T13:56:00.000-08:00

Recently, celebrated artist Ross Bleckner collaborated with Steuben's Robert Nachman to create a trippy new sculpture based the molecular structure of LSD. Encased in a crystal cube is a 3-dimensional model of LSD surrounded by a spherical void cast inside the cube. In the background is a related original work of art by Mr. Bleckner.

Here's a vignette we arranged within the store with images showing the magic of glass-making at work. In front of the photgraph are Mr. Bleckner's monograph and a crypt-like crystal paperweight with the word 'forgotten' inscribed on the bottom.

In the foreground of this image are two of Steuben's new tree trunk vases with another of Bleckner's sculptures in the background.

A look at the front of the magnificently crafted crystal sculpture of a multitude of spheres cast within the thick, polished glass slabs.

A shot of the sales floor that Geoff restyled for the occasion.

A last look at the limited edition LSD cube.

Pretty in Pink

2010-11-10T14:05:00.000-08:00

Geoff's latest Christmas installation at the Wilderstein Historic Site in Rhinebeck, NY. The beautiful (untouched since 1888) interior's slowly but artfully decaying silk wall coverings and hand carved paneling in white and gold provides the setting for this year's theme of a Modern (and anachronistic) Christmas. Sitting in a beautiful 19th century cast iron urn stands a six foot Christmas tree wrapped in hot pink lights encircling the tree and reaching out across the floor, spilling a warm neon glow of holiday cheer. A huge hot pink bow made of dyed coconut matting ties the whole thing together with a dramatic flourish!

This room and the rest of the mansion is open to the public through Christmas.

The Ghost of Christmas Past: Click here to see Geoff's Winter Princess installation last year!

Click Here to see out the article about Wilderstein in the Poughkeepsie Journal, featuring Geoff's work!

La Vie Grand Marnier!

2010-11-09T14:33:00.000-08:00

Recently, one of Geoff Howell studio's very talented project managers designed a window display expanding on a graphic provided by Grand Marnier. Retaining the graphic's feeling, the rendering above was produced and a table, risers and chandelier were designed and made specifically for this installation. Below is a photograph of the finished piece. This window is one of many that GHS tackles for various 'spirits' brands including Veuve Cliquot, Moet Chandon, Avion Tequila, Skyy and Belvedere Vodka and Bacardi.

Saks Renutriv event 10 21 10

2010-10-26T12:53:00.000-07:00

To helps Saks 5th Ave celebrate the launch of a new collection of Estee Lauder Re-nutriv beauty products, we built and installed a free standing wall with a super-graphic, gray carpet and custom made steel risers for product display. And we even did the flower arrangements! Because of event logistics, we magically manifested this entire display in under 90 minutes!

Paul Thek(nology) @ the Whitney

2010-10-21T13:41:00.000-07:00

To celebrate the new retrospective exhibition of artist Paul Thek at the Whitney Museum of American Art, we were commissioned to design the opening party held at the museum. Paul Thek was famous for his unusually vibrant color sense, use of raw materials and glass boxes with surprising contents. Drawing upon this sensibility Geoff chose an offbeat and bold color palette. Glass Boxes were used to contain the candles and flowers of table centerpieces. The entrance screen shown below was made of stained 2 x 4's with hardware cloth holding a broad swath of hydrangeas, dramatically side lit. Below the screen is a collection of various sized glass boxes holding a variety of lit candles.

Like the Hydrangeas, an array of boldly colored plates adorned the tables.

(view from the street shows the Hydrangeas wall from the lobby and the dining area below)

PAUL THEK @ The WHITNEY Museum of American Art
Now thru January 9th, 2011

Something to white your appetite

2010-10-14T13:01:00.000-07:00

For the latest Steuben Glass window, Geoff designed and installed a modern white domestic interior showing a bar and dining table that stylistically reflects the V-shaped motif of Steuben's latest barware and drinking glasses. To highlight the brilliant crystal, everything else was painted white, including the plants and even the flatware.

I'll steel you away

2010-10-11T14:05:00.000-07:00

Looking for her man of steel, the folks at fashion designer Nicole Miller recently hired us to produce a set of polygonal steel platforms on different shapes and levels for display at her showroom.

