Kim Lambert (left) and Clarisa Llaneza (right) with pieces from their new collections created exclusively for
Collaborations: Hollace Cluny is a celebration of Canadian design and craft.
Bringing together the best in Canadian style and local woodworking expertise, the inaugural collections for this exclusive new project —PERSONA by Clarisa Llaneza and WILLOW by Kim Lambert—reflect a modern approach to community-centric design.
For our first made-in-Canada furniture collections, we worked with two Toronto-based designers with singular sensibilities and a mutual regard for detail and connection. The unique pieces in their exquisite collections range from PERSONA’s elegant Tanner credenza—accented with geometric glass—to the refined side tables in WILLOW, which unify incomparable gestures in wood with enchanting stone and novel metal emblem elements.
Crafted exclusively for Hollace Cluny by Nick Day Design, the PERSONA and WILLOW collections are unique in that they assemble some of the best minds in local design for one purpose: To offer an inimitable choice of furniture that speaks to quality, thoughtfulness, contemporary mood, and timeless technique.
“I think there's something beautiful about supporting each other, and supporting Canadian, especially now,” says Llaneza about this ambitious endeavour. She adds that her existing friendship with Lambert made embarking on the journey in creating these collections particularly special.
“We have different experience,” Lambert says. “So, we bring something different to the table that's just our own.” And while there’s distinctive DNA that runs through each designer’s collection—Llaneza’s deeply personal inspirations, and Lambert’s desire to explore the tension between masculine and feminine sensibilities—there’s a sublime cohesion present between the two collections that comes from shared materialities and an abundance of textural delight.
“The value of craftsmanship is central to PERSONA,” says Llaneza about her four-piece collection inspired by and named after her close friends. “One of the reasons I wanted to work with heavier woods like walnut was based on based on my memory the quality of pieces I grew up around in my family’s home. Furniture made in rich, dark woods with intricate carvings; things that don’t really exist anymore. There’s something so romantic to me about all these layers.”
For Lambert, leaning into the possibilities in the materials was also essential. There are two furniture series which make up the WILLOW Collection: Hug—a group of curved wood and stone tables embodying the essence of connection; and Horizon, boasting artfully carved wood forms accentuated by stone tops. Clever puzzle-shaped emblems on these pieces “serve not just as joinery, but as ceremonial markers of tension and connection,” Lambert notes. “The collection pays homage to the expressive linework of Art Nouveau masters and the honest materiality of Brutalist visionaries.”
A potent mix of materials, memories and meditations on life are manifested in these two collections, but Lambert and Llaneza affirm that the most exciting influence of all in this project has been that of idea sharing and idea championing. This is extremely important to all the teams involved in the launch of Collaborations: Hollace Cluny, and we are pleased to launch this new project which amplifies our commitment to Canadian design, fine craft, aligned values, and shared passion.
Photography by Lauren Miller.