Interiors Inspiration Courtesy of Jermaine Gallacher’s Furniture Show

On Thursday night, design dealer and all-round man about town Jermaine Gallacher put on a group show of furniture and ephemera at Lant Street Wine in south London. Titled Smoke and Mirrors, this show was held with the intention of celebrating offbeat design (Gallacher’s speciality).

And that’s exactly what it did, but it did more than that too; in a way it legitimised interior design as a valid form of contemporary artistic expression; and one that relates to this generation. Because for many people, myself included, the idea of seeing furniture in a gallery does not sound a) very appealing, b) very exciting or c) very current. Let alone sexy. But Gallacher’s show was all those things.

“I had people whose work I respect and admire the most. It just so happens most of them happened to be close friends,” says Gallacher. These people included AnOther-veted jeweller Gala Colivet Dennison who presented some exquisite candlesticks; artist Charlie Froud who displayed two very elegant cherrywood chairs; one half of Atelier Baba, Gabriella Massey, who debuted some brilliant hand-printed bed linen; and Janina Pedan who delivered a beautiful hand-blown chandelier. Other highlights included Polly Philps’ PVC ‘Bolt’ chair, F. Taylor Colantonio’s woven urns and two beautiful, modernist rugs of Gallacher’s own design.

The great thing about interior design is that it’s easy to partake in; we all have spaces that we occupy and can decorate. Which is what Smoke and Mirrors encouraged us to do: to put down the IKEA catalogue and be a bit more experimental. “I hope people left feeling inspired and able to see the potential of how furniture and the rooms they are in don’t have to be over-designed or boring.”

Head to the gallery for some interiors inspiration courtesy of the show, and to Jermaine’s online shop for some Christmas gift ideas – for a loved one, or yourself.