Showing posts with label design. Show all posts
Showing posts with label design. Show all posts

Aug 11, 2015

Oscar Niemeyer Chaise Lounge

Oscar Niemeyer Chaise Lounge images via R 20th Century

Originally published July 6, 2013.

Oscar Niemeyer made cool furniture as well as buildings? Of course, he did. Seems like most architects are also budding furniture designers (Frank Lloyd Wright, Ron Thom). Niemeyer passed away in December 2012 - 10 days short of his 105th birthday.


The Rio Chaise Lounge was designed in 1978 with his daughter, Anna Maria Niemeyer.


Features a bentwood frame, woven cane seat, and leather headrest pillow with weighted straps.


The image shown is a 2001 reissue for sale on 1st Dibs.


1978 original for sale at $28,000 in 2013

1978 original sold at auction for $22,000 in 2008

1978 original unsold at auction $5000 in 2003


images © R 20th Century

Aug 18, 2014

Trend Spotting - The Equipale Chair



In 2012, I spotted some equipale furniture in a late 60s decorating mag. This Mexican handmade leather furniture has been popping out at me right, left, and centre within the last month. Traditional Equipal furniture is handcrafted from tanned pigskin and cedar or rosewood strips. Each piece is unique; like all unwaxed, natural leather will improve with age.


Take a look at the different styles. I can't decide which one I like the best - probably the lounge chair and peacock chair (of course).


images via

Jul 25, 2014

Architecture - and spectacles - Expo 67 Montreal



One of my UBC art history papers, way back when, was on Moshe Safdie's Habitat 67 (he was working on the Vancouver Public Library at the time). 


Safdie originally conceived the project as his Master's thesis in architecture at McGill. It became a thematic pavilion at Montreal's Expo 67 (in which the central theme was Man & His World - with housing as a subset).


Already having a fondness for the architecture of Expo 67 - based on my past research, as well as spending a few summers teaching Québécois university students English - I was pretty interested in The National Film Board of Canada e-newsletter that arrived in my Inbox this morning.


Impressions of Expo 67 is an eight-minute promotional video for what was considered the most successful World's Fair of the 20th Century.


As I mentioned, I am interested in Expo 67's architecture. Still, it takes time to find a thorough list of pavilion designers. 


If you know any more—in addition to the ones listed on Wikipedia—please leave them in the post's comments section.


A few:

Sandy van Ginkel - chief designer and planner of Expo 67

Arthur Erickson - consultant, Canada Pavilion, 

Buckminster Fuller - designer, USA's geodesic dome pavilion


Images of Expo 67 Pavilions can be viewed at the Library and Archives Canada page Expo 67 Man and His World - Pavilions and the Canadian Design Resource Site page Expo 67


So take a peek at the architecture in the short video, and while you're at it, check out the fabulous late 60s design of the visitors' sunglasses.
Images of Expo 67 Pavilions can be viewed at the Library and Archives Canada page Expo 67 Man and His World - Pavilions and the Canadian Design Resource Site page Expo 67

Jun 18, 2014

10 Best of Craigslist Vancouver June 18th

vintage macrame screen






bamboo table and chair set




 


images © their respective owners

Jun 4, 2014

One of The Most Important Chairs of The 20th Century


my chair


my chair

If you've been following my adventures on Instagram and Facebook, you're already aware of my dream kitchen dining area and my three chairs for $25. The chair above is one I sold last year. If you follow me on Twitter, you know we're moving again (ADHD or sane decision - you decide). I also decided to sell my mid-century dining table and chairs - which has left us - once again - without a table or chairs.

So, now is the perfect time to acquire my dream kitchen dining area! Out with the old, in with the new!

As I was perusing Craigslist for Best of Craigslist Vancouver content, I thought, 'There sure are many of those Marcel Breuer Cesca chairs around. How can I tell what's a fake?' Well, it turns out the Cesca chair was never patented (blame it on Mart Stam) and is, therefore, in the public domain. Le Corbusier is turning in his grave. 

There are actually two Cesca chairs—the B32, manufactured and mass-produced by Thonet from about 1930 to the end of WWII (stay tuned for my Thonet tubular steel rocker adventure), and the cheaper version manufactured by Knoll from the 1950s to the present.


1928 designed version:
  • warm beech patina
  • back and chair, each made of a single bent piece (bentwood)
  • back has a marked curve
  • caning was done by hand and sewn into the bentwood frame
  • slight incline to the front edge of the seat
  • curves of the tubular steel frame are even
  • large bolts
After the war, Breuer made some changes to the original design. The seat back and chair were altered, the bentwood frame thickened, and the size of the bolts decreased.

All that's left of the more expensive original 1928 design:
  • hand-caning
  • chrome plated steel caps on the tubing
  • rods inserted to maintain the curvature of the tubular steel shape 
For a fun read on comparing multiple copies of the Cesca - and a Cesca chair checklist - check out this article from the New York Times archive.

last image: B32 version via the V&A



May 27, 2014

16 Best of Craigslist Vancouver May 27th 2014

 Collection of 1970s Hornsea Bronte pattern ceramic tableware (I had this too - it's fabulous sold mine for $300 about ten years ago).
 Mid-century king size teak bed and side tables (what appears to be teak in the photo anyway)



May 7, 2014

12 Best of Craigslist Vancouver May 7th

Percival Lafer leather sofa and arm chair

Glass and chrome table with chrome cantilever chairs - and sumptuous ruby velvet cushions
Folding Indian table aka nomadic furniture
 one here too

Bentwood antique theatre chairs
An old door - throw some wheels on the bottom and voila - a table.
and a 1971 VW van-cum-juice bar


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