During Architectural Digest’s Home Design Show, a number of brands are taking the opportunity to align themselves with a cause.
Barneys New York, Roche Bobois, Ralph Lauren Home, Diane von Furstenberg and Calvin Klein are participating in Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS’ Dining By Design event, for which they each created a design installation. For these brands, this event balances philanthropy with the opportunity to have an artistic display at a large home interior show.
"Barneys New York was one of the first supporters of DIFFA many years ago," said Tracy Edwards, vice president and district merchandise manager for Chelsea Passage, Barneys, New York. "Today, Barneys New York remains proud to support the mission of DIFFA and celebrate the organization’s 30th birthday."
Prime placement
Dining By Design will be held concurrently with AD’s Home Design Show, from March 20-24 at Manhattan's Pier 94. DIFFA, which is entering its 30th year, asked creatives from the fashion, interior, art and architecture worlds to create over-the-top dining spaces.
DIFFA raises money for organizations that combat HIV and AIDS through treatment, education initiatives or public policy advocacy.
Kicking the event off was a cocktail party on March 20 where attendees could see the displays and bid on silent auctions to vie for art, travel or hospitality packages.
The public can view the installations from March 21-23, as well as shop the silent auction. Tickets can be purchased that also allow access to the AD show.
Closing the weekend’s events will be a gala on Monday where guests will dine within the design installations.
Roche Bobois teamed up with architects Gisue Hariri and Mojgan Hariri on its installation, which features the world premiere of its Jean Paul Gaultier Mah Jong sofa.
Roche Bobois installation at Dining by Design
Before the cocktail launch party Roche Bobois posted images of its display to Facebook.
Barneys set a cream colored table with black placemats to evoke the retailer’s logo. On the wall in the store’s display are campaign images from its “Brothers, Sisters, Sons and Daughters” campaign, which tells the story of transsexual individuals (see story).
Barneys installation at Dining by Design
Ralph Lauren took to social media to promote its involvement, providing a link to DIFFA’s Web site so consumers could learn more about the event.
Tweet from Ralph Lauren
Diane von Furstenberg designed a table for Kravet, incorporating her bright patterns and placing flowers in vases on a hot pink table.
Diane von Furstenberg installation for Dining by Design
Ongoing partnership
This event is part of Architectural Digest’s Home Design Show, which showcase the brands that appear in the shelter publication.
Architectural Digest is bringing the pages of its magazine to life with the first shoppable Architectural Digest Home Design Show held March 20-23 in New York.
During the four-day Architectural Digest Home Design Show, now in its 13th year, designers and brands showcase the designs and homewares that grace the pages of Architectural Digest each month. With seminars, curated shopping opportunities and product demonstrations, the Design Show allows Architectural Digest to attract new readers and maintain its current audience by bringing its content and focus into the physical realm (see story).
Ralph Lauren, one of Dining by Design’s sponsors, is a regular advertiser in Architectural Digest.
In the November issue of Architectural Digest Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren and Giorgio Armani took ad prominent pages to stand out among the habitual home design brands found within the shelter publication.
By positioning home collection ads beside high-end jewelry and interiors, fashion brands are able to present a full lifestyle with which the reader is able to identify. The balance of home collections from well-known fashion brands with leading interior-decor brands likely generated the interest of readers (see story).
This is an opportunity for brands to showcase their products in an artistic, whimsical way.
"Barneys New York's involvement and presence at the Dining by Design event should foster a sense of goodwill and kinship amongst the design community," Ms. Edwards said.
"Beyond increasing visibility to the merchandise we carry, our setting highlights the important spring 2014 ad campaign, Brothers, Sisters, Sons & Daughters," he said.
Final Take
Sarah Jones, editorial assistant on Luxury Daily, New York