The Shape of the Future
January 1, 2003
The unexpected juxtaposition of old-fashioned coziness and modern-day bravura is a source of fascination and delight. “If it were simply a plastic chair, I don’t think it would get that reaction,” says Campbell. In a similar vein, Philippe Starck’s Louis Ghost chair for Kartell is an elegant Louis XV fauteuil reimagined in transparent single-mold polycarbonate that is tinted icy shades of gray, yellow, orange and green. ; function voidFunc() { } voidFunc(); "Poltrona Frau's Ravello chair")
American designers such as Kevin Kopil, on the other hand, inject their furniture with familiar references to past styles, be they Shaker, Mission or Far Eastern. “The low, slick, Italian look isn’t for everyone,” says Vladimir Kagan, a trailblazer of modern design in the 1950s and 1960s who continues to produce new collections. “It’s much more fun to be creative with a curved line.” Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer concurred. “What attracts me,” he said, “is the free, sensual curve. The universe is made of curves.” (Click image to enlarge)
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At the ICFF show, the retro trend continued unabated, as many companies reissue furniture lifted verbatim from the past. “It seems that people are still looking for that retro look,” says Christine Muller, marketing director of Kartell, which has reintroduced products that were successful in the 1960s and ’70s. Brayton International has found a new sideline reissuing quintessentially Scandinavian modern designs from Danish masters Hans Wegner and Finn Juhl. Vitra does a brisk business in pieces from designers like Ray and Charles Eames and Jean Prouvé, and Lost City concentrates on reviving original designs, such as the circa 1950s Float Back sofa. Vivid fuchsias, oranges, reds and yellows—strongly rooted in the ’60s—are still the upholstery colors of choice. (Click image to enlarge)
Avant-garde designers are busy putting their own spin on conventional forms. At first glance, the traditional lines and Depression-era chintz of Critz Campbell’s Eudora chair for b9 appear to be the stuff of your grandmother’s living room. A flick of a switch, however, and the translucent fiberglass shell bonded to the flowery fabric lights up and glows from within.
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