Walk into the new Egg Designs showroom in Joburg and you find yourself surrounded by a seductive riot of colour and texture – from the flamingo pink chairs to the charred wood tabletops, marble and leather interspersed with brass and copper. Interior designers Greg and Roché Dry started Egg Designs 20 years ago and have developed it into a multi-disciplinary design company, providing a full turnkey service for residential, restaurant and
office clients.

During the past decade, furniture design has become a bigger part of their business. As Greg explains, “The furniture grew naturally out of a need to service our interior clients.” Residential work especially created an impetus to design new pieces. They add a catalogue of six to 10 new pieces every year. The Dry style is inspired by Africa, interpreted in a contemporary, glamorous way.

Roché & Greg
Roché & Greg
Image: Annalize Nel

Unique materiality and patternity are central to their work, and everything has a narrative. Greg describes their design as “brutal, tactile, primal and honest”. They control their own manufacturing process, and it is all made locally, so anything can be customised according to the clients’ wishes. Lighting is a speciality, and they produce several prototypes for all their lights and lamps. A current favourite is the modernist ostrich egg lamp. 

Greg and Roché enjoy collaborating with local artists and craftsmen. Andrew Early works with them, using the traditional art of Japanese charred wood, Shou Sugi Ban, which makes the wood fire retardant and eliminates the need for chemical preservatives. A Zimbabwean artist provides handcarved table bases, and Anthony Shapiro ceramics are on display. Sofas rest on brass legs, made from sand-blasted wood, which is then moulded and cast in the metal. Brass tabletops are cast in sand, increasing the tactility of the furniture. Recent projects include store design and furniture for Nando’s. The new retail space will include a coffee bar and is open to decorators and the public.

Image: Annalize Nel
Image: Annalize Nel

23 7th Ave, Parktown North, Joburg
011 268 2378.
eggdesigns.co.za


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