We also made these minimalistic steel sliding doors, guaranteed to shield against arch enemies and other tales from the kryptonite!

Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club Fundraiser

2010-10-08T13:13:00.000-07:00

To launch the opening of the famed Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club Decorator's Showhouse, a festive dinner was held at 583 Park Avenue on October 7. LaForce & Stevens, the PR company handling the event, contacted us to make a giant hand-painted whimsical version of their iconic door pictured below.

original Kips Bay icon logo.

Geoff's original concept sketch

the giant canvas version, painted by Geoff himself! (12 feet high x 8 feet wide)

A look at the final installation.

Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club

Peacock of the Walk

2010-09-20T12:05:00.000-07:00

From design to reality, here's the before and after of Geoff's latest window for (luxury french linen maker) Porthault at their Park Avenue store.

To highlight the latest collection of bed linens with peacock feathers hand silkscreened in shades of blue and gray, we created a magical 'floating' silver tree; home to a silver peacock with expensive taste in linens! Here, he is comparing his own glamorous train of feathers to those on the fabric. In the other window, the linens feature hand embroided ranunculus in the same chic color palette.

The 'ground' of the installation is a Porthault-hued plexi base with hand painted silver tufts, invoking the idea of a fluffy pillow.

To finish off, Geoff refreshed the interior with new product arrangements in shades of blue to make Porthault truly the 'Peacock of the walk'!

Dream Ball

2010-09-17T11:48:00.000-07:00

To help celebrate the American Cancer Society's 26th annual Dream Ball, Nordstrom's asked Geoff to design and plant a garden of paper flowers at Cipriani on east 42nd st. The main sculpture we produced was a giant 12 foot arch comprised of hundreds of paper flowers in various hues of pink. Also tapping into NY's Fashion Week, the arch also incorporated a welcoming hostess, dressed to the nines in an extravagant paper gown.

A closer look at Madame's cascading gown.

Here's a look at the paper flowers close up during production.

For the table decor, this time the paper flowers serves as a simple backdrop for the real floral centerpiece which included silver and gray paper leaves.

As a final touch, pink gelled uplighting illuminates the arch and surrounding architecture.

Dapper Digs

2010-09-16T12:43:00.000-07:00

Last year we were given a wonderful opportunity to work closely with two very talented clients to design and produce a modern interior for their new home. Initially hired to design their closets to maximize space, the project then expanded to designing furniture, custom ceiling, floor and wall treatments. Using a modern monochrome palette, the furniture was a luxurious mix of grey stained walnut and oak, white lacquer, black, brown and white leather, and a warm natural oak.

A look at the grey walnut bed with black leather upholstered headboard and matching nightstands.

A closeup of the nightstand.

Also in the bedroom, we built a grey walnut paneled wall with cantilevered underlit shelves and a long low cabinet with a stone top.

The bedroom also features a shiny black lacquered ceiling.

The home office features a custom work surface with cantilevered steel underlit shelving above and lacquered filing cabinets below.

Also featured in the home office are additional floor-to-ceiling storage units.

To tie into the history of the building, a custom finished tin ceiling was installed in the guest room.

Here are some shots of the custom closet interiors lined with rift oak.

Size Does Matter

2010-09-16T12:05:00.001-07:00

As the latest model of the Nintendo DS is released, we were asked to recreate a giant exact replica of the new video-game gizmo. Installed in the windows of Toy R' Us in Times Square, the copies features dual plasma screens and exacting reproductions of the rounded and concave control buttons and flip top angles seen on the actual product.

(a photo of the actual Nintendo DS for comparison)

Here's an artist rendering of the original concept, but after budget cuts.... (j/k, photo via Teche blog)

Shades of Madonna

2010-09-16T12:01:00.000-07:00

To sell-a-brate the launch of a new line of Dolce & Gabbana sunglasses designed in collaboration with Madonna, the main floor of Saks 5th Ave's flagship store was spangled with large video towers, rotating graphics, outposts and kiosks that we built.

a look at MDG's rotating lightboxes above a cosmetics counter

We also built a video wall made of 6 plasma screens
synchronized to show one large image as well as several smaller images.

