Modern Is In Today

Modern furniture refers to furniture produced roughly from 1900 to the present that is influenced by the modern movement.

Post-World War II ideals of cutting excess and choosing practical materials heavily influenced this aesthetic in furniture design. Obviously, it was a great departure from what had come before, including the Art Nouveau, Art Moderne and Art Deco design movements. The shift from carved wood and rich fabric to more simple geometric forms and polished metal began after WWII. In short, the visually heavy gave way to the visually light. According to Phillip Johnson, the noted architect and designer, the “goal of modern design was to capture timeless beauty in spare precision.”

The most important qualification for a piece of furniture to be considered an antique used to be that it was 100 years old or more. Modern furniture and things made in the 1950s certainly don’t meet that qualification. That had been the case at the prestigious New York Winter Antiques Show from 1955 until 2009, when the rules were changed to include furniture and objects made up to 1969. In 2016 the rules were updated again, removing any age restrictions on furniture and objects shown. The antiques world was simply shifting with the resurgence of demand for contemporary design and more specifically what is known as Mid-century Modern.

Various reasons for this renewed interest in Mid-century have been offered by antiques experts and interior designers. More homes are configured using an open concept for more casual living, making formal settings like dining rooms, libraries and studies seem like anachronisms. Plus, there’s the generational factor. A typical buyer or someone who’s collecting Mid-century modern furniture and objects is likely to be a part of “pop culture” and fashion oriented.

As a freelance sales/marketing consultant to Alessandro di Tosto—the owner of Le Lampade Ltd., a Sag Harbor gallery that specializes in Mid-century—I agree with his assessment that some of the most beautiful furnishings and lighting designs were designed and produced in Italy between 1950 and 1970. Using the maxim of finding timeless beauty in spare precision, Italian designers like Gio Ponti, Osvaldo Borsani, Marco Zanuso and Paolo Buffa created the sleek modern aesthetic of fine yet mostly unadorned furniture. According to Mr. di Tosto, the Italian modernist aesthetic was their philosophy: streamlining functionality with comfort and, most important, a fresh sense of style.

It’s no accident that many pieces have a sculptural quality. They thought of their work as more than just furniture. They took in the whole proposition of progress and infused a new, more optimistic interpretation in their designs and thereby thought of their work as an art form in and of itself. In his 15 years as a dealer of Mid-century Italian lighting and furniture, Mr. di Tosto has seen a steady rise in prices while it’s become harder to find intact originals. He says that the Hamptons is a great location for his Mid-century shop and others specializing in this era because of the way homes are designed and the way people live here. The clean elegant lines of Mid-century furniture and lighting resonate with the sensibilities of the homeowner and life in more casual surroundings.

Every generation has its own interpretation of its times and its own reaction to the previous generation. In the historic context of design and fashion, it can involve a throwing off of tradition and rebelling against the fashions and politics of the past. Witness the reaction after the Revolutionary War and French Independence when the new generation ushered in their interpretation of the new society being created. Stripped of the gold and fussy carving, out with pantaloons, dresses with trains and silk stockings, the new look reflected the new political reality, which meant anything overtly “regal” was out and “propriety” was in.

In what came to be called the Federal period, architecture, interiors and fashion saw dramatic change with classic forms—Greek and Roman—emerging as the preferred norm. Which, of course, was rejected by the next generation as being too restrictive. More and more embellishment was re-introduced to the fashions of the mid 19th century, and by the end of the century the rich were reproducing castles as homes—which would have made our founders turn in their graves.

The Gilded Age came to a crashing halt with World War I and, some would say, with the introduction of income taxes. But more than that, it was another reaction to the excesses of the previous generation. No woman wanted to wear a whalebone corset anymore, no one wanted a dark living room. They wanted to live life free of the obsessive fashions of the past. Now, for the first time, the middle class could enjoy buying mass produced furniture at reasonable prices or “on time” and even order a house from the Sears Roebuck catalog.

In Europe, the reaction to the end of monarchies and new freedom was even more pronounced and a whole new genre of “moderne” fashion came into being. Sleek looks gave way to the Bauhaus and Art Deco movements. Then came World War II and, while Europe was recuperating, America took the lead in creating the tone and the market for what would become Mid-century Modern. Once again, out with everything that reminded them of the past and onto the new look of form and function. Open the windows, let in the light—fabrics didn’t fade the way they once did—take the mahogany dark furniture to the curb and replace with lighter wood furniture like maple. No more doilies or piano scarves. To un-frill was to be living the new post-war life.

Today, mid-century modern style is the rage and the fashion of choice in home furnishings. Perhaps it’s a nostalgic tribute to a more optimistic time. But more than that, it is a reflection of our truly modern culture. It appeals to common sense in form and function, it doesn’t produce clutter, it is pared down yet conveys the message that we are modern people. In any case, the market for Mid-century furnishings as collectible objects has skyrocketed in recent years and, according to an account in The New York Times, has eclipsed by far the market for traditional antiques and objects. The decline in prices for traditional antiques has been precipitous and the rise in prices for mid-century “antiques” extraordinary.

Is this a passing fad or does it have legs? Based on what I see and the history of design/fashion changes, I’d say the Mid-century appeal has by no means peaked. Interest and demand grows in both original vintage furniture and lighting of this period and the many adaptations of the style which one can see in catalogs and stores producing reproductions. Retailers like Restoration Hardware, Design Within Reach, West Elm and CB2 carry a wide selection of mid-priced furnishings that are easy to buy and require little hunting or auction going. But for the collector, there is no substitute for the original and here in the Hamptons the antiques shops are showing more and more Mid-century as collectible items. If something isn’t being made anymore, then there is a finite amount of originals, which makes them unique and valuable.

Of course, it’s all a matter of fashion and I wouldn’t count out Georgian or Art Deco antiques yet. Who knows what the next generation will find attractive and won’t be able to live without.