The new style for turning unusual objects into functionalpieces of furniture

 furniture glass As I enter the home of the artist Emily Gordon, I am greeted by ahallway lined with pictures, three deep in places. Sorry about theclutter, she says, these are all waiting to be collected by theirowners. In the sitting room, more of her work lines its barewalls. The decoration here is pretty transient, to be honest. Assoon as these are picked up, something else will replace them andthe room will change again. Less transient are the antiques and bespoke pieces she has lovinglycollected over the 18 years she has lived in the UAE. When wearrived in Abu Dhabi, there were hardly any residential buildings,let alone furniture shops, so we just had to make do. The sleekglass table top behind the sofa, which rests on six huge, smoothmarble cubes, is a perfect example of how this make do solutionhas worked to great effect. I found the marble in a workshop inMusaffah and got some glass cut to cover it. Gordon, originally from Oregon in the US, specialises incontemporary three-dimensional collages, consisting of up to eightor nine layers of paint, resin, paraffin and wax, and floatingwith metal, gold leaf and glass. She has a loyal following, havingbeen commissioned by several palaces and exhibited at galleriessuch as the Majlis in Dubai and Hemisphere Gallery in Abu Dhabi. She clearly has a knack for turning unusual objects into functionalpieces of furniture. By the door, an enormous copper urn, toppedwith bevelled glass and a vase of emerald green bamboo shoots,makes an innovative occasional table. I bought the urn in Oman butI have no idea what its for; I just thought it was unusual. Andby the sofa, a scarlet Tibetan drum painted with an intricatedragon motif has been transformed into a decorative end table. Idragged that back from Thailand years ago, when I was running alittle business exporting furniture. Cleverly, the simple, beige seating, arranged around a coffee tablemade from an old Omani door, serves as the perfect blank canvas forher collection of pieces from Africa and the Middle and Far East. Ispot another beautifully ornate wooden door, propped against thewall, which, she explains, she found in an alley in Abu Dhabi,covered in cement. At the time, when they were putting up all thehigh rises, you could find amazing pieces like this just lying inthe street. I love things that have a bit of history, when I canlook at it and think, What sort of people have walked through thisdoor? How many weddings and funeral processions has it seen? Iask if there are any more secret stashes of furniture to be foundin the city, which I can raid to expunge the glaring Ikea-ness ofmy own home. No, it doesnt happen any more. Its all been pickedover and places like the Cultural Foundation are keeping them now,quite rightly, to preserve the old culture. Despite what Gordon described as clutter, the room has aspacious, airy feel and the careful symbiosis of antique and modernpieces means the ambience never strays into the realms of touristtat. Contemporary cushions in bright pink and a luxurious silkshawl draped over the arm of a chair add bold splashes of colour tothe simple furniture, which, she tells me, is 10 years old. Ithink there are more interesting things than wild furniture. Whenyouve got all this going on, she gestures, you need somewhereeasy to rest the eye. There is an obvious emphasis on texture, from the gnarled wood ofthe coffee table to the rough-cut marble side tables and softvelour cushions. The central space has been kept clutter-free, withobjects placed strategically round the edges of the room, incorners and underneath things. We dig out a polished wooden boxfrom under a window seat. Its an old ships document box, sheexplains. It was found in Oman but originally came from aPortuguese ship. And underneath one of the sofa side tables is abeautiful striped bowl, filled with painted black and white gourds,which her mother brought from Papua New Guinea, although, as shepoints out the bowl was made by the Touareg tribe in Morocco. She shows me one of her recent projects, which involved turning ateak rice pestle into a beautifully smooth, low stool. I found itin Sharjah and just thought, What a dreamy piece of teak; How canI make it functional? She has filled the deep hole inside, theresult of years of rice-grinding, with wax, resin and acrylic. Itcould be an end table or extra seating. I love its historicalcontext: this was a family heirloom and someones prize possession,which was central to their livelihood. Its very compelling. A fierce-looking African mask glowers at us from behind the sofa aswe sift through intricately woven Omani baskets, beaded woodenstools and pumpkin-shaped spice boxes from Thailand. I just hopepeople keep creating these wonderful things. Theres such a hugeamount of interest in them. Theres no point getting too attachedto them though, because at the end of the day, its all justborrowed stuff. Who am I going to leave it to anyway?