Posted on: July 25, 2006

Meet the Designer: Thomas O’Brien

Designer Thomas O’Brien loves the sunnyside-up optimism of designs from the 1950s.

By Robert Sharoff
CTW Features

Twelve months ago, Thomas O’Brien was a name that resonated primarily among New York trendsetters. As founder of Aero Studios, a retail and design firm in Manhattan, he was known as a “designer’s designer,” with a client base that included über-designers Ralph Lauren and Giorgio Armani.

That all began to change in the fall of 2005, when he designed a collection of over 500 moderately priced furniture and housewares items for Target that quickly became one of the most successful product launches in the chain’s history.

O’Brien combines neutral patterns, pale colors and dark woods in a style he describes as “warm modernism.”

HomeStyle recently spoke to the affable, easy-going designer about his influences and interests, as well as his role in the current style revolution.

You design for both the high and low ends of the market. Is there a difference?

Thomas O’Brien: Not really. No matter what price level you design for, an object has to be functional and useful, as well as smart in a design sense.

Is the Target merchandise more disposable?

I don’t think of it that way. I like both dressy things and more casual things and love to mix them up. The Target collection is about bringing a more refined design sensibility to that part of the market because one of the things I think has gone wrong in the worlds of fashion and design today is how excessively expensive everything has become. I mean, how many $9,000 handbags does the world need?

You are often associated with reviving mid-century modernism. What’s appealing about that period?

TO: It was a time when industry and design meshed in a really nice way and where beautiful things were being created and the point of view was very positive and optimistic. I think that’s important.

What designers from that period do you admire?

TO: I love [accessories designer] Russel Wright and [furniture designers] Paul Frankl and TH Robsjohn-Gibbings. There’s kind of an honest earthiness to Wright’s things that I really like, and there’s something about the character and construction of Frankl’s pieces that is really appealing. I’m a big collector of all of them.

Where do you find stuff?

TO: eBay! And junk stores and the Salvation Army. I love collecting. I’m one of those people who has way too many dishes, way too much silver. I always tell friends they don’t want to go with me to the Salvation Army store because I will drive them absolutely crazy. I’ll spend three hours looking at every t-shirt.

Is it about getting the best deal?

TO: Not really. For me, it’s about the hunt. Collecting is fascinating because it’s inherently about learning and knowledge. No matter what you collect, it’s about having that little piece of knowledge about why something is interesting or valuable or beautiful – maybe only 20 of them were made or whatever. It’s about knowing that.

What’s the newest thing in your house and what’s the oldest?

TO: The newest are two of my own baskets that I bought at a Super Target in Florida yesterday. The line sold out and I literally couldn’t find them in New York.

What’s the oldest thing?

TO: A Celtic bust that dates from about 400 B.C. I bought it last Christmas after looking at it for two years in an antique store. It’s what they call a heroic figure and the expression is very strong and warm but also a little sad. When I first saw it, I thought it was a modern piece because it looks like something Brancusi would have done. I’m always fascinated by objects that are a little out of time, where you can’t really tell when they were designed. Also I’m Irish, so Celtic means something to me.

What colors are you liking these days?

TO: I always love pale blue, ivory, eggplant and high-gloss black. My store in New York has pale blue walls and shiny black doors. The look is very crisp and clean, kind of Colonial American crossed with the Bauhaus. I like that it has different associations. It adds a layer of complexity and meaning that I think is interesting.

I know you design a lot of houses. Do people come to you for a specific look?

TO: I hope not. I think of myself almost as a consultant. My job is to make sure they are making a great investment in design. I’m not that interested when someone shows up with a picture of something I did for someone else and says this is what I want. I want to partner with clients more than anything else.

Are you someone who has moved around a lot?

TO: No. I’ve lived in New York for 25 years and have had four apartments. I do change things around, though. I just finished redoing my current place.

What changes did you make?

TO: I have a one-bedroom apartment in a pre-War building with high ceilings and tall windows. But – like a lot of people – I’ve never really used the living room all that much. I work long hours and when I come home, I usually just go into the bedroom and turn on CSI Miami. So, I decided to flip the bedroom and the living room. I’ve always been fascinated by photos of the studios of famous artists and that’s the effect I wanted – a big room with a bed and work scattered around and great light from the windows.

Where’s the Celtic bust?

TO: Between the windows at one end of the room. I designed a pedestal for it. It definitely completes the look.

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