Favorite Things


Naples-Based Designer Pamela Durkin Shares Artful Picks

We’re tapping local design pros to share the global finds inspiring them. This month, Naples-based Pamela Durkin shares artful furnishings and objects for the well-curated home.

BY November 1, 2022

Phillips Collection, Outdoor Sculptures

“Our outdoor spaces in Florida are everything,” Pamela says. She likes to create plein-air living rooms with the level of sophistication typically reserved for interior spaces. To add art, she looks to Phillips Collection’s aluminum sculptures, which come in forms like The Bending Diver (pictured). Renditions can stretch up to 9 feet tall and are made of stainless-steel pipes, covered in aluminum. “These textured aluminum statues command attention and bring art to the outdoors,” she says. Though the metal is rust-proof, within a year, it oxidizes, creating the look of a long-held treasure.

 

Dax Chandelier

“I’ve always admired [designer] Susan Hornbeak-Ortiz,” Pamela says. “She’s an amazingly creative woman with an impeccable design sense, and her pieces are the epitome of sexy.” Even lighting has sensual appeal in the hands of the California-based talent, who presents gold-leaf rebar hand-twisted in a frenzied fashion for a statement-making fixture. “The Dax Chandelier is chaos and sophistication all rolled into one,” Pamela says. The fact that it is made in the United States is a bonus for her, as she likes to support American-made designs.

 

Monster Chair

Dutch designer Marcel Wanders’ Monster Chair presents a gorgeous spin on functional art. “Marcel is known for taking classic shapes and turning them on their side,” Pamela says. “I love his interpretation of a typical dining chair, with its puffed-up dimensions and diamond quilting.” The tongue-in-cheek monster embroidery adds to the artistry. The Monster family of products includes dozens of models (from dining tables to rugs to a basketball) and more than 587 fabrics, but Pamela is partial to the original black synthetic leather upholstery, which subtly showcases the embroidered creature on its backrest.

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