Design Icon Series Names Larry Laslo as July Las Vegas Market Honoree

Furniture World Magazine

World Market Center Las Vegas honored Larry Laslo of LL Designs as a Design Icon during the Summer 2008 Las Vegas Market. Laslo is one of the foremost product designers in the world that embraces an eclectic, “livable contemporary” style and whose designs have graced the editorial pages of Architectural Digest, The New York Times, House & Garden, Vogue, Elle Décor, Vanity Fair, Town & Country, Veranda and W. He is recognized internationally and in New York City for the interior design of Takashimaya’s flagship store on Fifth Avenue and the highly regarded look and feel of Bergdorf Goodman, in addition to the one-of-a-kind homes he designs throughout the country. In the exclusive Las Vegas Market Design Icon Lecture series, design legends share their stories and experiences in order to inspire future designers. Laslo is the second Design Icon to be honored in this fashion, with the first being Vladmir Kagan at the previous Winter Las Vegas Market. While presenting designer Larry Laslo with his award, World Market Center Las Vegas President & Chief Executive Officer Robert Maricich commended the designer for his past work and said the award looked to the future just as much as recognizing his past work. “We realize that your best work is being done right now and will be done in the future,” Maricich told Laslo. During his colorful talk to a standing room only crowd, Laslo spoke about his huge range of clients and showed many projects, including his own home. “It’s fun to play with fashion,” Laslo said, speaking of his love for patent leather and animal prints. “It used to be that home furnishings followed on the heels of fashion but now they are neck in neck.” Laslo showed his new fabric and furnishings for Robert Allen | Beacon Hill’s showroom, including unlikely combinations of taupes and lavenders. “Purple is back, as is shades of gray, and green is now mainstream.” The self-proclaimed TV addict discards the design notion that televisions should be hidden. “I have them in every room and I don’t hide them. It’s like putting a doll with a hoop skirt over a roll of toilet paper.” In a question and answer session after his talk, the design icon urged new designers to apprentice themselves with someone good. When asked about working with strong-willed clients, Laslo said he tries to remain calm in order to diffuse situations. Earlier in his career he was more diplomatic with clients, saying something was “too big for the space” or offering another explanation. “Now I’ll say, ‘It’s ugly. You’re wrong. Forget it.’ “ His next projects? A book and perhaps a television show, plus more design of fabrics and furniture. After the Design Icon lecture and award presentation, The Robert Allen Group honored Laslo with a reception event in the new Robert Allen | Beacon Hill showroom in Building C at the Las Vegas Design Center of World Market Center Las Vegas. About World Market Center Las Vegas: World Market Center Las Vegas is an integrated home and hospitality contract furnishings showroom and trade complex in Las Vegas. With the opening of Building C, World Market Center now stands at more than five million square feet of space, exceeding the size of any trade merchandise mart in the United States. When fully built, at 12 million square feet in 8 buildings, World Market Center will be the largest trade show complex in the world. The $3 billion, state-of-the-art campus will showcase furniture, decorative accessories, gift, lighting, area rugs, home textile and related segments, as well as the Las Vegas Design Center (LVDC), open year-round.