Sir Edwin Lutyens- Designing in the English Tradition

What is less well known is that Lutyens also designed the furniture and interiors for most of his houses, from the doors and doorknobs to the chairs and chandeliers. This volume offers the first thorough examination of Lutyens's work in interior and furniture design, revealing its enduring relevance and appeal.

Rooted in the constructional integrity of the English Arts and Crafts movement but inspired by the pure logic of Classicism, Lutyens's genius can be seen in his ability to synthesize function and artistry in designs that are simple without being primitive and elegant without neglecting comfort. Elizabeth Wilhide traces the development of Lutyens's style and identifies the basic principles that informed his work, such as his finely tuned manipulation of space and light— an outsize staircase steals space but evokes spaciousness; a circular cook's table is flooded with natural light from an enormous lantern window in the roof. Reflecting his flexible, inventive mind, Lutyens's furniture and interiors are, like many of his buildings, precise and seemingly traditional, yet at a second glance whimsical, individual, and always supremely livable.

Illustrated throughout with specially commissioned and archival photographs of intact or restored interiors and gardens, original designs for furniture, and contemporary reinterpretations of the Lutyens style, this book, which includes a foreword by Lutyens's granddaughter, Candia Lutyens, provides a fresh insight into a rich and enduring design legacy.