Loved by many for its inviting yet playful feel, Mid-century Modern design is a reference point for some of the world's top interior designers. Here we asked two of them just why they love to incorporate it into their schemes, which materials they lean towards and how best to introduce this aesthetic into your own home.
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Interior Designers on Why They Love Mid-century Modern Design
From their favourite coffee tables to how they bring the look into a space, here's the designer guide to Mid-century interiors.
By Jon Sharpe, Chief Creative Officer
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Mid-century modern design is…
Greg Natale
“Modernist and clean, with a heavy timber element. Mid-century modern interiors are layered and functional and utilise colour as a bold accent.”
Charu Gandhi
"It brings me back to my architectural training. So I immediately think of things such as the Barcelona pavilion, the Mackintosh school of design, bauhaus and strong references to architecture in the main."
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The thing to know about mid-century modern furniture…
Greg Natale
“Much of it comes from Denmark, Italy and America. Mid-century modern furniture is low, sleek and rationalist, made from natural materials. They are often earthy and natural in colour.”
Charu Gandhi
"Is that it is more easy to mix into a scheme than you might think. It's quite timeless, it brings together form and functionality in a way that you can blend it and mix it into different projects, it's easy to work with."
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A classic mid-century modern armchair should have…
Greg Natale
“Minimal, clean construction, made of hardwoods and with arms, a high back, and often a footrest.”
Charu Gandhi
"It should have a pop of colour. Mid-century Modern has this strong theme of colour tones coming through. For me, Mid-century Modern colour tones are a deep-clay red, a teal blue, an aquamarine and a sort of muddy-yellow, an orange tone. So a pop of colour is key for a Mid-century Modern armchair."
Mid-century coffee tables add…
Greg Natale
“They are like the jewel in the room to anchor everything within a space.”
Charu Gandhi
"They add form, they add geometry and they often add very interesting functionality. It's quite typical for a Mid-century coffee table to have some sort of hidden storage or have some sort of functional element to it. Then at the other end of the spectrum are items such as the Noguchi coffee table which is very sculptural which is all about the shape and the beauty of it, and in that instance it adds drama whilst still being a light piece because it often involves transparent materials.'
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My favourite way to introduce mid-century modern design is…
Charu Gandhi
"Through lighting, through a side table, through a smaller piece of furniture typically. What I like about this era is that it's got scale: you can get Mid-century Modern pieces that are of larger scale and smaller scale. Another way of brining it into the mix is through the artwork by the artists who practiced at that time or their contemporaries who make reference to that time and you can bring pieces from them into your space."
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The best materials to get the mid-century modern style are…
Greg Natale
“Mid-century modern design is best-suited to a living space as mid-century furnishings are designed for comfort and entertaining. As for materials, oak, teak, and walnut definitely come to mind, sometimes leather and metal, as well as amber and smoked glass, mirror, and ceramics.”
Charu Gandhi
"From different metal finishes that are usually polished, tiber, teak, rosewood and marble. One of my favourite Mid-century Modern materials is actually lucite which is really fun, it's quite unexpected at times and I love brining that into projects."
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My favourite mid-century modern hotels are…
Greg Natale
“Gio Ponti’s Parco dei Principi hotel in Sorrento, built in 1960, is definitely my favourite. It has since been fully restored and is still a working hotel. It is spectacular.”
Charu Gandhi
"I like the Aman brand and how they bring the Mid-century Modern reference into their hotels and properties, so the Aman in Tokyo is a good example. It has a strong reference, but it is not completely defined by that aesthetic. And there are some really interesting Mid-century Modern hotels on the continent, so the Hotel Alexandra in Copenhagen is a good example."
Mid-century modern continues to influence design because…
Greg Natale
“It has a homey appeal and makes for great entertainment spaces. Mid-century modern design also introduced the idea of having open plan spaces, which continues to have long-lasting impact in the design world today.”
Charu Gandhi
"It's bold. It brings together form and functionality so it's not a useless piece—it often has a contribution that it makes to the space in terms of function. We are finding clients are circling back to it in line with the desire for an aesthetic that is quite considered and curated and the Mid-century Modern aesthetic is something that works well with that. Again, it's on account of the scale. It offers such a scale of pieces and different ways of approaching that era that it continues to remain really relevant and has a versatility that, perhaps, some other eras don't have."
