About
Collectible design. Remarkable objects. Pieces with a story.
Smith Street Bazaar is a Melbourne destination for significant mid-century, modern and collectible furniture, lighting and objects, bringing together exceptional Australian and international design.
For us, great furniture has never simply been about function.
It is about form, proportion, material, craftsmanship and history. The curve of a chair, the grain of a rare timber, the patina developed over decades or the audacity of a designer who challenged convention, these are the qualities that transform furniture into something closer to art.
Our collection moves through the great periods of 20th-century design, with a particular passion for European and Australian mid-century pieces, alongside Italian Radical, Postmodern, Brazilian Modernist and other important design movements.
You may find an iconic work by a recognised master beside an obscure piece whose maker is less familiar but whose design is impossible to ignore. What connects them is a strong point of view.
We look for pieces with presence.
Furniture that can hold a room. Lighting that changes an atmosphere. Objects that reward a closer look. Pieces whose age and provenance become part of their beauty rather than something to disguise.
A collector’s eye
At the heart of Smith Street Bazaar is Eddy Opmanis, whose instinct for discovering exceptional furniture and objects has been developed over decades of collecting, buying and sourcing.
Eddy has long been recognised within Melbourne's design community for his eye for Australian and international mid-century and modern design, sourcing pieces from private collections, dealers and destinations both in Australia and overseas.
His approach has always been less about following fashion and more about recognising something special, sometimes an important documented design, sometimes an extraordinary anonymous piece, long before everyone else sees it.
That knowledge and instinct have helped establish Smith Street Bazaar as a trusted source for collectors, interior designers, architects, stylists and people simply looking for something they will not see everywhere else.
The art of living with design
We believe the best interiors are collected rather than decorated.
A significant chair does not need a room full of matching furniture. A sculptural cabinet can exist like a work of art. A beautifully designed lamp can completely alter the feeling of a space.
Our pieces are selected to live alongside contemporary architecture, art and interiors as comfortably as they do within homes devoted entirely to vintage design.
Many arrive with evidence of the lives they have already lived, a softened leather, aged chrome, a beautifully developed timber patina. Where appropriate, we preserve those qualities rather than erase them.
Others are carefully restored or reupholstered using materials worthy of the original design.
What matters is that the integrity and character of the piece remain.
Discover something exceptional
Smith Street Bazaar continually sources rare, one-off and highly collectible pieces, so the collection is always changing.
Explore our current collection online or contact us if you are searching for a particular designer, period or piece. Private viewings can be arranged, and furniture and objects are also available for hire.
If something speaks to you, we recommend getting in touch. The most interesting pieces rarely stay with us forever.
See something you love? Get in touch before visiting so we can confirm its location and arrange a closer look.