√

In addition, we built display vitrines showing off the celeb shades 'runway style'!

Saks Beauty Towers

2010-09-16T11:20:00.001-07:00

Here's a look at some Saks 5th Ave beauty towers we recently built for display on the main floor of Saks 5th Avenue. These towers are a weekly part of the Saks 5th Avenue beauty promotion program. Each week highlights a new product or brand. Over the years, we've built many of these free-standing towers for a plethora of different brands including Armani, Balenciaga, Bulgari, Cartier, Chanel, Chloe, Clarins, Clinique, Dior, D&G, D-Squared, Estee Lauder, Fekkai, Gucci, Guerlain, Hermes, Jimmy Choo, Juicy Couture, La Mer, Lancome, Lanvin, Issy Miyake, Nars, Nicole Miller, Prada, Sisley, Luxotica, Tom Ford, SK-II, John Varvatos, Vera Wang & Yves Saint Laurent. Each one presents a unique challenge to elegantly showcase a particular fragrance within the context of the brand's identity as well as managing the logistics of wiring, lighting and producing a tower that looks likes it defies gravity! Below are a few examples of these lofty beauty towers.

For Guerlain's "IDYLLE" fragrance, we built a ten-foot tower that features three metallic inset 'teardrop' niches

For Guerlain's Terra Cotta fragrance, we created a tower with an inset display vitrine that was lit from top and bottom.

We also made one for this NARS beauty tower.

A little more off the beaten path, the Chanel beauty tower features a smaller vitrine half inset, thus drawing the curious observer to this unique effect and implying a more minimalistically modern 'outside-of-the-box' style.

For Saks' in-store beauty event "Brushes with Greatness", we produced these curvy towers featuring an inset bright light box with a red floral pattern. This set of towers also came with their own custom set of 'upside-down obelisk' stands for display of flowers and products.

Safari Reliquary

2010-09-12T13:24:00.000-07:00

For the latest Steuben Glass store window, we designed and produced a modern interpretation of a curio cabinet showcasing African tribal relics to evoke a kind of sunset over the Arican savannah. A burnished bronze color and various 'indigenous' heirlooms are juxtaposed with Steuben's Safari collection of animal shaped crystal.

Geoff's quick sketch of the design before production.

Burnished bronze panels were also used inside to reflect the main window.

The Butterfly Effect

2010-08-16T11:30:00.000-07:00

For the Hugo Boss store in Hawaii, we designed and produced a permanent sculpture of a flutter of butterflies. Carefully cut from aluminum and enameled in cool shades of blue and green, the butterflies are suspended from thin steel cables at different lengths to cascade down the staircase amidst photos of tropical foliage. Below are some shots of the project in production. The execution was delicate as the entire sculpture was completed in New York and shipped directly to Hawaii ready to hang, er.. fly!

Time to Give

2010-06-22T13:25:00.000-07:00

Audemars Piguet pulled out all the stops this year in raising money for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS with celebrity autographed engraved watches that were auctioned off at a glamourous event next door at the Four Seasons Hotel. The window, which we designed, built and installed, was a tri-phase project highlighting the auction, then the TONY Awards and finally, promoting the watch itself: their Royal Oak Offshore /57 st Limited Edition timepiece.

Celebrity autograph endorsements included Jay-Z, Meryl Streep, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Hugh Jackman, Antonio Banderas, Vanessa Williams and Neil Patrick Harris, among others.

The iconic city skyline was meticulously cut out of aluminum laminate with many brightly back-lit windows on both sides.

Visible Light

2010-06-15T13:26:00.000-07:00

To celebrate the opening of a new exhibit entitled "Visible Light" at the Steuben Gallery showcasing photographs of the brilliant optical effects of light shining through Steuben Glass, we installed a front window display showing one of the exhibit's photographs along with the piece of glass that was used to create the image in the photograph. The black lacquered base reflects the image and holds the slender steel support that showcases the crystal fish.

The interior of the store was re-styled to reflect the exhibit's focus.