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Contemporary Furniture and Future Furniture
Amina Khazie
Submitted to the faculty of the University Graduate School
In partial fulfillment of the requirements
For the degree
Master of Fine Arts in Visual Art and Public Life
In the Herron School of Art and Design,
Indiana University
Summer 2012
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Abstract
As long as I can remember, I have been a designer. As a child I spent my time painting
and decorating furniture in our home. My best model was my father who designed, decorated
and built our marvelous house in Tehran, Iran. My background knowledge is in Industrial
Design, where I have amassed about seven years of work experience in design areas. This paper
has two parts: a description and analysis of four of my recent pieces of furniture and my
interpretation of contemporary furniture.
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This is dedicated to my parents who supported me to achieve this point and also to my advisor
Cory Robinson for his patience. He truly helped me.
To my beautiful committee members,
Danielle Riede
Craig McDaniel
Cory Robinson
Phillip Tennant
My husband and my friendly classmates,
And to Anita Giddings for always encouraging me.
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Designs enter into mass production by their designer, of who have a chance for success
in local, national, and international, exhibitions and art fairs. It is convenient for consumers to
support designers by attending galleries and discovering their personal taste in furniture.
Undoubtedly there exists subordinate furniture in the contemporary field. Technical
furniture is one type of purposeful furniture that makes the job easier in the office. Some
examples of technical furniture are accommodated with AV gear and possess cable
management access. The basic design contains computer and desktop hardware components.
An example of technical design is a video conferencing cart that has an adjustable camera shelf,
pull out shelf, and dual wheel casters for ease of use. Fundamentally, this style has multiple
characteristics such as comfortable transporting, a folding aspect, and support of some kind.
One section of this paper is focused on four of my new pieces of wood craft furniture titled
“Three Sisters,” “Body Table,” “Turtle Table” and “She Table.” First, I will discuss my concept
for these four pieces, and then I will analyze each piece individually. These pieces were made in
the years 2011 and 2012 for my MFA thesis at the Herron School of Art and Design.
Wood is the main material in these pieces which were crafted with new techniques and
tools. The carving was done with hand tools to shape the pieces. A grinder, electronic carving
tool, and radial sander were also employed for forming and a lathe machine was used for
shaping. Some of the shaping was done additionally by hand. The tools I selected to use were
chosen in order to be so precise as to reduce human mistake. These works are classified as
sculpture furniture.
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Sculpture furniture has become quite popular in recent decades. Most of my pieces
were completed using oiling as a finishing method. As a newcomer to the United States, I have
different viewpoints and perspectives. I have hybrid tastes, combining elements of the Middle
East and of the West. When I arrived here, I discovered many differences in the environment
and in the social structure. I was challenged to design and construct furniture projects that are
creatively expressive and which also address issues in today’s society.
These cultural differences have the biggest influences on my designs. This is depicted in
the cabinet “Three Sisters” (Fig 1 & 2) – the design emphasizes the strong role the female plays
in society. The existence of woman in society is the same as men and their freedom caused me
to create this piece.
Fig 1
Fig 2
I have seen these cultural and gender differences clearly. Nevertheless, there are some
similarities among the two cultures which are of interest to me as well. In “Three Sisters” one
can see similarity among women around the world who metaphorically “hide” something of
their identities and ideas in their chests. The other interesting difference between western and
eastern women is the role of family economics: in the United States, women have a strong role
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in the family economy and even sometimes more so than men. In “Three Sisters,” the women
stand on their own feet. The design emphasizes the strong role the female plays in our society.
The small drawers in the upper torsos represent the intimate nature and feeling that is held
close to the heart, and it is very personal and private in nature. The single larger drawer in the
bottom of the cabinet represents the females’ broader involvement in society, such as
organizing and nurturing. The lack of arms and hands is a metaphor for the many key positions
that are still denied to women today.
The concept of nature interests many artists and designers; they have tried to adapt
different themes of nature. Nature is the first instructor for some. For instance, in “Turtle
Table” (Fig 3 & 4), I profoundly involved nature proportions in my design.
