Colin and Justin: Pondering the past to move forward
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Period pieces can transform a characterless room
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Attention, design aficionados. Hands up if you’re currently bathing in an avocado-toned plastic bath. Anybody? Thought not.
Which of you is decorating with 1970s wallpaper, bawdily bedecked with psychedelic orange flowers and chocolate brown leaf motifs? Nobody? You’re way too au courant to be occupied by days gone by. Or are you?
The past, you see, is out there. Visit any factory-inspired condo development, or achingly chi-chi home store, and it’s highly likely you’ll find yourself wading through design history from the ’20s, ’50s and ’60s. And hey, even the ’70s.
The reality is that much of what’s considered cutting edge actually predates our parents. Many ‘period’ aspects cut a surprisingly contemporary dash, making them perfect fodder to transform characterless rooms. This in mind, here’s a project composed by our stable using ‘period’ parts arranged inside a formerly featureless ‘box’.
After whitewashing (to prepare a gallery-style backdrop for the design ‘museum’ pieces that would follow), we accented with vivid yellow and black latex bands. Tip: Use Frog Tape, seal edges with a coin and brush paint away from – rather than onto – tape to achieve sharp results. To ‘frame’, and suffuse an art gallery feel, we used deepest black for windows and baseboards.
Backdrop ‘corrected’, we added a spot of progressive 1920s modernism via the iconic Barcelona chair, love child of Mies van der Rohe, a German American whose work is revered across the globe.
Designed as a modern throne for visiting King Alfonso X111 at the 1929 International Exposition, it features tufted upholstery and a metal X frame, and drew on van der Rohe’s determination to combine supreme comfort with production economy. Manufactured to this day, it lends historical gravitas. Learn more at www.knoll.com
We also installed a grey-toned Amtico floor (www.amtico.com) before anchoring silver birch branches, floor to ceiling, either side of the room, for a shot of organic appeal to balance the American Psycho/Wall Street aesthetic.
Our next example of ancient modernism arrives courtesy of Eileen Gray, a designer who impacted the course of art history and style. Gray’s E-1027 side table is a beautiful piece that’s as relevant today as it was in the ’20s, when she composed its sexy lines.
The Irish-born visionary is renowned for merging form and function, which jettisoned her into the circle of Amsterdam’s De Stijl artists, around whom she created much of her early work. Find it at www.dwr.com
Moving on, let’s hang with a younger crowd: cue the Noguchi table, envisioned by Isamu Noguchi and manufactured by Herman Miller in 1947. The perfect addition in our ‘modern’ living/dining room, its ebony tones complement our accent wall. Source yours at http://www.eq3.com
Fast forwarding to the 1950s, and we’re in Scandi territory, with the master of all things Danish, Arne Jacobsen. A pioneer of plywood, his iconic 3107 chair (from 1955) is one of the world’s most recognizable seating solutions.
Okay, so the cult status of the 3107 has been diluted by fierce plagiarism, but, to some, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, n’est ce pas?
The icings on the cake are the Grand Confort sofa and chairs, designed in 1928 by Le Corbusier. Ultimate classics, they’re surprisingly comfortable and widely regarded as history’s greatest modern furniture.
Little wonder, then, that New York’s Museum of Modern Art displays Grand Confort, along with work by Eileen Gray, as part of its permanent collection.
To tool up further, read A Century of Design; Design Pioneers of the 20th Century to become apprised of the annals of furniture history. Lust over pictures of Marcel Breuer’s Wassily Chair, and swoon at the sight of Harry Bertoia’s Diamond seat.
The beautifully photographed tome reminds readers that, when it comes to modern home style, past tense can indeed be future perfect when played correctly.
Suitably inspired, we’re already planning our next trip to New York to scan the inventory of vintage furniture at MoMA – an institute we should perhaps rename MoNSMA (Museum of Not So Modern Art). More from us next time…
Watch for Colin and Justin on Citytv’s Breakfast Television. Find the Colin and Justin Collection in stores across Canada. Visit www.colinandjustin.tv
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