Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Clutter Top Ten: Designers (Furniture)


We love trashy reality TV and other nonsense, but design is our lifeblood.  We thrive off a good piece of furniture, a great chair, a rockin' sofa, a killer chandelier.  So...we compiled our list of Top Ten Furniture Designers of all time to give a little thanks to those bright minds that brought us some great looks. Ch-ch-ch-check it out below:

1. Ray and Charles Eames. The Brad and Angelina of the design world, Ray and Charles pioneered wood, fiberglass, plastic and resin technologies in the 1950s. While Plycraft produced some Eames-like loungers (an example, above, from Clutter), Ray and Charles mastered  a look that revolutionized American design...and they were so cute doing it!

2. Kem Weber. German import whose name "Kem" came from the initials of his given name (the uber-German, Karl Emanuel Martin Weber), mixed metals and leather like Don Draper mixed a drink on a sunny morning Manhattan ("Mad Men" shout out).  Check out this BEAUTIFUL Weber vintage chair at Clutter...stunning. 

3. Thomas C. Molesworth. Molesworth rode the Arts and Crafts revolution of the early 1900s into a furniture design business that focused on hides, horns, and natural woods...he is our reason for living basically.  Check out some awesome originals (like an antler chair!!!) in the vein of Molesworth on Marc Taggart and Company.

4. Florence Knoll. Florence's sleek minimalist look defines midcentury modern. She considered herself an interior designer first, possibly an artist second, and, far down the list, a furniture designer, but her designs, furniture and otherwise, shocked a post-war America into a design-centric bunch of Knoll lovers. We dig her.

5. Milo Baughman. California Modern designer, Baughman, designed for everyone from Drexel to Murray Furniture and was even featured at the Whitney for his designs. His pieces reflect a casual elegance that reads, full on, Los Angeles, baby. Sick Baughman trolley table, below, at Clutter.

6. Thomas Chippendale. Old school now...Chippendale is the picture of traditionalism. A cabinet maker in England in the 1700s, his works in rococo and neoclassical styles are in museums worldwide.

7. Hans Wegner. A modernist from the Danish school, Wegner and his crew focused on functionality first.  He was a major contributor to the Danish Modern popularity of the mid-twentieth century and is famous for saying, ""I have always wanted to make unexceptional things of an exceptionally high quality."

8. Eileen Gray. Eileen's ultra modern vibe revolutionized the late twentieth century design aesthetic.  Imagine what a 1980's yuppie, bachelor pad looks like...lots of metals and glass, rounded chairs (the Bibendum), super slick modern lines...Eileen, an Irish woman (!), is to blame thank. Like everything in design, the modern look is back in (and not with the d-bags)...

9. Achille Castiglioni. Castiglioni, a modern minimalist (and the Italian representative of this list), is probably most famous for his lamp, "Arco".  Google it...you've seen it, and now you know who to thank/appreciate for it! And what a cool name!!

10. Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. Ludwig, all we can say is thanks, my dear man, for creating the Barcelona Chair...the single slickest piece of furniture around. You (and Lily Reich) rock!

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