Fig 3
Fig 4
For turtles, opening and closing the belly to bring out their hands, feet, and head is
considerable not only mechanically but also naturally. “Turtle Table” is turned upside down in
the position which represents the lack of property in natural status for all creatures. Therefore,
all organisms are limited by their inherent nature. It is worth consideration how much effort
the turtle needs to return to the right position. In the case of a turtle stuck amidst fallen
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weighty tree branches, a turtle might stay for a long time in a tough, vulnerable position. When
creating this piece, I desired to explain the difficult situation for this living creature. Another
concept I addressed was being a wanderer in the world. I left my home and moved to another
country for my education, which means that I must stay and adapt to this new location for a set
amount of time. This is quite similar to the physical limitations of a turtle; it seems all
individuals are restricted by the natural rules.
In “Body Table” (Fig 5 & 6), the human form is set at a firm place in the focal point of the
table, as a result the viewer should take notice of the body, and ask her or himself what does
this symbolize? The purpose of designing the “Body Table” was illustrating the soul of life.
Fig 5
Fig 6
Even though in our physical form humans appear to be the same as everybody else,
there is something else that exists called the soul – the core or psyche. When it is shaken the
core makes a philosophical sound. After observing the whole structure this is the next
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corresponding step between the artist’s thought, the object and the viewers.
Fig 7
Fig 8
It is an exciting moment for people to feel the soul from inside of the body. The
message of the work is to pay attention to the philosophy of life or the soul of life. I believe
working with wood elicits feeling the existence of the core or the soul; the beauty of wood is
exaggerated by carving material in certain patterns of wood.
In “She Table,” feminine factors are seen, particularly in the table’s legs. As it is
suggested from the name and the form, elegance and tenuous is an important consideration.
The design is concentrated on details and colors to enhance the relationship between the parts.
It is also representing feminine attraction by borrowing an outstanding range of the wood’s
color. Carving flowers on the table’s surface is significant for two reasons: first the decorative
motif and second the dimensional variable. Carving three-dimensional flowers on the surface is
a distinct reference to two-dimensional vase images of flowers.
Tiny and delicate parts of a flower symbolize feminine distinctiveness. “She Table” (Fig
9 & 10) has two variable table tops – the floral shapes and plain – that are changeable by the
season or the need. The stretched oval space in this table is embedded for a tablecloth, which
could also be a special color setting by the season as well. Eight crooked legs are gathered in
the center not in classic corner point, which signifies the sculpture theme in this furniture piece.
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Fig 9
Fig 10
Choosing the material to construct furniture depends on many things such as the idea,
function, environment, artist’s purpose, and the material’s properties. Using solid wood in
“Three Sisters,” “Body Table,” “Turtle Table,” and “She Table” have almost the same utilization
of gorgeous woods. Additionally, I used wood layers by gluing them together to achieve the
form. The property of wood, the sculptural form, and the function of furniture design are the
reasons for choosing wood for these four pieces. These four pieces have indoor
applications. I believe the utility of wood has great aesthetic potential, which I tried to
exaggerate by gluing a variety of color and patterns of wood together. For example, one of the
practical uses of the color of wood is in my “Three Sisters” piece; dark cherry in the feet,
lightened cherry in the skirt, very dark mahogany in the top parts of the drawer chest, and light
white bass wood. “She Table” contains thousands of different colored woods glued together
for the purpose of overstating the magnificence of wood in design objects. The zenith of wood
usages is illustrated in “She Table.” I applied thousands of scrap strips of dissimilar wood to
make a log, which resulted with transecting the wood slices to create an alluring view point.
Elegancy is a consideration in this design, which relates back to the tablecloth. There are two
separate layers for the table top with a hollow space between these two layers that belong to
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the tablecloth. The tablecloths should be changed seasonally. The target emphasizes the
beauty of the wood’s surface and craftsmanship on the table top is important.
“She Table” is a functional, decorative end table composed of all wood. The CNC
techniques were utilized in fabrication. The two sides of the table top are laminate. “She
Table” is made of different types of wood, which relates to my purpose of creating a beautiful
piece of furniture without using any uncut wood. The space in between the two table tops is a
focus point that adds glamour to the wood surface and draws attention to the narrow space.
