Week 12 - Postmodernism

Postmodernism was born out of a global recession in the 1970s. The oil embargo of 1973 was the cause of this recession, and it brought about hopelessness and negativity to people everywhere. Since Modernist furniture and design focused on a sense of happiness and lightheartedness, it’s popularity began to decline alongside the economy. However, this recession did bring about a major sense of consumerism, because people felt the need to grab what they can while they could. This consumerism eventually lead to the improvement of the economy in the 1980’s, and then the Memphis Group emerged.

The main critique of Modernism at this time was its strict rationality. The Memphis Group sought to change that with a new design style – Postmodernism. This group was composed of designers such as Ettore Sottsass, Michele de Lucchi, and Michael Graves and their new style was primarily inspired by Art Deco and Pop Art. Some other concepts included in this style included kitsch, irony, and distortion of scale – all in order to combat Modernism and its strict design mandates. Other influential designers and architects of this time included Robert Venturi, Charles Gwathmey, Richard Meier, and John Hejduk.

Developments in electronics also contributed to the design of this time. The 1980s and 90s gave way to the development of fax machines, camcorders, Apple products, and portable telephones as well as computers. The main impact these developments had on design occurred in the design of office furniture. Because employees could bring their own technology, they needed more flexible workplaces, which lead to the development of more flexible and multipurpose furniture pieces. Another factor coming out of this new technology was the possibility of people working from home, so office design then became not only commercial but also residential.

Deconstructivism is another design movement that came about in the 1980s, and even though it did not grow to be as known as Postmodernism, it was still influential in design. This movement was experimental and focused on surprising people through moving around parts and pieces of buildings to create new spaces. Some well-known designers of this style included Peter Eisenman and Frank Gehry.

Design Examples

Gehry House
Frank Gehry

The Wall House
John Hejduk

Douglas House

Richard Meier

Current Applications

One Step Further

Frank Gehry is a Jewish architect born in Toronto, Ontario. His grandparents contributed most to Gehry’s love of architecture, because even as a child, his grandmother would bring him wood scraps from his grandfather’s hardware store. Young Gehry would build cities out of these scraps and then got further inspiration by wandering around the hardware store in person. His parents also pushed him in artistic abilities – his father would draw with him and his mother introduced him to art.

In 1954, Frank Gehry received a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Southern California; however, architecture was not the first career path Gehry tried. First, he was a truck driver, then he tried his luck at radio announcing, and then he tried chemical engineering. None of these paths made Gehry feel fulfilled, so he looked back on his childhood and decided to take a couple architecture classes. After receiving his Bachelor of Architecture, Gehry went to graduate school at Harvard, but the program there did not live up to his expectations, so he left before completing the program.

Gehry’s career in architecture began when he started working for Victor Gruen Associates, and it is here where he designed his first residence – The David Cabin. In 1962, Frank Gehry established his own firm and designed many notable buildings, such as Santa Monica Place, the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, and the California Aerospace Museum. His experimental design style eventually lead to Gehry being awarded the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 1989. Frank Gehry became more and more internationally known after receiving the Pritzker Prize, and he designed buildings such as the Walt Disney Concert Hall in LA, the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago, and the New World Center in Miami.

In more recent years, Gehry’s designs have failed to be completed, except for two museums – the Biomuseo in Panama and the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris. Don’t fret, even though Gehry’s designs have been declining, he is still very much alive. Before 2010, New York City’s tallest residential building was a Trump Building, but Frank Gehry decided to build another residential tower nearby, just one foot taller than the Trump Building. However, this seemed to be in good fun, because, even though the President of France assured Gehry that he could relocate to France if Trump was elected President of the United States, Gehry refused the offer and is still living in his home in Santa Monica, California.

Week 11 - Modernism in America (cont.)

This section of Modernism in America focuses primarily on the development of furniture design and furniture manufacturers. The development was very experimental due to the advances in manufacturing processes and the development of different technologies such as the television. Since America was the leader of design internationally at this point, it only makes sense for a majority of this experimentation to take place here.

Furniture designers really took advantage of this experimentation period and they played around with materials such as plywood, plastic, resin, metal, laminate, and fiberglass. These different materials were married with the idea of ergonomics, because human comfort and movement were finally being taken into consideration. This interest in human behavior and comfort was also taken into account when multipurpose and interchangeable furniture pieces were introduced to the furniture world. The development of technology also lent itself to the development of furniture design. With television becoming a primary entertainment system, furniture was starting to become focused around it. This focus encouraged furniture designers to come up with different pieces, such as the coffee table or lounge seating.

One other consideration of this design movement was the connection of the interior with the outdoors. In order to further this design concept, the main color scheme of Mid-Century Modernism included earth tones such as olive, burnt umber, pumpkin, and mustard. Architecture of this time period also reflected this desire of marrying indoor spaces to the outside, so glass walls, clean lines, and open floor plans were primary design factors in Modernist housing.

Modernism gave way to the rise of many great designers and manufacturers, such as Eero Saarinen and Charles and Ray Eames, as well as Knoll and Herman Miller. These designers and companies greatly benefited both residential and commercial spaces and are still wildly popular to this day.

Design Examples

 Eames House - Charles and Ray Eames

 Eichler Home - Joseph Richler

TWA Flight Center - Eero Saarinen

Current Application

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Eero Saarinen was a very successful Finnish architect and industrial designer known for his contributions in the Modernist design movement. He was born to an architect, Eliel Saarinen, who was the dean of the Cranbrook Academy of Art. It was there where Eero took courses in sculpture and furniture design and became friends with Charles Eames, Ray Eames, and Florence Knoll. Eero then took a two year break from his schooling, touring Europe, North Africa, as well as Finland, then returned to Cranbrook to work for his father.

Eero first received recognition with the Tulip Chair, a design collaboration with Charles Eames. The Knoll furniture company loved the chair and began production of it. Not only was Eero connected with Knoll because of family friendships, but he was now connected because of his furniture designs. Eero went on to design the Grasshopper lounge chair and ottoman, the Womb chair and ottoman, the Womb settee side and arm chairs, as well as the Tulip group.

Eero Saarinen was a furniture designer as well as a successful architect. His most famous projects include the design of General Motors Technical Center, John Deere headquarters, as well as the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, which includes the well-known St. Louis Archway. He was so successful he became known as one of the masters of American 20^th-century architecture.