At its core, the Roman and Williams for MatterMade collection is a marriage of two entitites with a shared vision of the American design landscape. The first commercially available collection of lighting and furniture by Roman and Williams, the line includes: Woodrum, a family of lighting, Hub, a coffee table and side table, and Reader, a sling chair and foot stool. The unifying theme within the collection is an emphasis on superior materials and exceptional craftsmanship. Standard wood species offered are reclaimed white oak, teak, and walnut, each with a simple and pure finish that highlights the wood. Custom unlacquered brass hardware adorns each piece and provides an extra touch of luxury and elegance.

After a decade of creating award-winning bespoke spaces, such as the Ace Hotel and the glamorous Boom Boom Room at the Standard Hotel, this line of furniture and lighting presents a gateway for bringing the unique world of Roman and Williams into a broad spectrum of interiors. Whether ultra minimal, contemporary, or the most classic of spaces, the Roman and Williams for MatterMade collection adds a necessary hint of familiarity, articulation and decandence.

Matter, the New York City-based gallery, showroom, and manufacturer, will launch a new collection of furniture and lighting by the renowned New York design firm Roman and Williams, during the 2013 International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF). This line marks the culmination of more than a decade of work for the prolific designers.

Exhibiting for the first time at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center during ICFF, this is the fourth collection Matter will present under the name MatterMade, the brand’s in-house collection of lighting, furniture, and objects. MatterMade represents a new standard in American craft, producing the work of both emerging and established designers with an eye towards material and aesthetic innovation. MatterMade aims to push the limits of what defines American design.

“Collaborating with a team like Roman and Williams seemed like a natural next step,” says Matter’s founder, Jamie Gray. “As a firm, Roman and Williams has for years represented a trailblazing perspective on American design and manufacturing. This line is no exception.”

The Roman and Williams collection represents the firm’s first commercially available line of furniture and lighting. After a decade of creating an oeuvre of projects that have become instant classics, from the award-winning Ace Hotel and the Standard Hotel’s glamorous Boom Boom Room (both in New York City) to the mess hall at Facebook headquarters in Menlo Park, California, the firm has launched a product division and is designing furniture, lighting, and objects that range from the highly refined to the more accessible, and reflect all aspects of the Roman and Williams ethos.

After the successful launch of the R.W. Atlas line for Waterworks, which has been praised as luxurious and timeless, this new line for Matter reflects Roman and Williams’ interest in a simple, strong aesthetic and the firm’s desire to create furnishings and fixtures “whose straightforward respect for American craft and utility looks to create something classic and archetypal,” say Stephen Alesch and Robin Standefer, principals of Roman and Williams.

From this starting point, Roman and William has created a collection of furnishings and lighting that will work in any environment. The collection is characterized by superior materials – custom brass hardware and solid American woods such as Black Walnut, Reclaimed White Oak, and Claro Walnut – and the quality of its craftsmanship.

The initial launch includes a family of lighting – six pieces in all, including a large chandelier, a sconce, a floor lamp, a table lamp, a double pendant, and a single pendant – two tables (a side table and a coffee table), and a chair with an ottoman.

The entire collection is, like all of Roman and Williams’ work, characterized by a sense of timelessness and beautiful details. Wood shades and custom, beveled brass hardware are the elements that are common to all six lights. Classic woodworking techniques are employed; in each piece, the wood is notched, a labor-intensive method of joining solid wood pieces.  The tables are hearty, strong and primitive, but are so exceptionally made as to inherently express the contrast between the utilitarian and the elegant. The chair is the perfect incarnation of a familiar form, made of wood with heavyweight shoe leather for the seat, back and footrest and with oversized, custom brass screws and bolts connecting the wood elements to one another and fastening the leather to the wood. With these details, Roman and Williams takes a straightforward collection of basic materials and forms and creates something new.

“The idea of an American vernacular that is ripe for reinterpretation is something we have been exploring in our work for years,” explain Standefer and Alesch. “We try to breathe new life into these familiar forms, to mine the territory between the mundane and the sublime and create a sense of the unexpected.”

This year MatterMade is launching its first wholesale collection, which includes the new line by Roman and Williams, as well as a selection of pieces from previous collections, many of which will be available in new color ways and finishes. This is the first time that MatterMade pieces will be available to other retailers nationally and internationally. This is an exciting opportunity for the brand to share MatterMade with a larger audience than ever before.

The bakery is the first space that greets you with a classic French palette in deep blue and white. A floor of custom-patterned concrete tiles defines the space as you look through the massive arched windows of the landmark storefront. The bakery is bright with a large veined-white marble island and marble counters with homemade bread on simple but classic glass and zinc shelving separating you from the bar beyond. The lighting is bright and feminine, as if in someone’s kitchen.

The space overall is large but not cluttered with a rambling dark oak floor and plenty of light. It is grand, open and bright, yet rich in palette and pattern. On each mahogany table is a bunch of wild flowers, reminding the patron of the humble power of nature and fresh food in this French restaurant that is somewhere between a Grand Café and a glorious market. It is this combination that makes Lafayette so special. It is classic but with a unique story.

Lafayette is playful and rich. The arched windows that march up both Lafayette and Great Jones Street are framed with an Eiffel-like armature dotted with lights traveling around the arch to engage the street and warm the room. Roman and Williams felt these custom lights were a signature to connect the outside with the inside. The interior space is defined by massive tile columns that organize the different quadrants of the restaurant. They are tall and rectangular with a glossy reflective vertical tile pattern in caramel and cream with a blue line traveling up the columns’ sixteen feet. Contrastingly, the gridded earthy cork ceiling is warm and has a deep coloration for all the reflective light of the custom moderne fixtures.

Looking deeper through the grand space is another counter, this one zinc, which hosts seats where you can eat and watch the meat cooking. It is grounded by a massive zinc hood to bring the customer as close to the food preparation as possible. This is the rotisserie and meat counter. The rotisserie is electric blue with brass detailing under the zinc hood. There is no hesitation about mixing metals here. The brass and zinc suggest a spirit of confidence and a design sensibility that is not too precious.

The restaurant itself is both cinematic and down to earth. Blue leather banquettes and black Thonet chairs with blue seats throughout are comfortable and familiar. The massive zinc drinking and eating bar, which is built in the French tradition, is backed by fluted amber glass that glows at all times of day and night. This glass surrounds a large clock reminiscent of the Musee D’Orsay that is the centerpiece of the restaurant. It adds an element of theatricality to the bar, which reflects both Roman and Williams and Andrew Carmellini’s desire for a lighter atmosphere. As in a movie, the back bar reveals a private dining room that allows you, from behind the mechanism of the clock, to see through to the grand dining room and to the street. The sight lines strive to make you feel comfortable but a part of the city at the same time.

The private dining room downstairs is dark and candlelit, like a cave in a French chateau – the perfect counterpoint to the large rambling space above.

There are so many experiences to have at Lafayette. Its palette in caramel, blue and cream is traditional yet fresh. It is rich and full of smells and energy. It reinvigorates the all-day all-night grand cafe that Lafayette, as well as the building, deserves.