The other way I emphasize the beauty of wood is carving legs or the body of the
furniture in the direction of the wood pattern. For instance, the “Body Table” has very careful
carvings in the legs. The idea that the soul is the core inside the body forms on the top of the
table and carving legs, like molten movement. The composition of the turtle shell and body,
the carvings on the surface as grooves, and the simplicity and durability of the design are all
significant elements in these pieces. The doors in “Turtle Table” work as the top of the table
and in the case of opening the doors, the inside of the body contains a good amount of storage
space. The simplicity of appearance in this design is unavoidable. It highly employs the real
shape and pattern to construct this table from nature. This resemblance of wood and shell
represents successful appropriation from the environment, and also the design result is green
(environmentally friendly). It seems to invite the viewers to think about milieu. The piece will
be comparable with nature and gives understanding how the natural world is complicated and
accurate; understanding organic form while constructing the table was appealing to me
because of this. The wood method of the lamination of layers is conclusively appropriate for
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this project – the beauty of the shell pattern also looks like wood carving and also the color and
shape as part of my decoration borrow from the nature.
Mahogany is the type of wood I employed and the layers are formed with grinder
machine hand tools. When carving on the surface, I needed to be very careful not to lose much
material from the body. Every step of shaping should be done with concentration on the final
shape; going back and forth between the inside of the shell then the outside of the shell to
achieve the best and closest view of the turtle shell. Using the acrylic sheet in the design of
“Body Table” is another practical usage of material. The clear acrylic helps the “Body Table”
emphasize the body form the top of the table and contrasts with the legs of wood. The eye can
focus on the wood again through the body form.
The idea around this table has been a philosophical issue. The inside of the body is
empty, and there is a moveable core inside. Whenever the body is shaken one can sense the
core inside that represents the soul in the body. The body is set in a specific place in the middle
of the transparent acrylic table.
One challenging component of design is choosing materials that complement each
other. It was a very sophisticated choice when I picked the material for the “Three Sisters’”
door handle (Fig 12). Choosing leather for the hardware helped to create harmony between
the tones with the woods.
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Fig 12
Fig 13
During these two and a half years, I determined that my artistic medium is sculpture
furniture. Among the variations of contemporary characteristics I am interested in the idea
behind furniture. Using new technology to make furniture pieces is another interest of mine. I
tried using this technology with the CNC machine to create the “Body Table.” I would like to
create functional furniture that has a taste of sculpture as well.
My experience in my MFA show with these four pieces for the specific purpose of
graduating was satisfying. The environment of the gallery and the way that the four pieces
were displayed together had much impact and looked harmonious because all of the pieces
were made by the same technique and of the same material. One important point that I
considered was carving my name on the pieces (Fig 13). It is important because we as
designers, like painters, should introduce ourselves to viewers and customers. Everywhere my
works go my name is on them, and it will be a copyright.
Issues in contemporary furniture affect my art and future furniture. Public opinion is
noteworthy in this research. My research is based on a survey around campus and a literary
review. Definitions of contemporary styles and all characteristics of these styles are described
in this research. The research includes a critical discussion about contemporary furniture and
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the creation of some principal standard rules for furniture design. This research also refers to
several subsets of contemporary furniture and explains the main definition of each.
I am also clarifying other peoples’ interests and estimating the publics’
knowledge about furniture. The knowledge other people possess is investigated and
hypotheses for future designs are mentioned. Adults are the target group of this research
because experts in the design field believe elderly people and children have special needs, and
there are some limitations to designing for them. People surveyed include teenagers, adults,
and people in the furniture field, people around campus, faculty and artists.
One of the most controversial subjects around furniture art is contemporary design.
What is contemporary design? During the history of furniture design, various changes have
happened to furniture’s emphasis and needs. The reasons for these alterations include the
changing life styles of society – such as a growing population, the expanding world economy,
and the changing global environment. Contemporary furniture design is an art in and of itself.
Changes in contemporary furniture design affect people’s taste about furniture in a broader
sense.
Contemporary style has numerous characteristics, one of which is ‘the idea’, the most
important characteristic behind contemporary furniture design. According to a campus survey,
almost 79% of people prefer contemporary style compared with 21% who prefer past styles.
The essential point is that 95% believe that contemporary design is the same as modern design.
Contemporary design and modern design are distinguished by the date of creation.
There are some similar characteristics between contemporary design and modern design that
are the main reasons for the confusion between these two styles, such as simplicity, color,
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weight, material, and idea. Consumers, furniture makers, and manufacturers often mistake
these two styles for each other. According to this survey, 55% of people like the idea behind
contemporary furniture, 20% are interested in new material and technology, about 10% are
attracted by color, and a few are interested in weight and simplicity.
