Cause A Frockus

Mid-century modern furniture materials

Jul 9, 2014 | by Becky Oeltjenbruns

As we covered in our earlier mid-century modern post, technological developments were creating great strides in furniture design. We’d like to follow up that original article with a review of mid-century modern furniture materials.

Bent plywood

Plywood was the darling of the furniture world during the 1940s and 50s. Even though Eames’ creations are often credited with starting the trend, the first company to make plywood furniture on a large scale was actually Japanese. Tendo Mokko’s bold shapes attracted out-of-the-box thinkers and showed that this material had international appeal. Plywood had a great trinity: strength, light weight, and low cost, making it a wonderful choice.

Artists saw the material as a way to make a chair out of a singular component. But a single piece didn’t mean it limited the designer: endless colors and finishes were possible. This concept was like the holy grail for furniture designers. It’s easy to see that passion come through in the abundance of work throughout the mid-century. While it required a high level of craftsmanship to form each item, there was an advantage to bending plywood. It conformed to new shapes easily thanks to its composition: layers of veneer are glued together, with the grain running perpendicular. The technique was so strong it allowed for more detailed manipulation. Eames and Eero Saarinen took the torch from the original masters Alvar Alto and Marcel Breuer, pushing the design envelope even further. Arne Jacobsen’s ant chair (pictured above) famously used this bending technique to make the first mass produced chair for Denmark.

Wire

As we’ve learned, Eileen Gray was the first to champion tubular steel in furniture design. The modernists loved working in this medium – it’s austere qualities lent themselves to the bold geometry designers favored. But over time, steel became more delicate and versatile. This transformation meant that, like plywood, metal could be sumptuous and curved. Harry Bertoia took advantage of this advancement brilliantly with the Diamond Chair. Made for Knoll, the chair is a work of art in its own right – the lightness belies the strength of the steel. That contrast was visually manipulated by a lot of other designers like the Brit, Ernest Race and American, Isamu Noguchi.

Upholstery

Following WWII, people craved comfort and ease in their daily lives. This attitude carried over to home furnishings as well. The popularity of the television set redefined the standard living room and encouraged relaxation. Two Scandinavian designers developed soft foams and fabrics for this new, casual customer base. Lines went from stiff to gentle and Eero Saarinen’s egg chair makes great use out of the materials’ possibilities.

Because of the versatility, there were endless color and pattern opportunities. This aspect married well with a consumer desire for individuality. Verner Panton was perhaps one of the most unique designers, boldly using bright colors and innovative forms. But it went beyond just the design and into the marketing realm as well. His cone chair caused quite a stir when it debuted in NYC. The police actually made the shop owner remove the chair from view because of the large crowd it inspired! Not to be discouraged, Panton pushed the censorship boundaries by draping the cone chairs with naked human forms (some real, some mannequin) for a magazine shoot. If his dramatic use of geometry didn’t grab you, the ads would!

Plastic and fiberglass

Like the development in wood, plastics were being thought of in new ways too. Thermoplastics like polyethylene, polyurethane, and polypropylene became instant favorites. Designers could finally experiment fully with ergonomics and mold a chair to fit the human body. By the 1960s many designers were comfortable with a plastic palette, but pioneering efforts started back in the 1940s. Eames and Eero Saarinen led the way, but Verner Panton in his true style created the first plastic chair made in one, continuous piece.

By the middle of the 1960s plastic had come into its own. Every furniture firm incorporated it into their designs in one form or another. Thermoplastics reached their full potential in 1963 when the British designer Robin Day became the first to design a mass-produced chair using this material. This development came just in time because with the dawn of the space age, people wanted something new and exciting. Like the artists said – it had to “pop.” Eero Aarnio took this concept literally with the ball chair. The chair was just a sphere with an open section for seating and because it mirrored the desire to re-think living room space, it became an overnight success.

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Cause A Frockus would like to thank their tremendous resources: “20th Century Design: The Definitive Illustrated Sourcebook” by Judith Miller and the people who post their images without restriction.

For our readers: Of the new materials, which is your favorite?

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