deodato's Blog

Art and Poetry Even in Your Bar Chairs
When you are designing that great bar or lounge you want to set up, the last thing it should ever be is boring. After all, the reason anyone would want to hang out in your bar or lounge, whether its a public place or your private little hideaway just for friends, is because its a fun place to be. And besides serving drinks, not only do you want the people who come to the bar to be interesting and fun, every aspect of the place should be uplifting, interesting and inspire relaxation and friendship between the people gathering there.

Its easy enough to get some help to create an interesting interior design that involves the wallpaper, the ceiling fans, the paintings on the wall and other amusing things that you might keep around the bar to get the conversation flowing with your guests. But why would you want to stop looking for interesting and thought provoking interior decorating ideas at just those things? The truth is that even the bar chairs and other furniture can become as much a part of the fun and creativity of your bar life as any other part of your decorations.

You don't have to look very far when you are researching chair designs to realize that the history of furniture design has had a rich legacy in the world of art. A visit to any fine art museum will be an eye opening experience because you can see that some of the truly great artists throughout history also expressed their creativity in furniture design. And the variety of designs that reflect the artistic ideas that dominated each period of art history also come out in the design of the chairs interior decorators liked to use in lounges and bars of their time.

Taking that tour of artistic history, particularly just before you start shopping for the furniture for your bar or lounge is an instructional step. By getting inspired how you can integrate wonderfully creative designs into your bar based on what has been done with furniture in lounges over history, that inspiration will make you want to do something interesting, unusual and maybe even artistic when you buy the furniture for patrons or guest to enjoy. In fact, one great way to approach not only the chair design but to fit what you buy in furniture for your bar to fit in perfectly is to go with a historic motif.

There are many furniture manufacturers who can provide you with period styles for your bar chairs that will help create an old time feel for your place. You can go with a french revolution style, an early American style that might create the feel of the TV show Cheers that is suggestive of a bar in Boston during the revolution. Or you can go with something very pop art or modernistic, even creating a futuristic feel like something out of 2001 A Space Odyssey. If you allow great eras and even pictures or movies of that era to inspire you, you won't have to look very closely to notice how distinctive and artistic the chairs of each era is and get inspired to find great furniture for a great new bar or lounge.

This is not to say that artists of our era are not branching out into furniture design as well. So as you are browsing art sites for inspiration for great chair ideas for your bar, don't overlook modern art sites as well. Of course, seeing all the wildly creative things there may not take you in that direction. But it can open your mind to what can be done. You might see anything from a full portrait painted on the structure of a chair, to chairs of such wild designs, one wonders how to go about even sitting on them.

But you don't have to go with designs so bizarre that they dominate the room. There are other ways to make your chairs fun and creative and even give yourself lots of flexibility over time to make changes. Buying bar chairs that are meant to be covered means you can find new creative covers that can change the look of your lounge in a snap and for very little cost. And if the chairs are lush and large so you can add throw pillows and decorative blankets across the back, that would open up a world of colors and designs for you to play with anytime the look and feel of your lounge got a bit boring to you.

The materials you pick as the basic construction of your bar stools and chairs will have a big effect on the atmosphere in your place. Its really amazing to see how certain decors inspire your crowd to behave in different ways and may actually change what people drink and the kind of crowd you bring to your bar. For example, wood bar stools not only have a antique feel to them but they blend in with the wood of the bar and the room and create a quiet, reflective and cozy feel. This kind of decor very easily inspires romance so you may find your bar becoming the location of choice for young lovers, just because you made some sophisticated choices of decorating and furniture.

But don't limit yourself to just what can be had in catalogs or on Internet furniture sites. You can be the source of some real creativity in what the bar chairs and furniture look like in your own place. If you have a flair for art and creating inspirational pieces, you can start with unfinished furniture and plan your bar furniture from the ground up. You can use your tour of museums and antique stores and even modern art sites on the internet for inspiration. And whether you just refinish the chairs to look elegant and warm or you go with some creative patterns and colors, the chairs in your place will be all about you and you will have lots of stories to tell when people get interested in the very unique things you have to show in your bar.

The important thing is that in every step of the way as you plan the motif, the layout and the furniture of your bar is to have fun with it. If you look at what you have lined up for the chairs for your customers and they leave you cold and uninspired, go back and start over because it if isn't fun to you, it wont be fun for your guests or visitors to your bar. And by using that measure, the "is it fun to me" measure, the final decision you make for the furniture for your lounge will be just right and one you and your guests will be happy with for a lounge time to come.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/news-and-society-articles/art-and-poetry-even-in-your-bar-chairs-518780.html

Author: Tony Nibbinsworth

When Furniture is Art
A Chair is a chair. Right? Well not always. A chair a lot more than a chair when is was designed by one of the great artists of modern times. And many of the most popular and inspiring chair designs of the last several decades were designed by accomplished artists who also turned out to have a terrific eye for the form and function of a modern chair.

