Several years ago, when interior designer Richard Kaleh was vacationing in South America, he chanced upon a company that was producing cast-stone planters and pots in traditional 18th- and 19th-century Italian and French designs. He placed a small order and when it arrived on time and he observed that the workmanship was impeccable, Kaleh decided to distribute the stone products in the United States.
The collection has grown to 80 jardinières, urns, pedestals, fountains and mantels that are purchased by the world's leading landscape designers and architects, including I.M. Pei, for homes (Bill Gates's Seattle mansion) and hotels (the Bellagio in Las Vegas and the Four Seasons in Egypt).
The Kaleh Design Collection contains a wide variety of styles, from the simple styling of the Colosseum and Christina planters and the Fluted pot to the intricate carving of the Florencia jardinière. Kaleh, a 20-year veteran in interior design, chooses the pieces in the collection with an eye toward practicality as well as decorative appeal. One such example is the Column base (shown in the table of contents), which offers sturdy support for a tabletop of any weight and is decorated with Greco-Roman motifs.
August 2001
