curbzone

Centurion

So the Proust chair was designed as late as 1978, it looks so much older but it beautiful. The fashionable version you posted a picture of is . I'm totally in love with it but I beleive it cost a small fortune. Then again it is always possible to pick up a vintage one, get it repainted and put new fabric on it.
It is nice to see some Victorian furniture, it is kind of sad that victorian art has been out dominated by French art. The glass chandeliers and dead gorgeous and the light bulbs make them even cooler. I have never seen anything like it before.
Unfortunately I don't have pictures on my computer of the supposed Oxford type of interior I like, but it is not victorian. The interior is typical in yatch clubs. You know mahogany libraby, Bankers lamp and brown/orange leather couch.

Rob

I get what you mean Lu

The Proust chair was the result of Mendini's 're-design'. By taking familiar furniture objects and then transforming them by adding colour and patterns to them, Mendini changed the whole character of these objects.

For example, this is Mendini's 1978 re-design of Marcel Breuer's famous 'Wassily" chair from 1925. By adding decorations to it, the whole context of this object is changed.



This chest of drawers is re-designed with decorations in the style of a Kandinsky painting.


These objects were created with an avant-garde Milanese design group called Studio Alchimia -- they were not intended for production and are now important examples of late twentieth century design theory. Some are now being reproduced by Italian furniture makers for regular home decoration.

However, the newer versions are not as radical as the originals ....they have been toned-down to make them more 'tasteful' for the general consumer market.

For example, Mendini designed a production version of the chest of drawers above for the Manufacturer Zanotta.

That Zanotta chest of drawers is in this interior you posted (bottom right)


This is an original Proust chair from 1978 produced by Studio Alchimia;


-and this is a recent reproduction of the Proust chair being made by the Italian manufacturer Cappellini.


The Proust pattern has also become a design signature of Mendini's, he has used it on many of his design objects. It is reminiscent of the paintings by the 19th century 'Pointillist' artist Georges Seurat. Seurat painted with dots of colour rather than with brush strokes.


Proust Swatch by Alessandro Mendini. Mendini was the art director at Swatch.


Mendini coffee maker by Alessi. Mendini was the design director at Alessi.


Mendini corkscrews made by Alessi.

Rob

The Groninger Museum in Amsterdam was a collaborative project with Mendini, Philippe Starck and Coop Himmelblau.

Michael

Rob I do not know much about what is being spoken about here but the chair you posted that was created in 1925 but later artistically rendered reminds me of the 80s.

Rob

That is intersting Michael. It was a popular chair in the 1980s as well. That chair was designed at the Bauhaus school, it is one of the first chairs made from tubular steel. The designer, Marcel Breuer (pronounced Broy-er) moved to the US after WW2, he designed several buildings in the US and his furniture designs are among the most famous of the twentieth century.

I am sorry, I didn't mean to turn this thread into a history lecture ....I just really love this kind of topic

Centurion

Oh so the protus chair is much more important than what I thought. When I saw it as your avtar I never thought it was going to come back to me, but it has. I have to say that his pattern look fantastic inside Groninger Museum. The chest of drawers is very nicely designed as well, very abstract and very unique. Any idea how much it cost, 8k maybe? Now that I have seen some of Mendini's work his name will probably pop up next time I see a pattern which resembles his.

The Artist

one quick questions..
you dudes that post these outlandish furniture..could you imagene owning one of these items..

i couldnt.. some of the truely scare me

PS
Thnx for posting though..its very interesting to see

Centurion

How you they scare you, they are beautiful. Maybe you feel more comfortable in the typical 4 star hotel room, aka enviroment for a deeptroat Peter North movie.



I thought you as a Zonda fan like radical stuff.

The Artist

sure man i love the radicall stuff.. lol now that i think about it..
i only based my last post on this pic.. man it scares the living hell out of me..

looks like taking a seat on some kids wet painting..hihi

Centurion

I feel you ont hat one. although the chair is a piece of art I wouldn't want to have it in my house either. A bit too gothic for my taste.