Long Ago…
February 26, 2025
and far away. Or at least that’s how it feels. Remembering back to my very first apartment I’ve been trying to recall the specific vibe. Clearly it was simple, quiet and modern executed on literally NO budget. And, of course, as impossibly chic as it could have been for someone just starting out. Something a young Halston could appreciate before all of the RED. Imagine my excitement when I managed a pair of copies of Marcel Breuer Cesca Chairs at a department store warehouse sale for $80.00! My small dining room, came together like magic. I created a table from a Sonotube covered in a remnant of grasscloth painted black and topped with a precut glass top from Pier One. A giant wall treatment/sculpture was fabricated using white styrofoam packing found in a dumpster at work attached to the wall with bank pins. Finally a large round paper lantern was added for more drama and a soft ambient light. Done. The perfect setting for my morning coffee or ending my day with a bowl of $.17 Ramen. Good times.
photos: knoll
Bend it like….
December 2, 2021
Breuer. Clean simple modern design in home furnishings started way before the middle of the 20th century. Actually, the seating designs of Marcel Breuer appeared closer to the beginning of the last century. Yet, they held their ground throughout, and even in the early years inspired great modern masters like Ludwig Mies van der Rohe to interpret the simple bending of steel tubing into furniture designs of his own. As fate would have it, the furniture designs of both of these icons have stood the test of time… still in production and as elegant as ever. You may recognize these pieces from their popularity in the 1970’s. Breuer’s Cesca chair seemed to be everywhere. Another 50 years later and we see their popularity on the rise once again. What’s there to say? Good is just good. And, while some things occasionally fade in popularity, modern classics like these never go out of style.
top to bottom:
Marcel Breuer’s classic Wassily chair , Wassily chairs and Laccio tables , a gaggle of Cesca chairs with cane seats and backs, Cesca chairs in full upholstery, Knoll’s new introduction: Breuer’s MB Lounge Chair and a pile of Laccio coffee and end tables.
Next up: Mies van der Rohe’s Bruno Chair, the MR Adjustable Chaise, MR Lounge Chair and MR Table, an MR Lounge with and without arms and an MR Stool in tan leather.
all photos: https://www.knoll.com/
simplequietmodern 