In Focus With….Tamsin Clark
Tamsin Clark is the Director of Tenderbooks. Since opening ten years ago, Tenderbooks has become a destination for rare art, design and fashion books, nestled on London’s historic Cecil Court. The space also plays host to gatherings connecting the worlds of literature, art, design and fashion.
YOUR FAVORITE ROOM IN A HOUSE AND AN EXAMPLE THAT INSPIRES YOU?
I think bathrooms can be very beautiful. I spend a lot of time reading in the bath so in my mind a bathroom space feels luxurious in its restfulness, even if it’s utilitarian. In fact, maybe the simpler it is the better. Eileen Gray made a perfect bathroom with squid-ink tiles at Villa E-1027. I also love an outdoor shower, ideally somewhere warm with a lovely view.
A DREAM DESTINATION - BE IT AN EXHIBITION, ARTIST HOUSE, GALLERY, OR HOTEL.
l want to visit the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan to see Caravaggio’s Basket of Fruit, an early example of a still life painting from 1599. This beautiful painting sits on an easel in a historic library. It sounds like a dream to me.
A BOOK YOU RECENTLY DISCOVERED IN ART, PHOTOGRAPHY, OR LITERATURE?
Emily Ogden’s On Not Knowing is a small collection of essays that I revisit often and with each read it somehow feels new. It’s a nimble piece of writing on the creative importance of openness and uncertainty. The text twists in surprising ways taking in subjects as diverse as an encounter with a whale, having a one-night stand, and the voice of Jazz musician Blossom Dearie.
AN OBJECT THAT MOVED YOU EMOTIONALLY?
I inherited a number of abalone shells of various sizes from my Grandmother. I love the idea of passing on natural objects as an heirloom. Their twisting shapes and chic pearl shine make them lovely things to have about at home. My Grandmother used one in her kitchen as a soap dish and I do the same.
OBJECTION MAGAZINE IS MADE OF INSPIRING, TIMELESS STORIES. IS THERE AN OBJECT, ARTIST OR AND EXCEPTIONAL LOCATION THAT YOU’D LOVE TO SEE FEATURED IN THE MAGAZINE?
I discovered the work of sculptor Valentine Schelegel in a beautiful book Je dors, je travaille that presents an archive of her life and art. It’s special to see images of the home Valentine created in Paris, a space that perfectly expressed her idiosyncratic ways of making and collecting. There’s a curious door she created from a patchwork of leather offcuts, a sculpture made from a fishing basket, and her extensive collection of knives decorating a wall above the kitchen table. Perhaps the most striking examples of her work are the large-scale interiors she created in plaster, including many fireplaces. The book beautifully documents these hearths that often become complete architectures or living sculptures. In many instances the fireplace might incorporate a bench, a shelf to bake bread, or little nooks for arranging books. This is a generous art that was continually offering up ideas for living creatively. I’m especially drawn to her design for a bulbous shaped vase that looks like a sprouting seed when arranged with flowers.