In the WSJ last week: a loving paean to Delaware County furniture designer Jim Zivic's latest creation, a leather-and-steel chaise lounge inspired by the sleek lines (and buttery upholstery) of the Jaguar E-type.
The Jaguar’s hexagonal steel undergirdings are both rugged and pencil-thin, like the struts on a sports car or biplane; the nifty gizmo that raises and lowers the backrest is a marvel of precision engineering; and the supple Italian leather cushion (available in multiple colors) is studded, like an old Chesterfield, with 128 leather buttons, each one hand-fashioned by the designer himself. (Zivic’s upholsterer, it turns out, collects vintage Jaguars.) The result is something both antique and futuristic, slightly steampunk; it’s heirloom-worthy, rock solid, and yet it looks like it could zoom off at any minute.
Zivic, who works out of a studio near Delhi, is well-known in the design world for his tables made of polished anthracite coal. Oh, and he's furnished most of Lou Reed's West Village apartment.
