Mid Century Modern Furniture

Meaning

The term mid century modern furniture is thrown around like a catch phrase. Many using them in virtually every area of their dwelling and collect the classics, understand the genre. Some people hear the term and though they enjoy modern furniture and may even decorate with modern pieces, they do not understand how the “mid century” tag falls into place. You think of a furniture piece being created in the 1930's - 1960's as not being very contemporary. You probably wouldn’t be in that presumption.

Lets first look at the term contemporary, to note the difference between it and modern. When did “contemporary” begin? As time moves forward, is something which was considered contemporary furniture in the 1980's for instance, still be considered contemporary now? Does not contemporary simply the newest? Something present in styling and up to date? 

I can see how the perception of contemporary furniture would lend itself to being the newest in trend or layout. The reason contemporary style is so popular is we consider the newest of things automatically to be the best of things. While this is true of contemporary furniture, it isn’t with modern furniture. The truth is, modern design isn’t dictated by a date. It is not representative of the most recent year to our present moment. They are always sleek styles, using curves with low profile frames and minimal to no ornate applicants. Low profile with sweeping lines describes most mid century modern furniture pieces. In short, modern furniture shares not a time period but a current look, for example Scandinavian design furniture.

Creation Date

In examining the term and genre of mid century modern furniture, we look at the time line. These are pieces which are classics. The majority of the designs maintained fame due to three factors. One is the prevalence of the designer himself. For instance, Charles Eames and company were well known architects and designers. It is easier for a chair to become famous and to get recognition if it was created by Charles Eames versus a designer with less brand recognition. For Charles Eames to build a modern chair, there is a chance it might be introduced into the hall of fame.

Appearance

The second factor is appearance. Well designed artistic pieces that compliment themselves along with other pieces within the modern genre build notoriety as the years pass. The third factor is functionality. And for this guide, functionality implies the purpose of the chair. Comfort, service form and function. Is the piece comfortable for regular use? Does it fill a service in the home or is it too much. For instance, The Eileen Gray table was a mid century modern table designed for a specific purpose. The design allows the user to access things on the table top easily, adjusting to the height of the bed or side seat. The table was also visually designed well. It is now a classic, although at the time, the Eileen Grey name wasn’t famous.

You’ll find this reality also in the field of art. There are instances when an artist’s work really improves in value after his passing away. They’re not appreciated in full during the time when the design initially was introduced. As time passes and tastes evolve, it’s not unusual for a piece to rocket to stardom. So mid century modern furniture is essentially commercial and residential furniture pieces which were designed between 1930-1960's in the genre of modern design. Mid Century Modern furniture are old designs with a modern flair.