Hospitality and leisure interiors design specialist Jones AD and the UK’s leading contract furniture firm Furniture Fusion have unveiled the results of their collaboration to supply bespoke atrium furniture for the flagship St Fagans National Musem of History.
Following a £30m investment from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the Welsh Government to completely transform the visitor experience at the Cardiff museum, Jones AD was approached to assist with consultancy on the final stages of the project, specifically to oversee the design and installation of furniture for the newly-completed Courtyard Atrium.
Abi Perry-Jones, Creative Director of Jones AD, explains
“Having worked with St Fagans on an earlier phase of the redevelopment, we were delighted to be invited back to advise on one of the key finishing elements. The atrium is a beautiful and imposing space, but we wanted to help ensure it’s also welcoming, approachable and of course practical. On our initial site visit we were faced with a huge empty space, containing only a reception desk – some imagination was needed to visualise how the atrium would be used by visitors, staff and for community and private events.”
The atrium has several uses – its daily function is to serve as the museum entrance, but it was designed to perform additional roles including a theatre-style space for presentations and performances, and to host functions for up to 300 guests. To deliver each of these, the furniture selected needed to be flexible, hardwearing and easily moveable, as well as providing comfortable, attractive seating to a range of visitors from school groups to the elderly and young families.
Abi continues, “It was clear that something special was required – none of the off-the-shelf pieces that we considered ticked every box, and we were determined to find something just right for the space. We realised pretty quickly that the only option was to design something bespoke.”
The result was something which fitted the brief perfectly – a modular seating system which could be moved quickly and easily for performances and to suit different visitor requirements and uses. Some pieces would have seat arms and backs, some would be left without; pieces could be moved and linked together to create different sculptural shapes – especially striking when viewed from the overhead bridge which links the galleries. All would be hardwearing, practical and ultimately would deliver something that was visually exciting and appealing to mirror the beautiful new space and enhance its character. Colours and fabrics were selected to complement those used in the museum’s café space – another Jones AD project, the palette was chosen to echo the Welsh landscape and heritage.
Following a review of several potential suppliers, Furniture Fusion was awarded the contract to manufacture and supply the furniture from Jones AD’s initial concept.
Abi explains, “We chose to partner with Furniture Fusion as we were really impressed by their ability to take our design concept and translate it into a practical, workable solution. Their experience and reputation gave us real confidence in their ability to make a fully bespoke item, provide prototypes for review and to then hone the design further to suit feedback and deliver in line with the client’s budget and time constraints.”
Sam Samuels, Managing Director of Furniture Fusion commented, “We were really happy to be involved in the project. Abi had a strong creative vision and some clear ideas for what was required, which helped us to deliver something that suited her design and the client’s needs. We went back to basics and created paper mockups of the pieces, which allowed us to play around with the sizing and shapes and really bring Abi’s designs to life.”
Following the initial technical drawing stage, Furniture Fusion then produced prototypes for review and testing by the public and the museum team. The prototypes were very well-received, with great feedback from all stakeholders. Some final revisions were made in line with their comments, before the design was signed off and production could proceed, ready for installation in the museum on 26 September.
Bethan Lewis, Head of St Fagans National Musem of History commented, “We’re absolutely delighted to see the finished product installed in our central atrium and to unveil our new look to the public. Abi and her team really understood what we wanted to achieve, and were able to translate our requirements to Furniture Fusion, giving us a combined project team that we could have real confidence in. What they delivered met all elements of the brief, on time and to budget, and we now have an interior space that works brilliantly for our diverse user groups and gives us a space that we can be really proud of.”
