A collection passed down through generations.
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Combining both time-honoured craft techniques and modern technology, the collection has been inspired by Another Country’s Dorset heritage and references the design typologies of the 19th century, Thomas Hardy’s birth century.
Designed by award-winning British designer David Irwin, the collection includes an armchair, rocking chair, bar stool, side chair, side table and coffee table, adding to the existing Hardy Chair created by Irwin in September 2015 and awarded the prestigious Design Guild Mark in 2016.
The Hardy chair was originally commissioned to celebrate Another Country’s fifth anniversary, devised around the brief to create furniture inspired by the history and landscape of Dorset, from where the company operates.
While exploring Dorset culture, Irwin stumbled upon Thomas Hardy’s poem, ‘Old Furniture’ – an ode to the beauty of furniture being handed down the generations. Two chair typologies inspired the chair’s design: the Captain’s chair, originally a low-backed wooden armchair and the Smokers bow, a low back Windsor, often used in smoking rooms, public houses, barbers shops and cottages.
“The design of the Hardy family picks up where it left off from the original Hardy chair, creating a collection of furniture that imbues quality and longevity so that it will be passed down through the generations,” states Irwin.
“With the design of the Hardy Collection I have kept one eye on the past and one on the present, utilising time honoured Windsor chair making techniques to create a range that although has a vague element of nostalgia, still retains a contemporary aesthetic and relevance for today’s environments”
The new collection features tapered dowel joints and steam bent back rests, all helping to retain the robust construction and sympathetic proportions of Hardy. Softly rounded corners demonstrate the versatile, comfortable and hardworking design Another Country has typically become known for.
“Each piece in the collection celebrates the knowledge and skill of the hands which made it, resulting in a collection of honest and humble furniture built to last, to be lived with and to be loved,”continues Irwin.
All products are available in solid oak & ash, finished to show off the natural character of the timber or with a flat black lacquer for a more contemporary look. Speaking of the new collection, Another Country founder Paul de Zwart states:
“Key to Another Country’s ethos is to design products that have contemporary appeal but also aesthetic longevity and David’s designs capture this ethos perfectly.”
