My mother found it somewhere – it’s vintage. Georg Jensen, stainless steel, so it’s Danish, but what is it for? She didn’t know either. I’ve looked for it online for years but no luck, and no, it’s not on the Georg Jensen site anywhere. UPDATE: Anne wins the prize. It’s an orange peeler!
Western European churches, especially those near or in shipping towns, often suspended a model ship from the ceiling as a symbol of good luck for sailors. The practice is probably most common in Denmark, but is fairly widespread. It would be surprising if the current craze for ship chandeliers in decor (see the ship chandeliers in houses at bottom) weren’t related to this tradition. For a whole set of photos of church ships, see here. Photo at top is in Vilnius, Lithuania; second is on the island of Seili, Finland. For photos below, click on photo for information.
Above, Canterbury Cathedral. Directly below (and at very top of post), a crystal ship in the Saints Peter & Paul’s Cathedral in Vilnius; photos by Beny Shlevich. Below that, two examples of the ship chandelier that’s become so popular now. It and others are contemporary, but there are antique versions of it too, usually from the early 1900s.
The two interior design photos above – both of them strangely aristocratic/colonial - are of a house by Jonathan Adler, top, and an apartment styled by designer Lili Diallo, below. The big ships are beautiful, even if there’s always plunder in their wake.
I found Lost City Arts by accident when searching for works by Harry Bertoia. Like this shop, Lost City has eccentric art and furniture pieces that are substantially more eye-catching or compelling than market-produced objects mainly because most of their art furniture was, in fact, made by sculptors. Most of it is one-offs or small editions which is why most of it is too expensive for me. But I like the fact that these objects came from also a time when buyers actually collected contemporary sculpture for their houses and apartments. I don’t know what these pieces awaken for me, but the more eccentric accessories of modernism – glam, or brutalist, or whatever – are becoming more and more appealing. Maybe everything’s too clean these days, or too girly; I don’t know. Captions and photos are from Lost City Arts. Above is a Spider table from Italy, 1950s.
Unique Animal Form Sculpture by Harry Bertoia, USA, 1950’s. Rare early example of Bertoia’s expansive exploration of metal work. Large carpenters nails are assembled in the form of a fantasy animal of insect. The entire surface is coated with a layer of melted bronze. It is extremely rare if not totally unique in Bertoia’s career to depict actual figures. Playful exercise predating the more formal styles that were to develop.
Walnut Occasional Table by Milo Baughman, USA, 1960’s. Occasional table by Baughman. Designed with a great sense of scale, the thick top matches the vertical dimension of the X base. Beautiful walnut grain overall, excellent as side table for the low slung sofa.
Above: Paul Evans, Brutalist Sculpture, USA, 1960’s. A very rare freestanding artwork by Paul Evans, known primarily for his artfully accented furniture. His sculpture is exceedingly uncommon. The trademark brutal approach has been applied to create a floral themed masterpiece.
Harp Chair by Jorgen Hovelskov, Denmark, 1960’s. Beautiful vintage example of the Harp by Hovelskov. A masterful exercise in material conservatism, the form more than makes up in its visual complexity. The expertly crafted frame, in solid walnut, anchors the hypnotic weaving of the jute cord forming the seat. A delicate but perfect balance of style, comfort and high design.
This is the piece I secretly hanker for the most: Motorized Kinetic Sculpture by Calleja, USA, 1970’s. A very cool, quiet and mesmerizing kinetic sculpture. A pair of chromed rods, each precisely curved, are mounted to a base which contains a motor. The motor slowly turns the rods, seemingly weaving the rods into and out of each other. A very simple method to achieve a subtly calming effect. The interior of the base is signed CALLEJA.
These staggered, airy midcentury modern arrangements are so much less chichi than the many fancified contemporary bookshelves we see around. For some reason we love this simple, balanced living room belonging to Italian architect Egle Amaldi in the 1960s. The bookshelf – its shape and the way it spans the whole width – is probably the key to the room. It is somewhat reminiscent of Cado shelving, named after Danish designer Poul Cadovius, even though its shelves are longer and it’s missing the characteristic cabinets and other boxy components. (See an excellent example at kitkadesign and below.) Its verticals are visually interesting and objects look particularly good on the syncopated horizontal levels. How hard would this be to DIY? Probably not that hard. More photos of this type of bookcase in the book “The Modern Room” which also features work by Amaldi. People say that the contemporary versions of these are RAKKS and ISS, but we like the simplicity of the one above. Some DIY ideas for Cado shelving and “pole” shelving (where the supports are poles fixed to ceiling and floor, rather than wall-mounted) can be found on the Pole Shelving blog. If you’re in Vancouver, there are a couple of Cado-style units at the moment at Fabulous Finds.
Below, more classic Cado shelving from Flickr.
