Consider yourself an art connoisseur? Or perhaps more of a humble admirer? With Frieze London and Frieze Masters 2024 fairs just around the corner, we are in the mood for all things arty this week. Art is a great starting point when it comes to planning and embellishing interiors, and with Frieze putting an emphasis on artists and discovery this year, we thought we’d rediscover a few famous paintings and use them as a basis to inspire Furniture and Accessories edits from our collection. Read on to find a few paintings that you may, or may not, recognise, along with homeware mood boards to match
Is any art collection complete without Vincent Van Gogh? His swirling brushstrokes and blue and yellow hues conjure thoughts of the airy countryside, which is possibly exactly what the artist was craving as he painted the scene three times from the window of his room in Saint-Rémy. What sort of room would you like to sit in to paint a landscape like this? The Post-Impressionist oil on canvas stages a warm and sunny landscape that has us thinking of rustic farmhouse interiors, full of yellows, blues, natural textures and light woods. The piece that stands out for us? The Gwendolen Coffee Table/Ottoman with its Dijon linen upholstered top, turned bobbin-inspired legs and woven cane shelf. Match it with the golden ochre tones of our Hongwu Pot and our Set of Six Fern Framed Prints.
Possibly one of the most recognisable paintings in the world, which currently lives at the Mauritshuis at The Hague. Johannes Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring is a Baroque oil on canvas and was designed to evoke an emotion rather than depict a specific person. It plays with light and shade, just as you can in your interiors to create ambience, as well as focusing on distinct but carefully considered accessories and details. From studding on a chair to the circular forms of handles and turned wood, pieces such as our Costellini Ottoman in Ash Grey leather, our Rocca Small Painted Chest of Drawers with its tear drop handles and our Small Bobina Bobble Mirror will bring that same sophistication and intrigue into your interiors.
The pioneer of abstract art in the western world, Wassily Kandinsky had a talent for playing with colour and shapes. If you consider yourself something of a maximalist, this piece could be a great inspiration for your interiors. The Early Modernist oil on canvas is bursting with bright hues and energy in its angular lines and patterns, underlined by black accents. The striking composition is something you can achieve at home with your furniture placement; don’t stick to the ordinary and symmetry, play around with your positioning. Choose a statement leg, like the half moon of our Candra Range, the zigzags of our Floren pieces or the cubes of our Huxley.
Is monotone more your style? Theo van Doesburg’s Composition in Gray experiments with rectangular forms, clean lines and shading. Focusing on black, white and grey, this oil on canvas started the ‘De Stijl’ movement, which literally translates to ‘The Style’. If this is your style, here’s how you can get it at home: play with gradients and go minimal in your colour palette. Pick a shade and focus on clean lines. Our Alexey Coffee Table in Black similarly plays with rectangles with its seamlessly crafted frame. Our Metamorph Wall Art lends a comparable appearance with added texture in its raised clay panels, which can also be mirrored in the geometry of our Tableau Throw.
These may be apples depicted on the painted plate, but the hue is giving Burnt Orange – another OKA favourite. Camille Pissarro’s still life could be a display from our very collection. It has a similarly rustic look to the afore-showcased Van Gogh painting, but with touches of grandeur and antique elements. To borrow from its appearance, layer warm hues through your furniture and soft furnishings and pair them with antique-inspired pieces like the Isphahan Range or the Marissa Bowls. You could even elevate your tableware with a Ranelagh Wine Glass or two.
William Morris was the king of textile design and at OKA we can only strive to emulate the same beauty within our own textiles. We place just as much importance on taking inspiration from nature and celebrating natural forms, and the botanical features in this Art Nouveau wood block print are a wonderful base for building homeware collections. From the leafy patterns of our Areca, Elemeri and Jussara prints to the green hues of our Brantwood Armchair, nature can flow through your home. If you want to take the botanical theme even more literally, look to pieces such as our Omaha Artichoke Bowl and our Forage Pear and Leaf Dishes.
What better way to finish our list than with the golden touch of Gustav Klimt. His Art Nouveau oil on canvas and gold leaf painting from 1907 truly brings the drama, and while the focus is on the golden glow, there are equally as important black accents and subtle touches of colour and shape that bring highlights and lowlights to the composition. Whether you want gold to be your focus or to act as a highlight, we have plenty of pieces for you to choose from. Our Midas Range is named for its golden touches on the feet and push plates, while our Oban Mirror, Araphel Side Cabinet and Ripple Floor Lamp showcase the same play of dark and light.
If you are feeling creatively inspired after that deep dive into some of the most marvellous artworks of the last millennium, why not dive deeper into the complete edit of art-inspired Furniture and Homeware.