Chandeliers illuminate the grand potential of salvaged objects
Robert Nicholas, founder of Marquee, designs massive bespoke chandeliers in his free time.
Photo by Colby Rabon
Robert Nicholas sees promise where others don’t.
Last December, for instance, Nicholas transformed a deserted warehouse in Asheville’s River Arts District into Marquee, a 50,000-square-foot marketplace for artists, craftspeople, and antique dealers.
In a year’s time, Marquee has emerged as a cornerstone of Foundy Street — a place where smartly-mustached shoppers can buy a tufted Victorian chair, hoppy porter, and Metallica jacket all in the same afternoon. Simply put: the bizarre bazaar has been wildly successful.
It’s little wonder why. Nicholas has a way of reimagining disuse and neglect into beauty. That much is evidenced by his found-object light fixtures which incorporate unlikely materials such as gas canisters and hand-hewn tobacco sticks.
“The objects I use can’t be presumed,” the lighting designer explains. He can’t simply repurpose a wine bottle into a lamp and call it good. There needs to be more invention. “I try to think of how I can make something no one else can make,” he notes.
Self taught, Nicholas designed his first lamp nearly 30 years ago. At the time, he was working as a youth pastor in Jacksonville, Florida, and spending his weekends picking through chipped teacups and scratched bureaus at garage sales. “It all started because I needed a lawn mower,” he remembers. “But then I kept seeing really cool, interesting stuff.”
Designer Nicholas says there’s no telling what found objects might end up in his outsized creations.
Photo by Colby Rabon
The antiques Nicholas found were rare and offbeat — nothing like the “brown and boring” furnishings of his childhood home. “I would find things with soul and character, like a table a grandmother painted 50 years ago that still had traces of old paint,” he says. “There was a story there.”
Nicholas also found quirky, vintage objects that begged to be transformed. And so, he began making modifications and turning these vestiges of years past into chic lamps. “It opened up a whole new world for me,” he says.
At the same time, Nicholas and his wife, Rebecca, were growing an antiques empire. From Jacksonville, they pushed north to Atlanta to sell furniture at high-end markets. Then, in 2014, the couple opened a brick-and-mortar storefront called Splurge in Wedge Studios on Roberts Street.
Since then, Splurge has moved to Foundy Street, where it’s nestled inside the cavernous Marquee. Nicholas has also moved away from mere lamps; he now creates show-stopping chandeliers. Not scaled for everyday residences, these are pieces that need high ceilings and grand spaces. “They take the right home,” admits Nicholas.
Because of their sheer size and showstopping effect, the chandeliers are sought out by local breweries, upscale cocktail bars, and restaurants.
Photo by Colby Rabon
Three of his newest chandeliers, for instance, consist of vintage hay-drying racks from Europe. At six feet tall, these fixtures make quite the impression. “I call them the ‘main event,’” the artist laughs.
With this “wow” factor in mind, many local eateries have hired Nicholas to distinguish their dining rooms. His work can be found in Asheville haunts like Storm Rhum Bar and Bistro on South Lexington Avenue and at New Belgium Brewing Company in the RAD.
“In the restaurant world, it’s all about stirring the senses — from sight to sound to taste,” Nicholas says. A choice chandelier elevates a space, just like the proper wine paired to a meal.
But whether it’s a posh gastropub or quaint country home, lighting has the same effect. When done well, says Nicholas, “the atmosphere screams and breathes. It comes to life.”
Robert Nicholas, Asheville, Marquee, 36 Foundy St. in the River Arts District. Open Monday-Saturday, 10am-5pm; Sunday, 11am-5pm. For more information, visit marqueeasheville.com or call 828-989-1069. See also “Marquee Asheville” on Facebook and Instagram.