Rugosa Collection
A Love Letter to the Living Room
The Rugosa Collection is deeply personal to us. It is named for a Rhode Island seaside home that is one of our favorite places. For nearly twenty summers, Rugosa is where we go to reset, plan our next year, and decide on new work. The collection draws from both the spirit of its namesake and from its comfortable, breeze-filled rooms. Home to generations of artists and scholars, Rugosa’s rooms invite you to spend long stretches of time either alone with your thoughts or immersed in conversation. This duality was the quality we most sought to capture in our design.
Rugosa is also the culmination of a two-year conversation about living rooms. We’ve been living with several of the pieces for some time now, something we do so we can tweak the designs until they are right. These are our ideal living room pieces: warm, bright, functional, comfortable and boldly simple. Above all else they are pieces to live with and allow for a space where the mind can wander.
When the collection first debuted, it did so during a uniquely reflective time, amplifying our desire for objects that offer both comfort, contemplation and togetherness. Crafted from sustainably harvested western sugar pine, bronzed glass, and Belgian linen upholstery, Rugosa embodies our goal to create the simplest, most elevated version of an everyday object—in the most sustainable way possible. Each piece is made from biodegradable materials, and our production processes actively reduce waste and support local craftspeople.
The collection debuted at Alcova during Milan Design Week and Sight Unseen Offsite in New York—two fairs that have helped shape the contemporary design landscape in distinct and meaningful ways. As part of those exhibitions, we recorded a conversation about the collection’s origins, material language, and the broader intentions behind our work at Kalon.
Listen to Kalon’s Founders Michaele and Johann discuss the evolution of the collection.
The Rugosa Collection debuted May 18, 2020 as part of the online exhibition Offsite Online, the 2020 iteration of Sight Unseen’s yearly design fair that showcases what’s new and next in contemporary design.
