Project: Mid-Century Diorama Inspiration

My inspiration for the diorama that I an currently working on, came from early furniture by Italian, and in particular Finnish designers. I have included some furniture pieces you may find familiar, though you may not be fully aware of their history.

The Italian company Kartell, founded in 1949 by Giulio Castelli, is famous around the world for having invented the culture of plastic furniture and interior fittings. Giulio, a chemical engineer with a vision to create something good from plastics, (a material whose applications at this time, were still relatively unexplored) collaborated with designer Gino Colombini and won the firm its first Compasso d’Oro award in 1955.

Since the 1960s and 70s, Kartell has become an enduring household name due to famous designs by Anna Castelli Ferrieri (above) and Cesare "Joe" Colombo in the 1960s to more recent hits such as Philippe Starck’s Ghost Chairs (left) and Ron Arad’s fun Bookworm shelves (right).

You will see more furniture these days made from Lucite® a high quality plastic acrylic nearly half the weight of glass, yet with added durability. It is available in a variety of  colours and lasts longer than other plastics with its resistance to yellowing and fading.

The Tulip Chair (left) by Eero Saarinen, a Finnish American architect and industrial designer. Saarinen first received critical recognition, while still working for his father, for a chair designed together with Charles Eames for the "Organic Design in Home Furnishings" competition in 1940, for which they received first prize. The "Tulip Chair", like all other Saarinen chairs, was taken into production by the Pennsylvania based Knoll furniture company, which was founded in New York City in 1938 by Hans Knoll.

The Ball Chair (right) by Eero Aarnio a Finnish interior designer, noted for his innovative furniture designs in the 1960s, was created in 1963.

We see these designs now being reproduced and for sale in furniture stores worldwide. Not only are they made for those of us interested in using these "almost timeless designs" in their homes today, these pieces are also being reproduced in China for our dolls.

Some may refer to these items as retro, but according to Wikipedia "Retro style is a style that is imitative or consciously derivative of lifestyles, trends, or art forms from the historical past, including in music, modes, fashions, or attitudes. It may also be known as vintage inspired." 

It generally implies a vintage of at least fifteen or twenty years, which means now even the late 1990's could be retro, so, retro is not a word I like to use to describe historical furniture design of any sort, as it really doesn't relate to any particular period in time. Whereas mid-century modern is the design movement in interior, product, graphic design, architecture and urban development after the second world war, from roughly 1945 to 1975.

During this time, colour played a very important roll in the interior of the homes and I love the way the bright colour accents made interior design ideas feel warm and energetic. Adding a splash of cheerful and optimistic colour to rooms, like those below, makes me feel warm and cosy.

Strangely the colour blue and violet never seemed very popular with the Finns during this period and I have often wondered if they preferred the warmer colours because of their snow and ice climate. :)

Now, even though my room may be inspired by these designs, I shall certainly be looking to decorate my room from a different perspective. After all Australia is not Finland and we have a much warmer climate, so the you may well see purple, blue, aqua and green, instead of red, orange, yellow and lime, or it may even be a little of both, you'll just have to wait and see.

Hope you all are having as much fun as I am.
Big hugs,
X