A bespoke Portoro marble basin: from brief to installation
A basin carved from solid Portoro for Sikder Haus: the dining-room brief, stone workshop, transport and installed Fantini fittings.
Why is there a basin in the dining room?
At Sikder Haus in Dhaka, the basin serves handwashing associated with dining. I designed and commissioned the piece for that use, as part of a wider interior appointment. It belongs to the room’s daily rituals as well as its material composition. The brief was therefore about a specific activity and place, rather than adding an isolated sculptural object.
A freestanding form carved from solid Portoro
The basin was made from solid Portoro marble. Its dark stone and light veining carry across a tall, freestanding form with an integrated bowl. The workshop view shows the basin during fabrication; the installed view shows its relationship with the room and Fantini fittings. Together, these views make the progression from bespoke design to the finished setting visible.
What needs resolving before the stone is worked?
For a bespoke basin, the maker needs a coordinated geometry: the outside profile, bowl, openings and connection to the installation. The design team must agree how the chosen fittings relate to the bowl and how the piece meets the floor and adjacent finishes. The precise dimensions, tolerances and specialist requirements belong in the project drawings and supplier information. A photograph cannot supply that specification.
Review the material at the scale of the piece
A small sample introduces colour and finish, but a larger stone piece has its own distribution of veins and variation. Discuss the material with the maker at the scale that will be fabricated. Clarify which surfaces will be visible and how the finish will be reviewed. The aim is an informed approval of the particular stone and form, rather than an expectation that every piece matches a small sample exactly.
Making, protection and installation are connected
A freestanding marble item needs an agreed route from workshop to its final position. The crating photograph records protection for transport. Before shipping a comparable piece, the appointed parties should establish access, handling, storage and installation responsibilities, together with the plumbing interfaces. Those decisions should accompany the order; they should not be left for the receiving team to infer from a delivery.
Where bespoke procurement adds value
The client may have a complete design, an early idea or a particular object they cannot source from a collection. AD’ can define the bespoke design and procurement contribution around that starting point. At Sikder Haus this piece sat within my wider work on the interiors. For a separate commission, the scope would identify the design, reviews, purchasing and coordination actually required.
Discussing a stone piece for your project
Send the intended location and use, drawings or photographs of the setting, preferred material and target installation date. Explain which designers and suppliers are already involved. We can then discuss whether the work calls for bespoke development, a technical review of an existing proposal, or a furnishing and procurement appointment.