The unique chair designs of Arne Jacobsen are a perfect example of when furniture serves the double duty as a functional chair and a beautiful and visually stimulating work of art as well. Jacobson is the type of artist that you would call a renaissance man because he was successful in many different genres of art. In fact, before becoming an accomplished furniture designer, Arne Jacobson had great success in architecture. Some of his architectural triumphs include the St. Catherine's College, the design of Oxford university and at Merton College as well as his work on the Royal Copenhagen Hotel and the National Bank of Denmark in Copenhagen. These are just the most outstanding of many buildings that Jacobsen's artistic vision influenced.

Even though Arne Jacobsen's creative work occurred in the mid 20th century, the chair designs he brought to life showed he was ahead of his time in vision for how art could embrace function in the chair designs he innovated. In fact, his futuristic designs for chairs are in step with the visionaries of science fiction and those who visualized the future world. Many futuristic movies have incorporated furniture designs by Jacobson to give the impression of an advanced and sophisticated wold of the future.

Several of Arne Jacobsen's chair designs have become incorporated into the world of classical art including a chair very simply named The Number 7 chair which was used by the popular artist Lewis Morale as part of a portrait he painted. That influence on other genre's of art is one reason that many of Jacobsen's chair designs have reached the status of classics in the design world and have become so well regarded by scholars in the area of furniture design.

When you go to museums such as the Metropolitan Museum in New York, you don't have to look very far to find examples of outstanding furniture design that is on display from different eras of history around the world. So when you admire classic examples of chair design from Elizabethan periods or early American sections of the museum, its easy to appreciate the genius of a furniture designer like Arne Jacobsen. And its easy to envision that many of his best chair designs will find themselves into museums around the world when the 20th century is one to be honored and documented for the vision of the artists of the time.

The vision of Jacobsen's chair design reflects a love of the natural elegance of nature. This is a natural reflection of his training as an architect which is one which focuses on making modern buildings reflect the design perfection of the natural world often times. The forms suggested by the most famous of Arne Jacobsen's designs are very much in that genre, especially his most famous chair designs of The Ant, The Swan and The Egg. In fact, The Egg design is one that has become commonly incorporated into movies that are of a futuristic scene including a funny scene in the move Men in Black as various secret agents try to fill out application forms sitting in an Egg designed chair.

Jacobsen's versatility of design was not confined just to architecture and furniture. His artistic vision can also be found in designs he developed for cutlery and wallpaper as well in the area of textiles. In fact, it was a Jacobsen design of cutlery that was used in the futuristic movie 2001 A Space Oddity to show how people living in space might eat. This ability to cast a vision of a more sophisticated world is typical of the genius of Arne Jacobsen.

But of the many artistic creations we have as a legacy of the work of Arne Jacobsen, it is probably the Egg Chair that is the one that is the most striking and recognizable to many people. Its a style that fits into so many decors not only in private homes but in restaurants and hotels who are seeking a modern look that is stylish, a bit over the top and yet sophisticated at the same time.
Jacobsen's designs will certainly continue to be used by artists who are looking to create a futuristic design for other medium including paintings, film, television and movies. In fact, not long ago on the famous television show Saturday Night Live, a skit used futuristic designs of chairs in a humorous piece in which a family in the future shows the post peculiar tastes in food, entertainment and furniture. And while the chairs in this sketch are virtually unusable, the humor is appreciated and it is a reflection on the enjoyment we get from very creative approaches to design such as Arne Jacobsen was known for.

These many references in art and popular culture will make it easy to recognize the Jacobsen influence when you are shopping for chairs for a very specific kind of decor. And while the sleek and rounded designs that made history when Jacobsen innovated them can seem a little cold and exotic, in the right setting with some skilled interior decorating, they can create a look in the living room or den that is at the same time modern and warm all at once. So the Ant, Egg and Swan designs deserve a look whether your decoration challenge is a home setting or one of a restaurant, bar, coffee shop or hotel. Jacobsen's design concepts fit equally well in all of these settings.