Contemporary style has numerous characteristics, such as new materials, natural
finishes, craftsmanship expertise, elegant design, sustainability, recycled materials, ecofriendliness, differentiated configuration, multi-positioning, multipurpose function, nature
inspired, and the utilization of smooth organic curves or shapes. Designers share and discuss
philosophies on critical design, material sustainability, political and cultural designs, functional
designs, and future designs in order to achieve the “perfect” design. According to Swengley,
“Designers and manufacturers constantly produce Furniture products in contrast with we don’t
need more furniture products.”i The design of furniture should be rethought. Design relates
directly to social, cultural, commercial, and political climates. The roles these products play in
our lives is very critical. Critical design is the way we think critically about using an object, what
we want from products, and it focuses on current issues and how we live. Critical design places
emphasis on good design and different methods to change our thinking. Designers should be
saturated with thinking about style and keeping design functional. The role of disposable
material in consumerism and making furniture out of recycled wood is notable. Product
longevity is one aspect in critical design and is also environmentally friendly. Creating designs
out of unusable objects and materials and making them into usable objects is practical.
According to Bey, a British a contemporary furniture designer, “everything we need already
exists; it is just need to translate into something we’ll use.”ii
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People think that the best place to purchase contemporary furniture design is in a
furniture store, but most furniture stores sell manufactured unoriginal modern or
contemporary furniture. Consumers should be informed that the best place for purchasing this
style of furniture is an artist’s website; consumers are uninformed about original furniture
because they look for furniture in the furniture stores. Buying contemporary furniture from
artists shows support for contemporary messages, like new life styles and visions, improvement
of technology, and eco-friendliness. One solution is to draw attention to museums and
galleries and encourage people to buy furniture there, and to also inform consumers on how
they can acquire original furniture.
People like to be the owners of this kind of furniture, while most of the contemporary
furniture exists in museums and galleries, in artists’ studios, and in public places.
Contemporary furniture style brings several messages to the public. One of them is breaking
the rule that this style means the furniture shown is much different from the past or other
styles. According to the results of my survey, most people agree with breaking the standard
rules by this style and demand this. In addition, people’s lifestyle is an appropriate head stock
for designing furniture more and more masterly and fashionably.
We as artists should be careful about what people need as decoration, and what they
need for function. American furniture designers enjoy a combination of functionalism with
aestheticism in this decade. In the future, furniture will be a result of high imagination from
designers. Furniture manufacturers won’t be able to produce this type of contemporary
furniture, so it will be unavailable in stores. Various journals and magazines have published
articles on furniture such as American Crafts, Furniture World, Furniture and Cabinet Making,
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Dicasa, DDN New York Design, and Vondom to enlighten people, designers, and students on
current issues, materials, and subjects in the design area. Surfing the internet is also a way to
attain news and information in relation to design.
People usually access mass production furniture, and today China is the biggest
producer of this type. This action is the cause of the reduction in original furniture production.
Only a few designers are successful in accomplishing designs for high volume production.
Material consideration usually is from light and replicable material such as different ranges of
safety glass, aluminum, and artificial wood. In this style, appearance is not considered, but
drastic functionality of the object is reflected. While furniture used for technology has great
practical value, the environment furnished with this style is not pleasurable or friendly.
Employing aesthetic elements like color, texture, lines, etc. in this style, would surely be an
improvement. A positive aspect with this style is the ease of assembling, since every part is
detachable or removable. A significant function of this design is replaceable shelves with an
internal rack rail. Using the master rail technology makes for easy assembly and modular
flexibility for users and lab technicians.
In contrast with Technical Furniture, another contemporary furniture subset is Art Deco
Furniture, which is extremely decorative. Art Deco started in Paris then flourished
internationally, just as contemporary furniture tends to be international. Some influential
artists practicing in the style include: Hector Guimard, Eugene Grasset, Raoul
lachenal, Paul Bellot, Maurice Dufrene and Emile Decoeur. In Art Deco furniture, functionality
has little emphasis compared to Technology Furniture. A good example of Art Deco Furniture is
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the Tiffany table lamp made out of glass and bronze. According to American Furniture
Company and Art Deco Furniture magazines, “Art Deco furniture is the epitome of alluring!
