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CRAIG LEAVITT AND STEPHEN WEAVER
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Modesto interior designers Craig Leavitt and Stephen Weaver are two of the hardest working, most creative and prolific interior designers working today. Along with working on major residences in four states, their 8-person firm is also planning commercial spaces and corporate headquarters, dashing off table and lighting designs with profligate delight, and continuing to complete restaurant, hotel, and store designs for Northern California companies. Leavitt/Weaver was recently retained by Boeing Business Jets to design custom interiors for corporate jets. "We’re planning jet interiors that look modern and individual, and have the style of a personal office or residence for corporate heads," said Weaver, who is also working on a collection of highly personal, revelatory oil paintings which will be shown in a New York gallery next year. "The idea is to make very functional jet interiors that are also gracious and comfortable for business leaders. The gregarious partners, both obsessive perfectionists, have also sketched company logos for the PlumpJack Cafe and wine shop, designed numerous store interiors, collaborated with Topher Delaney on loopy topiaries and oversize furniture for the garden of a Napa Valley winery, designed the interiors for the Squaw Valley Inn, and created hundreds of pieces of furniture. The 12-year-old Leavitt/Weaver furniture collection is represented by Randolph & Hein. Are they at the height of their career after twenty-four years in the interior design business? Or have these three decades been simply the prelude.? It seems they are beginning a new trajectory. "We’re not high-falutin'’ about materials and how they are used," noted Leavitt, a flea-market aficionado. "We find ourselves in metal scrapyards and fine antique shops with equal ease. We keep an open mind, take risks. We never know when something we have discovered--a metal foil, truck mud flaps, Moroccan musical instruments, Fiberglas, a certain parchment or leather--can work in a new environment." Still, the partners admit that their ideal commission involves design/build. "We like to start from the beginning so that the architecture and interior design and furnishings and colors can develop together and be refined as things progress," said Weaver, who noted that Leavitt/Weaver are known equally as "beige decorators" and "wild colorists". Materials and design elements they appreciate include antique textiles, crackle finishes, smooth walls, tailored upholstery with more pitch to the seating, old copper, and powdercoat finishes. "Surprise and accidental design are two of our big thrills," noted Leavitt. "We often act like artists with our shirttails hanging free, to get our best results. Nothing is more spontaneously entertaining or lasting in appeal than a really good color, an unexpected texture, or an arrangement that is not done by rote." Leavitt/Weaver have also been successful at keeping their flash and spark of inspiration. "The design wave of the future is "strictly personal"," said Weaver. "Design is much more than purchased goodies. It must include found art, antiques, perhaps antique textiles, unusual textures, surprise, delight." "Our new theme in decorating is a revival of sorts," added. Leavitt. "We believe, "Man is that he might have Joy." Leavitt/Weaver, Inc., 451 Tully Road, Modesto, CA. 95350. (209-521-5125) DESIGN INSPIRATION ALBERT HADLEY He has the Parrish-Hadley genius of simplicity and perfectly calibrated scale. Craig’s mentor during his New York City days. Magical colorist, makes interior design seem so simple. BILLY BALDWIN The Spitfire of Third Avenue. The man who inspired a host of latter-day 20th-century designers and art teachers. Early Michael Taylor work was in his shadow. ANDREE PUTMAN Severity at its most refined. She is inspired by Eileen Gray to this day. Great stylist in dark and light contrasts. JEAN-MICHEL FRANK The purist who inspired Baldwin and his ilk. He believed in materials of the simplest description, and used them in the most formal and exquisite ways. He inspired craftsmen to new heights, and that’s been an inspiration in our careers. ANDRE ARBUS He had a strong, sweeping hand in personal and commercial venues. He alone makes the most of four centuries of French style, pleasing the sophisticated as well as the most simple tastes. PIERRE CHAREAU He truly transformed the machine shop to the advantage of modern interiors. We admire his deft handling of metal surfaces and supports, with no over-refinement of the effect. He understood the allure of raw edges and seams, and this chic "imperfection" still looks masterful in current architectural interiors. | |
| Copyright © 2002 Diane Dorrans Saeks. All contents not to be reproduced without permission. |
