A lot of industry professionals get in contact with us looking for a special piece for their clients or business', but when they come in with the purpose of purchasing something for their own private space it is truly special to us.
We knew this was the case when Megan Burns from cm studio came knocking for a dining table for her own home. Megan runs an award winning multidisciplinary architecture studio based in Sydney, in partnership with Christopher Glanville. Collectively they are known as cm studio, creating beautiful living spaces with a focus on natural materials, and layering of tone and texture.
We made Megan the Classic Table in September last year. There is a story of everyone's journey and in this interview we briefly delve into Megan's story of how she got to where she is today and how the Classic Table has come to find its place in her home.
An Interview by Mrs White with Megan Burns from CM Studio.
Did you always know you wanted to be an architect?
Since I was about 10 yes. My parents built a house around that time with an architect who was a very elegant woman. I would paint and sketch next to them while mum and Susan would have design meetings, later while they were building I would shadow their site meetings if they were after school. After that I was hooked.
How did C+M Studios come about?
Chris and I had worked together at uni and we had always discussed going out on our own. I was approached to work on the Manly apartment a couple of months out of uni, we decided to work on it together and launch CM off the back of it. It was a great project to start out on and we are forever grateful to be given the opportunity. While we started our business very early in our careers the learning curve has been steep and it’s been an amazing experience to date.
How would you describe the style of architecture you do?
We are pretty flexible so do not tend to stick to one particular style. Most of the time the existing site conditions and council regulations dictate an approach to external form. Sometimes we have clients who have and idea of an overall vibe they want to evoke which we usually weave into the mix. One thing that does create continuity throughout all of our projects simple forms, and detailing them very cleanly. We also always do a layered natural pallet of materials both external and internal. We like to do the exterior, interior and landscape for a project and most of our builds this year we are controlling all of these aspects of a project.
What kind of material are you drawn to in interiors?
Timber always! We enjoy doing layers of timber, stone, leather and linen. Always matt finishes, we never do shiny. All these elements create so much warmth and we stick to very tonal colours and lots of white. Its very important for us to create spaces and houses with longevity for our clients.
What qualities do you look for when purchasing furniture?
We love pieces that evoke our overarching ethos of simple detailing and natural pallet.
We also like to source local where possible. That’s why we love Mr and Mrs White so much! It is inevitable that some pieces come from overseas, there are some amazing companies around the world who are creating beautiful things who we respect and admire, that like Mr and Mrs White are family run businesses. We also enjoy business that create pieces that have history and a story to them.
What do you love about timber furniture?
There is a warmth to it, and I love the integrity and feel of it. Nothing worse than the clang of a glass on a hard surface at a dinner party! That’s why we love the Classic Table. My apartment is not a huge space, but the table just fits perfectly, it's great for just the two of us day to day but also can accommodate 8 people easily! The scale, form and material just work perfectly and I love that you guys were happy to let that be the main focus and didn't feel the need to add a design quirk to it!
Photography by Joshua White