Glamorous mirrors, glossy woods, slick metal finishes, lush leathers, jewel tones, and exotic
embellishments are all attributes of Art Deco design furnishings.”iii
Simultaneously with Art Deco, the Device Age, which refers to 1920, came about when
manufacturing had observed a huge boom. Factories that had started to export products and
possess advanced machinery were ready to mass produce, so home furniture evolved with
futuristic machine aesthetics. The movement of contemporary craft furniture has continued to
evolve in regards to designs and crafts. After that, machine tools entered into local shops and
underground workshops.
Another subset of contemporary furniture is Deforming Furniture, which is very
different from realistic furniture. It kept the functionality with some limitations such as
sustainability, wash ability, and aesthetics. The idea behind Deformation Furniture is not
realistic and can even be surrealistic. Examples of surrealistic styles would be “Surreal Sofa” by
Lila Jang that is climbing up the wall or in the arm chair design by Austrian designer David
Pompa. In this surrealistic minimalist arm chair, one is faced with functional metal feet for the
base and an upholstered seat. The “Cloud Sofa,” which was designed by D.K Wei, according to
Home Interior Design Themes, is described as the following: “cloud is a sofa concept designed
for ultra-comfort and relaxation. The soft floating upper part is supported by the magnetic
force generated by the bottom base. No matter if you want to work and sit with comfort or
simply a power nap to release the stress. You can always enjoy your time to relax on the
floating cloud.”iv
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Finally, the most influential movement in contemporary furniture is Sculpture Furniture.
Sculpture Furniture is not only furniture but also functions as an art piece. This kind of furniture
could be the center piece in a room. Sometimes practical functionality is of second importance
in this furniture characteristic. David Delthon and Peter Rolfe are well-known designers in
making Sculpture Furniture work. This style shows a curious evolution of wood working. One
must acknowledge Korean artist Jae Hyo Lee, a 26 year- old designer who makes her Sculpture
Furniture from pieces of chopped pine wood. She forms and crafts powerful, yet simple, art
pieces.
The goal of investigating various types of contemporary furniture is to discover common
characteristics of these furniture styles. Analyzing furniture design characteristics and
investigating the main important features of design help one to understand furniture style in
the future. It won’t be effortless to build the bridge between current and future design,
because there are huge arguments around how contemporary furniture will affect future
design. There are several questions and hesitations about contemporary furniture and future
furniture, including:
1) Which elements should be used in furniture, and what is the role of
technology in the furniture?
2) What characteristics of design interest people most?
3) Would consumption increase or decrease, and what are the material and consumption
considerations?
Research indicated that people are interested in appearances more than other
characteristics of furniture. Designers, theoreticians, and scientists are sure about new
materials that would be the result of new technologies. The Culture of Consumption would
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decline in the future. Furniture is the intersection between technology, material and
consumption which in turn affect the aesthetic object as a piece of furniture. In the future,
smart technology will influence furniture.
High technology design concepts will shape the future. The use of Nano-technology will
be common in future design concepts. Also, automotive design offers a clean, dynamic and
stylish shape. Well Technology will also affect the future of furniture and interior design.
Future furniture will be sleek, compact, and multi-purpose. An important feature added to
design is blue motion technology, which makes furniture comfortable and effortless. People’s
tastes are going to transform consumer products as they place preference on aesthetics more
than other aspects to make future cities more pleasant and attractive.
According to the hypothesis, more aesthetic and pleasing furniture can be designed and
created by using new technology. Aesthetics in future furniture depends mostly on ideas and
materials. New technology would enhance the acceleration and development of clean,
dynamic and stylish shapes. Therefore, production and consumption are directly related to
each other. A family’s economic condition might not allow frequent changes in furniture, and
as a result, there is more desire to buy furniture with an aesthetic design that is durable.
People’s knowledge about furniture should be improved by the media as well. One basic fact
customers should know, is the designer; the name of the designer on a product can certify the
originality of the furniture. It is the same as one’s knowledge on paintings in her or his home.
