Today we are in for a real treat! I came across this glimpse into the Althorp Estate in England. The 500 year old family home of the Spencer family (and the childhood home of HRH Diana of Wales) is absolutely Magnificent. In scale yes. In collection of objects (a Van Dyck painting is just one of the masterpiece on display), a definite yes. In history, naturally (its Grade 1 listed). But what I found most poignant about this interview between Ashley Hicks and Earl Spencer is that this is a home that is still Alive. It's a collection of one family's history but that history is not one for the books, it's still breathing, it's still evolving, and it's still being written.
This thought really resonated me because it is what has become foundational in our building of GALILEO. Our love for vintage and antique objects that have retained its beauty and its story regardless of the weathering of time. And even deeper than the objects design beauty or the sense of joy it evokes or its usefulness, is the idea of Connection. A connection to the past. A connection to a community. A connection to an individual you have (or maybe you have) never met. An individual who perhaps your life's story would not have allowed a chance encounter. But despite the limitations of time and distance, here we are, these objects have found their ways into many a hand. Sharing their joy with many a homes. There is something so warm and beautiful about that to us here at GALILEO. The idea that things get even more precious with time. That things made well don't need to be replaced. That great design knows no barriers. And that every story has no end rather its just blissfully continuous.