Is Modern Furniture Really Modern?

A good number of people who are in the market for home or office furniture have a difficult time understanding modern furniture styles. Questions come to mind such as, “Is modern furniture really comfortable”?..and “Do modern furniture styles have lasting value?”

As a partner in an interior design firm, I can tell you, we hear those questions quite often. They’re right up there with “How much is this project going to cost me?”

This article explains why today’s modern furniture styles are becoming the new “classics” and why the approach to traditional and antique furniture is being redefined.

Hopefully, some myths will be dispelled and you’ll feel more confident when selecting new furniture. Of course, how much you wind up spending on your project will always be between you and your designer (or your bank account).

Modernism is a funny concept. It represents a genre that has a long history, but it also refers to the styles the present. The design industry, in its attempt to better define and substantiate “modernism”, has adapted a hot buzz word for quality modern furniture, calling it “mid-century modern”. I like this term as it asserts longevity and validates the importance of the iconic furniture designers of that era, many of whose works are now in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art.

According to historians, the modern and post-modern movement in furniture began in the late 19th century when designers took their cue from the Werkbund and Bauhaus Schools of architectural design. Function and minimalism ruled. The old traditions that linked quality with the time it took a craftsman to make a piece of furniture were discarded along with the ornate, gilded, heavily carved woods; the crest-pattered inlays; the shuttle-woven brocades; and all those petit point bucolic fabric designs.

If something marvelously original and highly artistic could be designed and crafted quickly and efficiently using modern materials, it was hailed by modernists.

Creative furniture designers like Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, (better known as Le Corbusier), Eileen Gray, and Marcel Breuer broke away from the past by choosing monochromatic color schemes, geometric patterns and unconventional materials such as polished tubular metal. This was quite radical and unprecedented in the history of furniture design.

What’s even more interesting, beyond this creative marker of the modern genre, was the historical marker that now, (thanks to the machine age), the common man could own and enjoy a work of art as furniture. Today, you can still buy a licensed reproduction of a master mid-century modern furniture designer’s creation for a reasonable price and those high quality chairs, chaises, sofas and tables (if properly maintained) will continue to appreciate.

When you look at modern furniture today and recognize it as being part of the evolution of modern idealism that began nearly 100 years ago, you can see why it’s not really modern at all. It is now classic. The wonderful thing about great modern design, is that as “old” as it is, it works exceptionally well for the way we live today.

American Architect Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) got people thinking about the relationship between life, nature and the way we live. He said, “Form and function should be one, joined in a spiritual union.” Modern architects and designers listened and began to work from that concept.

Wright is perhaps best known for his homes built in harmony with the natural landscape. His seashell shaped Guggenheim Museum in New York City further defined his signature "organic style" which flourished at a time when everyone was ready to embrace a brighter future.

By the 1960's, Americans in particular were fascinated with the space age and all things contemporary. Modern furniture designers of the day, Herman Miller, Florence Knoll Bassett, Eero Saarinen and Charles and Ray Eames used materials like molded plastic, vinyls and chrome cylinders that mirrored the revolution.

It’s interesting to note, that many people still associate modern furniture with futuristic design, but it’s a misconception. Most classic mid-century designs offer relaxed, comfortable, uncomplicated styles that match a similar way of life.

Another modern trend was eating in front of the television. Like it or not, this domestic activity continues to be one the world's favorite pastimes.

The inevitable migration from the formal living and dining room to the "den", literally left those traditional rooms in the dust. In many homes, they became obsolete, resurrected only during the holiday season. Many new homeowners left traditional living and dining rooms unfurnished, as the “great-room” (adjacent to the kitchen) became more popular. This new "modern" space was where families could eat together, play and relax on large sectional sofas.

Dining tables moved into the kitchen area or became part of a large living room; it doubled nicely as a buffet when entertaining. Central breakfast-style counters and sleek modern stools helped to make the kitchen (ironically the original “hearth” area) a place for both meal time and social gatherings.

Libraries were replaced with home offices that called for built-in desks, bookshelves, computer stations and filing cabinets with clean, modern doors that concealed unsightly papers, paperbacks, magazines, tapes and DVDs.

Bedrooms also got smaller and less cluttered. People began favoring organized closet systems over large armoires and dressers. Heavy four-poster and canopied beds were replaced with simple platforms. Even night stands were redefined as designers created space-saving built-in shelf units.

Lighting design also moved with the times with the advent of LED and halogen lights. Matching lamps that sat on proverbial end tables were replaced by swing arm wall sconces. Track systems once reserved for hallways and art galleries moved into modern living rooms, kitchens, bathrooms and bedrooms.

So getting back to the good old values....

There is still a popular agreement that all things “traditional” and “antique” should be equated with excellence and lasting value. That’s not always true. Savvy consumers should know that just because some styles of furniture have lasted for centuries does not guarantee that they are well crafted today.

Even antiques aren’t always valuable. Just about every episode of the “Antiques Roadshow” will feature at least one old treasured item whose value amounts to little more than a fond memory. Remember, factory produced (even hand-crafted) traditional and antique furniture can be either well-made or merely made to mimic the specifications and style of the original designer. What’s more, antiques that are not properly maintained have little or no value.

There is certainly nothing wrong with filling your home with fine traditional furniture and antiques, or mixing in traditional pieces, (if you know how to do it successfully), but you should first consider the “spiritual union” of form and function and the way you live and entertain.

Tips for mixing modern and traditional furniture

Modern furniture is perhaps the only style of furniture that changes with the times. It has expanded beyond early highly artistic, “futuristic” designs to become furniture that works in harmony with today's lifestyles.

Exquisitely designed and crafted mid-century and 21st century modern furniture is available through your designer and in specialty retail stores. On-line modern furniture stores can be very affordable as they will vary in price and quality.

Frank Lloyd Wright would probably call today's modern furniture "organically styled"; it is at once beautiful, comfortable, sustainable and enduring to the effect that it is “classical” in its own right.

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