How many people presently know who designed the coffee table in their home? According to
Pajda, “Some people become sick of uniform furniture from China and Indonesia.”v There are
few designers like Pajda who design for clients as well as for manufacturers.vi
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The second important fact consumers should know is the material used to build
furniture; there are numerous ways to make furniture utilizing natural finishes or making
furniture attractive by using finishing products such as veneer and color. Second hand wood
like MDF and Ply wood are less expensive materials and the furniture therefore should be
cheaper. When one buys a small product such as a coffee maker, one receives an identification
card, a warranty card, and a product manual. When one purchases $2,000-3,000 worth of
furniture none of these items are included typically.
The third factor is ergonomic information which should be provided by the producer
and the designer of the furniture. This is because differences in the height of furniture and in
the body positions intertwine with the furniture; in addition to this information, it would be
better if customers were aware of some principal information about the furniture. One mistake
is that the competitive furniture market has mislead people to believe that contemporary
furniture is cheaper than antique furniture.
Furniture producers have the advantage of having simple furniture designs. They also
have the advantage of making furniture with finishing materials. Producers prepare a piece of
furniture for a good price to attract customers, but the original contemporary furniture that we
find in galleries and on artists’ websites are priced similarly to antique furniture. I highly
recommend customers purchasing furniture on artists’ web sites to acquire original, elaborate
or simplistic, quality constructed, furniture.
Aesthetics and the idea of contemporary furniture are the most important feedback by
customers, but manufacturers typically produce furniture that is economical and mass
produced. Thus, in the design business we need more designers like Ryan Richardson with his
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talent in designing single, sculptural, elegant shapes, which are appropriate for mass
production. In current era furniture, design should be more critically engaged, and good design
should be producible. The principle components for current furniture are the idea and the
aesthetic. Designers should be aware of Sculpture Furniture modes that are highly fashionable
now, that might be going to excess, and that may be losing their impact. Using sculpture’s
elements in furniture should be limited, like a flavor for food. In the future, new construction
technology can bring clean cuts, beautiful shapes and finishings to furniture, so that one might
encounter stylish, artful furniture.
Further research should survey manufacturers and store managers. A dialogue could
provide a series of manufacturing information, interweaving information, global furniture
marketing and local furniture marketing insight. It would reveal the interrelation between
artists, art dealers, manufacturers, sellers, and finally customers.
These two years of study and practical experience in furniture design have been
advantageous to my career. First, for having thoughtful ideas for designs as well as functional
purposes is essential in contemporary furniture; second, considering construction standards in
design and simplicity of a design for mass production, which is highly recommended by
manufacturers. Third, new material and new methods of construction that could save time and
reduce human mistakes is highly valuable in finishing. The designer’s name should be visible in
every piece like a painter’s name on a tableau. Borrowing some sculptural elements and
incorporating those with furniture may be popular, but designers should be careful not to lose
the main purpose of furniture. Advertising and presenting famous contemporary furniture
designers in the media and also by the retailer to consumers is essential. There is a wide range
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of undiscovered research opportunities in the furniture design/manufacturing industries;
hopefully this research can be the first step for the next generation of designers.
References
Clarke, Sarah. “Eco Friendly Home Furniture Design Ideas: A Designer’s Look at Eco-Friendly
Furniture, Appliances, and Products.”
<http://www.furniturehomedesign.com/category/kitchen-decor>
Clarke, Sarah. “Eco Friendly Home Furniture Design Ideas: A Designer’s Look at Eco-Friendly
Furniture, Appliances, and Products.”
<http://www.furniturehomedesign.com/category/ottomans-and-stools>
Sparke, Penny. “History of Revolution of Industrial Design and the Development of Modern
Design.” US: Harper & Row. 1986. <www.nextlevarticle.com>
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Endnotes
i
Swengley, Nicole. “Reaching a Critical Mass.” WOK Media. Oct 26, 2010. <www.howtospendit.com>
Swengley, Nicole. “Reaching a Critical Mass.” WOK Media. Oct 26, 2010. <www.howtospendit.com>
iii
Liles, Bennett. “Technology Furniture.” Tech Showcase Online Magazine. July 2011. <www.svconline.com>
iv
“25 of the Most Impressive Sofa Designs for Decorating the Living Room.” Jan 28, 2011. <www.homedit.com>
v
Perina, Padja. “Woody Going Arty Article,” p 2-4, 2005. <www.perina.net>
vi
Starling, Mark. “Assignment on an Australian designers.” 2002. <www.perina.net>
ii