Quilted homewares are nothing new. There have a long history of (mainly) women – around the world – getting together to sew, share and support each other as they create magnificent works of art.
Recently, we’ve been noticing a big resurgence in quilted soft furnishings; this time, it’s no longer confined to blankets, bedspreads and throws. Quilted seating is offering up a twist on the classics with all new patterns, colours and materials.
Quilted chairs and sofas are so tactile and inviting – sitting or reclining on one is like getting a big warm hug!
We’ve had a few cold, wet and windy days here in Todmorden recently – perhaps even some snow tonight. So it’s wood-burner lit, BBC 6 Music on – and time to catch up with some recently arrived magazines and books.
Lucy Ryder Richardson is the co-founder of Modern Shows and is the author of this newly published book, 100 Midcentury Chairs.
As the title says, the author has chosen 100 chairs (and stools) from the era to highlight; some that are very famous – like Arne Jacobsen’s Ant and Egg chairs – and others that are less well known.
She interviewed the children and relatives of the designers to create unique portraits of each chair…
…the designers’ personal profiles and back stories, their influences, any specific sites that chairs were intended for or functions of the furniture, production techniques & processes and so on.
We love snippets of information such as Alvar Aalto designing the Paimio Armchair specifically for the tuberculosis hospital in Paiomo, south west Finland. It’s form is designed to position the tuberculosis patient at just the right angle to help them breath as they rested & recuperated. He was actually commissioned to design the whole hospital, so it’s full of his genius work.
And how about, Bruno Mattheson, designer of the Eva Chair, “perfecting the art of sitting by studying the shape his body made when he fell back into a snowdrift at different angles”.
The pages are dotted with quotes from the designers themselves, including Hans J. Wegner, Xavier Pauchard, Eero Saarinen and Charles Eames.
Pieces are featured in chronological order, spanning 40 years from the early 1930s to the early 1970s.
Interesting and informative, you’ll expand your knowledge of furniture design no end, and with almost 200 pages of full colour photographs, you’ll be able to swoon at chair heaven all along the journey.
And it’s not just furniture we learned about – the book is full of little anecdotes such as the fact that Ettore Sottsass’ red Valentine typewriter was launched on Valentines Day, 1970. Who knew?!
The directory at the back of the book contains an extensive list of international midcentury modern furniture dealers, auctions, fairs and events.
It’s a new, must read resource for all modernist furniture fans and collectors.
It’s one of those great books to dip in and out of – a few pages at a time with a cup of tea!
We do love a nice chair – in fact we’ve probably got about 10 more chairs than we actually need in our house. We’ve got another hundred now – but these can all fit neatly on a bookshelf!
This wonderful book comes highly recommended indeed and will provide us with an invaluable reference in future.
Buy yourself a copy of 100 Midcentury Chairs by Saturday 19th November 2016 here, and get FREE entry to the following day’s Midcentury Modern Show at Dulwich College, London. You’ll even be able to get it signed by the author. Alternatively, you can find it available on AbeBooks, Amazon or Hive.
Last week’s quirky item was a vintage miniature organ – this week we’re going even smaller in scale, with this even more miniature woven garden furniture.
They’re very 1950s – and very sweet too. The set comprises of a table & four chairs, a bench and two armchairs. To give you some idea of size, each chair stands 9cm or 3½ inches tall.
We like the lemon yellow and crisp white colourway – and the detail is fabulous. It’s so pretty – we’d happily use it in our own garden if we were 6 inches tall ourselves!
Anyone out there with dolls or a dolls house that need garden furniture – or would just like them as a decorative piece in their own right, just drop us a line. There’ll be no expensive furniture removal costs! The eight piece set is priced at £35.00.
Sit on it! Remember that catchphrase? No, this isn’t an Etsy List curated by the Fonz! It’s our selection of the best chairs to be found on Etsy.
Designing a chair is one of those rites of passage for many young product designers. Some designs are all about comfort, providing support and physical well-being. In the case of others, the designer is more interested in a chair’s form; whether it’s fundamental beauty, artistic message or even humour.
Very few chairs can claim to deliver on both counts. There are a few icons out there that come to mind though; Arne Jacobsen’s Egg chair, Eames’ 670 lounge chair, Mies van de Rohe’s Barcelona and Charlotte Perriand’s Grand Comfort.
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