DEDON: “Coming Home” by Bruce Weber (DEDON GmbH, 2010)
Fashion photographer Bruce Weber had never worked with a furniture brand before, but he and DEDON founder Bobby Dekeyser hit it off right away, and the idea for the book Coming Home was soon realized. The book is primarily photographs, most set outside on a tree house built specifically for the shoot. But there are some pages with paintings and select quotations about, of course, “home.” DEDON has been creating luxury outdoor furniture for the past 10 years, and this book reflects the values of the company. In the only full page of text in the entire book, Bobby Dekeyser explains that the inspiration for his furniture comes from the concept of home. “At DEDON, we say, ‘Feel at home wherever you are’…For example, at furniture fairs, we always made it a party. We would say, ‘Come, bring your children and your friends, and, by the way, we sell furniture.’”
This emphasis on celebration and family is a major theme of Coming Home. In the photographs, people of all ages are seen playing games, eating cake, making music, reading, sleeping, lounging – all on DEDON’s unique rattan-like furniture. A couple relaxes on a black-and-white couch with classic pillows, two muscular men toss a chair back-and-forth like a baseball, and a little ballerina curls up in a dark brown loveseat with a white canopy. The comfort and versatility of this furniture is plainly displayed.
The book’s few illustrations are by artists Jeremiah Goodman, Prudence Whittlesey, Juan Jose Quevez Heredia, and Maria Sibylla Merian. Some images are mixtures of photograph and painting, but others are full-page paintings that show a blending of the indoor and outdoor. In one, a living room with a fireplace, tables, chairs, and lamps, has walls that seem to open right into a forest, and the floor is a mix of dark brown and blue, resembling the earth. This fits right in with Dekeyser’s childhood reminisces: “We used to say to each other, ‘Hey, let’s make the outside nice. It’s even more important than the inside.’’”
