Consider the last place you enjoyed a glass of champagne: a wedding reception in a banquet hall, fireside on holiday, surrounded by strangers on New Year's Eve, maybe even on the sofa watching Dirty Sexy Money.
As far as seating goes, chances are none of the above match the experience of the Clicquot Loveseat, designed by Karim Rashid.
For starters, it's pink. Specifically, Pantone 182C. It's also fibreglass, which gives it a gorgeous glossy finish. And instead of a traditional loveseat where two people sit derrière-à-derrière, the Clicquot follows a curvaceous S shape, so they now face in opposite directions. At its centre, there is an ice bucket, meant for sharing a little bubbly.
Launched last year to complement Veuve Clicquot Rosé champagne, the loveseat has arrived in Canada for the first time.
Last night, a grouping of four made their debut at the ultra-swank Ultra Supper Club in downtown Toronto.
"You cocoon yourself with the other person in the space," Rashid said from New York this week. "As much as you're not facing the person directly, you're actually even more intimate in that position, which is something I didn't really realize until I was actually in contact with it."
Having spanned the globe from Jakarta to Milan to toast the loveseat, Rashid could not skip a visit to his childhood stomping ground. Before last night's party, his plans also included a lecture at the Ontario College of Art & Design and a stop at the Umbra store.
From his famous Garbo garbage can to his DJ Kreemy table, Rashid's penchant for innovative, biomorphic design - and his passion for pink - appealed to the luxury champagne label.
After presenting a series of ideas, he got the go-ahead to produce a prototype for the seat, which he says presented a number of challenges.
Mainly, the single steel leg on which the entire body cantilevers. He also pointed out that fibreglass is not the easiest material to work with. "It's a laborious process and, in turn, you end up with an expensive product, but you get a finish and feeling and a weight and a stability that's fantastic," he said. "It can stay out for 50 years in the environment before you need to rework or repaint."
One of Rashid's strengths is looking ahead while paying tribute to the past. People with an interest in period furniture will notice that the Clicquot is a "blobular" interpretation of 18th-century Confident chair, which was most popular during Napoleon's reign.
Given that Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin was founded in 1772 as a textile company, the seat is firmly grounded in well-conceived context.
"It's very exciting because it speaks to the spirit of the house," says Kelley Burns-Coady, the Ontario marketing manager for Charton-Hobbs, which imports the label in addition to Moët and Hennessey.
"Being modern and audacious represents Veuve Clicquot Rosé. It's a new direction that speaks to the customer and says, 'We understand your lifestyle.' "
This elegant eggshell-esque object definitely caters to a certain crowd - it has been produced as a limited series and can be purchased for about $10,000 at the Conran Shop (http://www.conran.com). Meanwhile, Ultra is thrilled to be the venue of choice for the Canadian unveiling (Burns-Coady confirms that it's one of the largest accounts for Veuve Clicquot in Canada).
"The buzz about the seat is huge," says Jesse Carere, marketing director for Ink, Ultra's parent company, owned by event maestro Charles Khabouth.
As of now, the four Clicquots that are installed in Ultra's lounge area will not move until at least the new year. Soon, Ultra plans to offer a tasting menu that can be paired with the champagne.
Rashid said he is proudest that the chair "radiates pleasure."
Pink, after all, is a spirited colour. Sexy too. As a two-dimensional image, the Clicquot looks like a bra, albeit oversized and in fibreglass. "I'm obsessed with the human body and mind; things around them should be tactile and engaging and embracing."
Now we're totally blushing.
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