A NEW DESIGN COMPANY HEADED BY ABIGAIL LANE
The Showroom Dummies are Abigail Lane, Bob Pain and Brigitte Stepputtis.




OUR AIM

Is to incorporate images into the fabric of our surroundings. To pursue our themes.
To repeat what is good and change what is not.
To follow our noses and to sidle up to all that extends our vocabulary.
To associate as broadly as possible with others. To make introductions and keep evolving.
Not to pigeonhole ourselves. To be special but not elitist. To be expensive if it maintains quality.
For expensive things to support experimentation.

SHOWROOM DUMMIES

Was launched during October and November of 2003 in London. The purpose of this exhibition, Interior Motives ( Natural Histories and Natural Disasters ), was to show case our first prototypes. Walls were papered in skeletal bodies frolicking with their own spare parts, underneath which stood a pair of high back chairs in the same covering. A dark wood fireplace was sunk into the centrefold of a volcanic eruption. Lined in skeleton tiles, it housed the makings of a bone fire.

A bed covered in cashmere blankets, chequered with dogs, bugs and lizards, lay beneath an electric storm in black and white. Large perspex screens concertinered divisions in the space, offering falling parachutists from one side and kissing asses on the other. A diorama of domestic beasts backed a tornado. Glass-topped card tables and chairs sealed in images of lizards against pink and gamblers with their cards. The sofa, upholstered in our favourite fly in the sky image, stood close to the set of six mirrored dice cube lights.
The uniforms incorporated gambling, alphabets, skeletons, flies in the sky and the forest.
They are adaptable and ongoing . . . as are we.

During the launch of our first collection, SHOWROOM DUMMIES hosted a series of events
and collaborations. They included a presentation of our favourite magazine, BOILER, a Hair Salon, ‘Knobs Night’ with Sarah Lucas and Interventions of Magic by SAV.

We also put together a soundtrack comprising the various musical commissions of SHOWROOM DUMMIES as originated by Kraftwerk. The contributors were, The Schmidts, Healy Benke and Francis, DJ Nimimba, Matty Skylab with Crazy Girl, Diego Ragnini, Terry and Yoko, Georgie Pinn, Cut Off, Antonio Dilillo AKA Scube and Rod Melvin.

OUR OWN STYLE

SHOWROOM DUMMIES work to promote our own individual style and approach. It is important for us to maintain our sometimes unconventional identity and we hope that those who decide to work with us embrace this identity and its marketing value. We aim to make products to a high standard but we are equally driven to work with a certain flair and aesthetic bravery. We have received excellent press so far and believe that it is essential to continue to build a self driven and inventive identity that retailers and consumers can buy into.

PRESS

click here to view a selection of press

WHAT WE DO

COMMISSIONS that incorporate the objects and images presented here, or new ideas relevant to your project. We can work directly with clients, or through interior designers or agents.
We regard homes, events, institutions and public places, as potentially viable for us to make our mark.
LICENSE the use of our original images for production in limited editions or volume, for distribution through existing channels.

SALES of items to retail outlets. We can supply quantities of our existing products for retail and tailor variations of these when appropriate. Prices to retail outlets will be determined on an individual basis in accordance with production costs and quantities.

SALES of existing items to individuals. On occassion we have sold some of our products directly to customers and the prices shown offer an indication of costs. Minimum order figures may apply, please be aware that in some cases this may hinder the direct selling of small quantities as we rarely hold stock.

click here for further product details

OUR PROJECTS SO FAR

52 Uniforms made for the launch of BBC4 in Brick Lane, London. Commissioned by VAMP, 2002.

Fly in the sky cushions fitted for eight original chairs of 1962 Eero Saarinen oval dining table.
Commissioned by Tiggy Maconochie, 2003.

A selection of our cashmere blankets made for Sarah Lucas’ new home in Suffolk, 2003.

Interior Motives ( Natural Histories and Natural Disasters ). The Launch of our company at The Old St. Pancras Conservative Club, Kings Cross, London, October - November 2003.

Flock and Roll. An exhibition of contemporary wall coverings at The Geoffrey Museum, London, March 2004.

A presentation of prototypes shown alongside the Mother Of Pearl Autumn/Winter 2004 collection, London, March 2004.
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The Art Car Boot Fair in assosiation with Vauxhall. A wide selection of T Shirts, Car blankets and other merchandise sold from our customised Vauxhall van. Brick Lane, London. July 2004.

