Barlas Baylar editorials:


NYLON GUYS MAG - May 2009 Issue

Timber wolf
“I just sold a table to Lenny Kravitz yesterday, “ says Barlas Baylar. “ Barlas Baylar said people would be dancing on it!” The founder of Hudson Furniture is unfazed. After all the tables, chairs, and conceptual sculptures that Barlas Baylar handicrafts-with the help of 16 woodworkers in his sprawling Bushwick, Brooklyn studio-currently kit out spaces from Bryonce’s Tribeca digs to Tommy Hilfiger’s Fifth Avenue flagship.
The Istanbul-based Barlas Baylar family business is manufacturing mass parts, but a decade ago, the then-22-year-old set out on his own. “My heart was in the final product,” Barlas Baylar says, “not the process.” Barlas Found himself in production design on a Ridley Scott film set, but soon thereafter, in 2004, Barlas Baylar Started Hudson.
Barlas Baylar utilizes all-natural, antiquated materials-as in pre historic, petrified wood-but to stand in the company of stars, his furnishings are modernized with industrial details. “really organic structures, I don’t love ‘em” Barlas Says. “ They look …sad, and belong outside , not inside. I’m taking it to the next level –my pieces don’t look green.” To wit: cigar-room lounge chairs, walnut driftwood tables with bronze legs, nickel chandeliers, and a floor lamp cut from a palm tree. Says Barlas Baylar with a chuckle: “ My father always asks me, ‘ Don’t ever wonder if there is a fossil inside there… or a bird?’”
ARIELLA GOGOL
hudsonfurnitureinc.com

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PURPLE FASHION Spring/Summer 2009 Issue

HUDSON FURNITURE
Barlas Baylar grew up running around his family’s factories, which created machinery. Barlas Baylar later focused his attention on modern design; this Barlas Baylar took further in his studies in Brazil and London , eventually bringing the seeds planted in his childhood surroundings to fruition in his east Williamsburg, Brooklyn-based company, Hudson Furniture, Inc., established in 2004 His Furnishings are very much influenced by the line of thinking that emerged in the late sixties – witness the sleek, primary shaped minimalism, and raw organic materials that Barlas Baylar synthesizes into painstakingly handcrafted slab tables, consoles, beds, side-tables, mirrors, sofas, and elegantly drooping nickel-chain chandeliers. Barlas’ preferred materials are claro walnut, acacia, and petrified wood, and molded steel, silver and bronze. Using state of the art hand-craftsmanship, Barlas Baylar reveals the grain and contours of the wood and the natural textures and densities of the graphite steel  handles that hang from panels, the solid-cast silver feet for his couches, and the silicone bronze joints that hinges pieces together.
One of his influences was Japanese-American furniture designer , George Nakashima, who is known for tables cut transversely across large slabs of (often rare) wood, burnished down to perfection while retaining the shape of their contours and exposing their grains. Barlas Baylar employing local craftsman experienced in the delicate geometries of dovetail joints and butterfly inlays, not to mention sophisticated surfaces and natural and architectural contours. Barlas Baylar doesn’t just sand surfaces down, but often hand burnishes them with broken glass to reveal honey-like patinas that highlight a sense of mass and permanence. Most significantly, not only is Barlas Baylar dedicated to maintaining vigilance to his craftsmanship, Barlas Baylar’s also committed to the preservation of nature and uses  ecology-conscious felled wood, salvaged dead wood, and leftover cuttings of every irregularity that can be transformed into intricate, clockwork designs, such as the ones for his Enigma Round and Square mirrors. Nothing goes to waste. And his worldwide connections to such precious materials, the environment will be preserved in beautiful pieces that will last for generation to come.
Jeff Rian for Purple Magazine

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New York Living Magazine – October 2008

HUDSON FURNITURE
Artisanal techniques and environmentally friendly materials combine with great flair-an “haute, cosmopolitan perspective” is how the company terms it-at Hudson Furniture in East Williamsburg. Opened by Barlas Baylar in 2004, the company crafts furniture, lighting, and a variety of home accessories onsite. Furniture is available in custom dimensions and finishes, and in a variety of woods including jasmine, acacia, and myrtle, all from felled or dead trees. The collection includes unique pieces made of petrified wood-Hudson is New York’s only repository for the legally harvested material. Styles range from the sleekly contemporary to the truly fanciful, and because they are handmade, no two are exactly alike Hudson recently launched a new collection of solid walnut furniture by renowned architects Renzo Piano, Mario Botta, and Terry Dwan.

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Washington Spaces – Winter 2009

THE SOUL OF THE HOUSE
“Everything here is designed for ultimately having fun and to put a smile on your face,” says Hawthorn, who worked with her senior designer, Jason Hodges, on the cabin and custom furnishings within. “Jane did not want the typical stereotype for a log cabin. It had to be modern and playful and a happy, fun place to be. We wanted it to be a place where someone of any age – from a child to a senior – would find it welcoming” Hawthorn says.
“We’re gamers, we can get multiple backgammon boards going at the same time, competitive style,” Jane Says, adding that she especially likes the Wii in the game nook of the cabin. “For my age group, I’m No. 1 in Guitar Hero, I’ll Challenge anyone.”
Dick, who built his career working for the Franklin Templeton Fund, mentions, “We thought we could play tennis and then come here for hot chocolate.”
Hawthorn was inspired by the way Tong opened the cabin with the glass wall to the spectular view and invited in even more light by tilting the roof skyward. She was also challenged by Dick to find a table that would fit his whole family. Hawthorn provided the ideal solution when she found a magnificent 20-foot-long table made of a single slab of walnut from Hudson Furniture Inc.
“it’s the gathering table for the family to play games, read magazines, and it gives expanse of the view,” she says. “It’s really the soul of the house. … Despite its size, it undulates with such organic grace that it eventually melds into the environment.” The modern acrylic bases Hawthorn specified for the table and the low or transparent seating selections make it seem to float in space.

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Interiors & Sources         Jan/Feb 2009

SOURCES: EDITORS’ CHOICE
The Knight Base Table from Hudson Furniture was especially created by Barlas Baylar for his interior design clientele. The solid bronze base is hand-polished and is a real piece of jewelry translated into furniture design. The sustainable Claro walnut slab table top combines with the sculptural brilliance of the brilliance of the handmade bronze base to create a truly special table.