Since Jacobsen innovated the design, there have been many adaptations that use the basic egg approach but to add stylization to it to fit it into a particular decor and to take the design further into even more artistic expression of that same basic concept. It is common in art for one inspiration to foster others and to mold and shape how art evolves. So when you see very modernistic designs of chairs that may very much reflect the basic egg, swan and ant styles that originated with Arne Jacobsen, you can now appreciate how this versatile Renaissance man from Denmark changed the way we all see furniture in many ways right up to modern times.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/news-and-society-articles/when-furniture-is-art-514432.html

Author: Tony Nibbinsworth

The Breuer Chair
It was Pecs, Hungary and the year was 1902. The world would receive one of the greatest architects and furniture designers of the 20th century Marcel Breuer. Breuer would grow into a man who's imagination and natural talent for design would make him and icon. As an adult Breuer first began his studies in Vienna. He attended a university there because he had obtained a scholarship. But it was not to his liking and he made the decision to work in an architecture office. He would find his place eventually in Germany where he would study and teach at the Bauhaus School of Design. Here Breuer was encouraged to let his imagination run wild experimenting with the blend of industrial materials with fine art creations. Once Breuer completed his studies at Bauhaus he moved to Paris and worked there in yet another architecture office.

Art and Technology

A year passed and Brueuer was asked to return to Bauhaus to be the schools new Young Master, head of the Carpentry Workshop. Breuer had a passion for combining art and technology. The Breuer chair was in many eyes his masterpiece. The design is known to be inspired by the form of bicycle handlebars. This chair was named the Wassily chair named after the man it was designed for. The original chair frame was constructed from polished bent tubular steal. The seat of the chair could be made with various materials. Some of the materials used are canvas, different types of fabric, or leather.

Breuer began to use tubular steel to construct tables, stools and cupboards. He began to design houses of standardized metal and later of bamboo. For Breuer all if his designs were modern and innovative. In 1928 Breuer designed furniture and interiors for his own architectural practice in Berlin. The economy began to slump and eventually he was forced to close his business. He traveled for a while and upon his return he was employed at Harnischmacher House in Wiesbaden. After a couple of years he joined a team of architects and aided them in the design of the Doldertal Houses.

His passion for furniture would be revived in 1932. He was able to revisit his use of steel and aluminum in his furniture which he created for the Wohnbedarf Company. Breuer was eventually forced to emigrate to London because of the upcoming war. There he was once again designing architectural structures but he had the liberty to incorporate steel, glass, and other modern materials. When he was able to again dedicate his design talents to the construction of furniture pieces he began constructing plywood pieces.

The New York Era

Breuer eventually moved to New York where he once more opened an architectural practice. Between 1940 to 1950, he designed seventy private houses, including his own. He was also featured in a touring exhibition for the Museum of Modern Art. Later on, his designs would be featured by the Whitney Museum of American Art. Breuer would become one of the innovators of the modern art movement. His works displayed around the world for years to come.

Breuer's chair designs have become more and more iconic pieces of modern art and not just simple furnishings. The styles and designs have remained prominent in the world of furniture and design today. Although some of the original materials that Breuer's chairs consisted of where eventually changed for marketability, the designs remain the same.

Breuers chairs seem to the story about the fusion of technology and art. Many people today feel that his chairs tell the story of the Modernest Art Movement simply by their designs. Interior designers seemed to be drawn to because of their uniqueness. His chairs bring not only style to any decorum but a sense of history of that era and art. The also tell the story of Breuers's life into a tangible real form. There are still some of Breuer's original chairs are available but they are somewhat hard to find. But many newer furniture stores are creating replicas because it seems that his designs have returned to popularity.

Breuers talent will continue to inspire many artists in the coming years. As technology advances works of art will be inspired with the creation of man made materials they may have never been considered for use in furniture. Thanks to innovative thinking of Marcel Breuer many new artists can have a source of inspiration when it comes to fabricating designs that others may not think are possible. Marcel Breurer opened the doors of imagination to blend technology with the art of furniture design. It is a fact that can be confirmed just by taking the time to study and look at his fabulous chairs, which are truly works of art.

If you truly want a unique piece that will make your business, restaurant, bar or hotel stand out among others, a décor that will be a conversational piece as well, then Breuer chairs are what you want to find. Mind you they probably wont come cheap, but they will make your business unique and different.

Maybe Breurer is not really what you want, but by looking at his designs you will get a better idea of what will work for you, as far as your business décor goes. You can choose similar styles with a more artistic look, create a scrap book of creative pieces you might want to add to your décor. Remember you only need one or two designer items to give an area a truly unique look. You may even be able to find pieces that are knock off and give you the look you want. If you really want to add unique flavor to your business you should really consult with an expert interior designer, just so that you don't overdo it, and only add just the right touch and nothing more.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/news-and-society-articles/the-breuer-chair-519038.html

Author: Tony Nibbinsworth

The Logical Art of Furniture
The period of time of the nineteen sixties was a turbulent time around the world in lots of ways. While many of us think of this time in terms of the political and cultural revolutions that swept the world, the impact of the music and cultural views of the time had a huge impact on design, fashion and even interior decorating. The time frame became so well known and stylized by the flamboyance of the counterculture and the constant experimentation that the music revolutions were setting off that if you looked at a movie from that time frame, the furniture, carpets, wall hangings and even curtains were so distinctive that they give away their time frame completely.

