Literary luxury
The world's first luxury brand dedicated to culture, Assouline is now turning a new page and entering the world of lifestyle and interiors.
The world’s first luxury brand dedicated to culture, Assouline is turning a new page, entering the world of lifestyle and interiors
Having produced hundreds of books dedicated to the very best of everything from Pop Art to Polo, Prosper and Martine Assouline have launched a bespoke interiors service wherein they will design a unique library for your book collection.
Born and raised in Morocco, Prosper Assouline relocated to Paris with his parents when he was just 16 years old. The son of hairstylists, he always had a passion for literature and books and – despite never studying beyond high school – went on to launch, with his wife Martine, a publishing company focusing on the culture of luxury. Over the past three decades they have together built a global business that has taken luxury publishing to a new level.
Recently, the couple were in Dubai for the launch of their exquisite fountain-facing Maison Assouline boutique and Swans Bar café, which is lined from floor to ceiling with their books, together with decorative artefacts that mirror the books’ topics. The warm and inviting space oozes luxury and features a carpet with the duo’s signature 18th-century Neoclassical-inspired typeface that was designed to evoke the Age of Enlightenment and is named after the legendary French publishing family, Didot.
Two long antique tables, complete with bronze uplighters and down-lighters that were originally in the British Museum Library in London, add gravitas to the inviting literary space.
The elegant Dubai store is inspired by the firm’s first so-called ‘concept store on culture’, located in London’s Piccadilly.
Speaking to identity inside the intimate library tucked away at the side of the boutique, Prosper and Martine spoke enthusiastically about the new service that they are offering to well-heeled and well-read clients who are keen to have custombuilt reading spaces. First launched a few years ago, the demand for Assouline’s customised libraries is growing steadily.
Over the years the duo has expanded the brand to include candles and small furnishings such as book-ends and sculptural table- and floor-mounted book-stands, as well as book-ends specifically designed to display more valuable and larger books. They have also added stationery, book bags and co-branded headphones with Master & Dynamic to the collection.
And to coincide with the launch of their Oliver Peoples book, Assouline has created limited edition sunglasses.
Prosper is passionate when he talks about the new range of bookstands: “The tall version of Allure was inspired by a visit to a museum in the US, where I saw a piece from the 15th century – and what you see here in the Dubai store is my interpretation of that bookstand, in light and dark oak,” he says.
“Our son, Alex, designed the A bookstand in red, black and clear acrylic; it’s the perfect way to display any of our books, from those in the Ultimate collection to those in the Icon collection.”
Like every great luxury maison, the brand has also created its own candles, which form the Culture Lounge range. They have been blended to evoke the aromas that are synonymous with reading spaces: wood, paper and leather.
“Interior designers love our books! They literally order them by the metre to fill the shelves of luxury hotels, offices and homes,” Prosper chuckles, adding: “A library is often a very private and special place where people want to relax and unwind. We have already designed a number of private libraries and offer a complete turnkey collection of stylish furniture. [They are enjoyed by many of] our clients in the US and Europe, and we can already see interest from Middle East clients.”
Assouline’s library curation team can create a madeto-measure library or update an existing library, and have also created library lounges for a major department store chain.
Prosper is known for his eclectic taste and curiosity around global cultures – and so the Dubai store, like the brand’s other flagship stores, has displays of unique and rare objets d’art and furniture, often encased in specially designed curiosity cabinets.
“People are curious by nature and they like to see and possibly acquire items that are features in the pages of our books,” he says. “For this reason, we have decided to display such items as well. These could be a retro chair or a rare piece of fabric.”
Currently, to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of Bauhaus, the store features an exquisite and rare collection of hand-made black-and-white ceramics from Hedwig Bollhagen – a Bauhaus artist and ceramicists that gave her name to what is now one of Germany’s best-known ceramic manufacturers.
Despite being over eight decades old, the pieces are both timeless and absolutely on-trend.
“The idea is that people come in and browse, have a relaxing tea or coffee, and immerse themselves in the Assouline world,” Prosper says.
“Yes, it’s true that more and more the trend is to read digitally, but the type of hand-made, specially curated books that we specialise in – such as the Ultimate collection, which is presented in luxurious clamshell cases – cannot be replicated on line.
“We work extremely closely with artisans in Italy who make the paper and bind the books by hand. The box covers, especially, must be touched to be appreciated.
“In particular, the Ultimate collection adds allure and desirability, and these very special books have to be seen and felt – these are sensations that are obviously not available digitally.
“We are fascinated by so many things. We love what we do and we are continuously learning and exploring the world from our base in New York.”
Martine concurs: “We revel in the fact that we really enter into the topics of our books and seek to bring a unique experience to our clients. For example, we wrap a book in Rajasthan, in an antique piece of sari fabric, to allow the readers to feel what the author is talking about,” she explains.
“The objects that we select to display in the store are often from film sets, or pre-owned by celebrities – this all adds to the allure and exclusivity of our boutiques, whether they are in Seoul, Paris or Dubai. We want to provide a complete experience and to bring the books alive,” Martine adds.
Maison Assouline Dubai is poised to be an important melting pot for those who appreciate culture, luxury and the best brands in the world…