'The World Awaits'
Cunard have issued a Press Release, giving information regarding a panel designed by David Linley in the 'Grand Lobby'
Cunard's Press Release includes:
...
Queen Elizabeth joins the Cunard fleet in October 2010 as the sixth Cunard Queen in Cunard’s illustrious 170 years history and the second largest Cunarder ever built. She will be the third Cunard Queen to bear the name Elizabeth and will join her sisters Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria as part of the youngest fleet in the world. Her unique style and personality will bear tribute to her forebears Queen Elizabeth and QE2....
...One challenge for Queen Elizabeth’s designers was how to treat the significant central space on the sweeping staircase in the ship’s soaring Grand Lobby.
Cunard’s President and Managing Director, Peter Shanks, says:
“We needed to fill that space with something which would not just be dramatic but which would also reflect our emphasis on traditional and sumptuous materials. After much thought and exploratory work, it was decided to commission a 5.6-metre (18 ft 6 in) high marquetry panel depicting the original Queen Elizabeth, an Art Deco icon, using a variety of natural woods from around the world.
“Once we had decided on the theme and the medium, it didn’t take us long to conclude that no-one was better qualified for this work than the company of the exceptional craftsman David Linley, whose creative ability and mastery of wood is renowned”.
http://www.cunard.co.uk/news/default.asp?Cat=&View=ViewArticle&Mode=News&ContentID=7683&Active=NewsAnd from Liners List, Ray Goldenberg writes:
....Commenting on the challenges faced by the bespoke commission, Linley's
Chairman, David Linley, who founded the company in 1985, says:
"Though we have made fittings for luxury yachts in the past, this is the
first sea-going work we have done on this scale - it is certainly the
largest screen we have ever made - but it was a commission I was
delighted to accept. I recall my father saying the interior design on
Cunard's Queen Elizabeth 2 made one proud to be British, so I am hoping
our achievement on the new Queen Elizabeth will make him - and others -
equally proud".....
David Linley is the son the late Princess Margaret and Lord Snowden.
They were particularly interested in QE2 and Patrons in the British art world of the 1960's and beyond
There's a fine shop owned by David Linley in London - he and colleagues make good things!