It was in this setting that one of the true innovators of furniture innovation started his career. That innovator is, of course, Rodney Kinsman. But unlike many creative people of that time, Kinsman did not remain stuck in that period but continued to develop his design approach, eventually developing a design philosophy that he called The Logical Art of Furniture, a title which was used in the biography of Rodney Kinsman by Josy Manser.

The history of how Kinsman grew in his art follows the times closely. Born in 1943 in London, Rodney showed his flair for the arts attending the Central School of Art until 1965. It was then that Kinsmen joined with Jurek Olejnik and Bryan Morrison to form OMK (for Olejnik, Morrison and Kinsmen) Design so they could work together on innovative furniture designs.

OMK Designs produced chairs that very much reflected the times and their first significant model was called the F Range Chair. In step with the styles of the late sixties, the F Range Chair was made of a block of foam covered with brightly colored vinyl, usually red. This was a perfect fit for the times and it may be regarded at Kinsman's more flamboyant designs in that his design approach continued to evolve and become more sophisticated as he continued his craft past the turbulence of the sixties time frame.

One of the reasons that Rodney Kinsman has continued to be a success from one decade to the next is he has found a balance between the artistic vision he wishes to express with each new chair design and an ethic to make the chair appealing across long time frames. This was in direct response to seeing the F Range Chair's popularity become a casualty of the changes in style and tastes in the nineteen seventies. The result was the next big design innovation from OMK Design which was the Omstack Chair.

Kinsman's effort to reach a broader audience and to produce a chair that would stand the test of time was a huge success and the Omstack Chair proved that by becoming OMK's most successful offering. The design of the chair reflected the artistic vision of Kinsman but it was also tremendously functional and adaptable to many practical installation situations. The outcome was that the Omstack and subsequent chair designs enjoyed widespread sales in high volume installation settings such as the Gatwick Airport and numerous other public buildings.

The outcome of achieving such widespread popularity as a furniture designer was that Kinsman's design vision has become very well known throughout the UK and for the many visitors Britain in the nineteen seventies and beyond. This, of course, meant even more sales for OMK Designs but it also meant that Kinsman's design ideas achieved a universal appeal and became influential if not outright copied by others who wanted to capitalize on the combination of a strong sense of style and a first grasp on function and durability not only in the quality of the chair but in the universality of the appeal of the chair design.

The emphasis on designing chairs that did not fade in popularity with the changes in culture does not mean that Kinsman did not continue to allow his artistic influences to be reflected in his designs. Meanwhile OMK Designs underwent continued changes as an organization until by the late nineteen eighties, Kinsman was virtually running the company single handedly. As the primarily point of leadership for OMK, Kinsmen showed strong business sense by focusing the company on the niche market that he knew well and were they had had such great success in the last.

A design characteristic that became the signature of many of Rodney Kinsman's designs was the use of the curved tubular pipe as part of chair design. Not only did this design fit nicely with various movements in chair design throughout the later half of the twentieth century, it was also a good fit to Kinsman's strong business ethic as the materials were plentiful and affordable but durable and easy to design new furniture designs around. These curved tubular designs has a strong connection to artistic movements outside of furniture design including the ideas of Michael Thonet and the philosophical and artistic movement so popular in Europe during this time frame known as Bauhaus.

The distinctive artistic influences found in the designs of Rodney Kinsman simultaneously reflect his ability personally to merge the spirit of an artist with the sensible approach to furniture production and sales of an outstanding businessman. As such, it was an ongoing ethic of OMK that all of the Kinsman chairs would be mass produced and have a strong availability and affordability. Not only did this help to guarantee strong sales and long term heath for the OMK Design company as a corporate entity, it also helped to get the unique Kinsman design out there into the community where by sheer force of repetition, it became well known and popular.

That phrase that so beautifully summarizes the work of Rodney Kinsman is The Logical Art of Furniture. On first impression, you would think that the very idea of logical art just doesn't make sense. But the success of Kinsman's ideas and his business sense have shown that the two ideas fit together perfectly. That is because in the hands of the right man with the right vision and the right business sense, a chair can demonstrate a strong sense of artistic expression and it can be a solid piece of furniture that makes sense for the business as a long term vehicle for profitability. And that right man for his times and for the success of the OMK Design company was and is Rodney Kinsman.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/news-and-society-articles/the-logical-art-of-furniture-524025.html

Author: Tony Nibbinsworth