Art Van Furniture has extended its partnership with fashion photographer and celebrity Nigel Barker on line of living room, dining room and bedroom furniture.

The Nigel Barker Collection, exclusive to the Top 100 company, features signature “homestyle pieces, such as canopy and sleigh beds, sectional sofas, and parquet dining and pedestal tables, inspired from his travels around the globe,” the retailer said.

The collection features 44 furniture SKUs and 177 accessory items at primarily middle price points, such as the Wilton Canopy bed for $1,499; a six-piece Connaught fabric modular sofa from AICO for $3,599; a traditional Drayton sofa from Lenoir, N.C.-based Bernhardt for $1,799; and a two-tone Southsea trestle table for $999.

Art Van declined to name all of its suppliers, but noted the case goods are produced in China and Vietnam.

The Southsea trestle table, ($999) is part of the new Nigel Barker collection exclusive to Art Van Furniture

“Each piece … was handcrafted at Barker’s direction with comfort and functionality at the forefront, creating a refined versatility perfect for any home,” Art Van said in a release. It characterized the furniture as “both stylish and practical,” from quality materials so it’s “built to stand the test of time.”

The collection launches Oct. 1 in dedicated galleries in 20 Art Van stores, and10 additional stores will feature some of the assortment, said Bob Price, Art Van senior vice president of merchandising. All told, the retailer is dedicated about 35,000 square feet to the launch.

The company hasn’t decided yet whether or not it will offer the collection to other retailers, he added.

“Fashion is not one-dimensional but rather a multifaceted industry infused with personal style statements that take on many forms,” Barker said in a release. “Through my travels, I was inspired by cultural elements of the countries I have had the privilege to visit and knew that I wanted to bring that rich design aesthetic to life in this exclusive furniture collection for Art Van Furniture.”

Art Van will celebrate the launch of the line at “Evening of Global Style” party on Oct. 6 in Chicago.

This is not the Art Van’s first collaboration with the popular Barker. He has appeared at the retailer’s store openings and helped the with an Art Van “supermodel search” contest that coincided with the launch of its 2014 Spring Style product catalog, which Barker also photographed.

(Source: furnituretoday.com  Author: Clint Engel)