The Zoo Art Fair. Special edition T shirts sold from specially made Skeleton cupboards. London Zoo. October 2004.

Showroom Dummies collaboration with The Mulberry Company for Christmas 2004.
As well as specially commissioned Interiors for all retail outlets in the UK and abroad, A limited edition of blankets were produced by us for them, and are available to buy from some of their stores. The collabouration was celebrated with a Christmas event conceptualised and hosted by us.

In June 2005 Showroom Dummies launches it’s web shop and a new range of t-shirts become available to the public through this.

Bone Idle – the shop, in Charing X Gallery, London. A comprehensive range of skull inspired products and artworks are shown and sold in the shop. The items range from flick books to silk cushions to crystal-encrusted prints. The shop launches on Halloween 2005 and runs for six weeks. Guest clothing designers produce Bone Idle inspired clothing and 12 artists are commissioned to decorate skulls that are exhibited and sold at auction on November 24th. It raised just short of £100,000.

Bone Idle – the shop at Selfridges, January 2005. Showroom Dummies are invited to take part in the Future Punk season. The shop is installed in a new formation and the Bone Idle products are available for the duration. Showroom Dummies are also invited to create a version of the Bone Idle installation for the Selfridges Window 20 – the largest and most prominent of it’s Oxford Street showcases.

The Art Car boot Fair - June 2006, London. From the Cradle to the Grave is presented. It comprises all new designs applied to a collection of silk scarves. They are sold from a specially customised caravan which has a collaged interior and painted exterior ( this is a collaboration between Showroom Dummy design and the grafitti artist Busk.)

The Spice Festival fashion show in conjunction with the Hackney Empire, London. August 26th 2006. Showroom Dummies put together a collection of their costumes, uniforms and clothing to present their first cat walk show. The models sport animal masks, flags, bones and other props.

Design Week, September 2006. Showroom Dummies roll up for a few days in their From the Cradle to the Grave caravan. Products are available from this ’portable shop’.

Love’s gamble, a new range of hearty products are designed and made available for sale with the web shop Yoox.com. This is to coincide with Valentines, February 2007.

April Fools day 2007 – Showroom Dummies headquarters are set to leave London and head for the countryside – watch this space – tweet tweet!

THE SHOWROOM DUMMIES ARE

ABIGAIL LANE
Born 1967 in England, Abigail Lane is an artist who has lived and worked in London since leaving Goldsmiths College of Fine Art in 1989.
She has and continues to exhibit extensively here and abroad.

BRIGITTE STEPPUTTIS
Born 1956 in Germany, Brigitte Stepputtis studied fashion design and has worked on costume design for film and theatre.
She had her own fashion company then moved to London in 1990 to work for Vivienne Westwood,
where she is now head of couture.

BOB PAIN
Born in England in 1955, Bob Pain has spent 30 years in the print and design industry.
He founded his printing company, Omnicolour, in 1993 which has and continues to provide specialised print services for designers, artists and corporate companies.

SHOWROOM DUMMIES...THE EXTENDED FAMILY

Showroom Dummies have had and continue to have an enormous range of support from a number of skilled, talented, generous and special people who collectively are making this an exciting and unusual company.
Coco Amardeil, Julian Dodd, Jan Von Holleben ... Photography
Vanessa Fristedt S.B ... Graphic Design
Omnicolour ... Printing
Georgie Pinn ... Filming and editing
Kathy Stephenson ... Press
Marguerite Henry-Pierre ... Accounts

Dylan Byrne, Sadie Coles, Colony Club, Phil Dobson, Anthony Fawcett, Charles Fontaine, Schwartz Ltd,Steffen Girling, Mark Hix, Mark at K2 Screen, Esther Lane, Sarah Lucas, Lala Meredith-Vulja, Chrissij Van den Munckhof, Terry Nixon, Russel Oxley, Tristram Penna, Agnes Rein, Sav The Magician., Massimo Torrigiani, Crispin Warwick... Thank you


CONTACT

RETAIL AND COMMISSION
info@showroomdummies.com

PRESS
Kathy Stephenson
Telephone: 020 7336 8109
kathy@victoria-miro.com





SHOWROOM DUMMIES LIMITED
3RD FLOOR UNIT 3, 92 WHITE POST LANE, LONDON E9 5EN

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