We look at how the team behind Callaghans of Shrewsbury have managed to reach an international audience with their carefully curated collection of pieces.
Basking in the Florida sunshine, the team behind Callaghans of Shrewsbury are a world away from the cold, grey British winter one comes to expect at this time of year as they embark on their annual tour of the American art exhibitions. The first of which, Art Palm Beach (25-29 January), is an opportunity for Daniel and Stella Callaghan – the founders of the gallery – to showcase an impressive collection of over 25 pieces of work by the renowned Italian furniture designer Carlo Bugatti (1856-1940).
Bugatti was one of the few artists and makers whose works were celebrated during his lifetime, and very much continue to be long after his death. Strikingly original, his furniture combines the picturesque asymmetry of Art Nouveau with the exoticism of Moorish influences, alongside inspiration taken from Japan, plus there is no doubt he was also inspired by the general European interest in Orientalism during the late 19th century. It is this idiosyncratic combination of all these cultural styles that makes his furniture unique and sets him apart from the crowd. So it will come as no surprise that there is an element of fanfare surrounding such a sizeable collection of his pieces being exhibited and available to buy all at once. But Bugatti’s designs are not the only ones causing a stir on the other side of the ...