The San Gabriel Mountains are dotted with agapanthus, flourishing in the rich soil and warm sun. The agapanthus is a brilliant, blue-skewing shade of purple, blossoms clustered around a singular point, a firework of a flower. Preferring part to full sun, it thrives in Southern California, where interior designer Josh Greene spent his childhood. The Agapanthus Collection draws upon memory, materiality, and locality, centering place and time as design elements themselves. The solidity and raw organicism along with the quality we can expect from collaborating with design brand Lawson-Fenning gives us a cohesive and seemingly familiar feeling furniture collection – a return to home.
Josh Greene reflects upon growing up in the eighties among the agapanthus, woven with accents of living in New York City, a bicoastal and varied experience. The 12-piece collection offers a varied range of furniture, all in wood, stone, or other custom finishes. For Lawson-Fenning and Josh Greene, custom finishes were in fact the impetus for the collection. What started out as a designer-client relationship evolved into what we see here, a comprehensive view into a specific and nostalgic place and time. “Josh often customizes our pieces, and it’s amazing to see how he transforms something familiar,” shares Glenn Lawson, co-founder of Lawson-Fenning. “At a certain point, it became clear he was essentially designing within our framework. Giving him his own line made perfect sense.”
The Agapanthus Collection includes upholstered seating, case goods, and tables in various colors, along with select designs available in wood and stone top options. “Tufted seating nods to my grandmother’s apartment sofa, while table and nightstand details reference recent travels,” says Greene. “The pieces have a grounded presence, echoing the permanence of the live oaks that lined the San Gabriel foothills near where I grew up.”
The collection, whose launch coincided with the Lawson-Fenning New York showroom opening that Greene designed as well, brings a fresh California perspective to East Coast interiors. “Josh was the perfect partner – he’s a Southern California native with a New York voice,” says Lawson-Fenning co-founder Grant Fenning. “This collaboration helped us reimagine our brand for a different audience.” The brand spent more than a year developing this collection, which led to the introduction of new materials and colors.
Glenn Lawson and Grant Fenning, designer-maker duo and founders of Lawson-Fenning, are defined but not limited by their Californian roots. The pair graduated from ArtCenter college in the late 1990s, eventually establishing a studio space in Old Town Pasadena, a welcoming place for burgeoning contemporary design. Champions of bench-crafted furniture and accessories, all LF furniture is handcrafted in Los Angeles and will remain that way, true to their mission to create a hub for both enthusiasts and professional designers, crafting high-quality furniture with care.
Josh Greene Design is a New York-based interior design studio, elegantly intertwining specificity, style, and materiality – to much critical acclaim. With over 18 years in the design industry, Greene has collaborated with brands like Ralph Lauren, Michael Smith, and Sawyer Berson, just to name a few. In 2020, Greene presented his first furniture collection with Dowel Furniture, solidity and proportion beautifully on display.
To learn more about the Agapanthus Collection by Josh Greene Design x Lawson-Fenning, visit lawsonfenning.com.
Photography by Yoshihiro Makino.
