Tag: chair

Alvar Aalto in “Community: The Architecture of Civic Space and Private Domains” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

International style architecture and Bauhaus design strongly influenced late Finnish architect Alvar Aalto’s influential bent plywood furniture, sourced from his country’s birch and pine forests.  His famous ‘Paimio chair,’ designed for a tuberculosis hospital in Paimio, Finland, and now on view at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in the fascinating group exhibition, “Community: The Architecture of Civic Space and Private Domains,” was angled to allow patients to better breathe and cough.  Material choices along with color and other considerations were essential elements in Aalto’s and his wife Aino’s designs, aimed at meeting the needs of individuals.  (Ongoing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on the Upper East Side).

Alvar Aalto, ‘Model No. 41’ Lounge Chair for the Paimio Sanatorium, laminated birch, 1931-32.

Jim Krantz at Danziger Gallery

Who says a photograph has to lie flat against the wall? Commercial photographer Jim Krantz – famed for his photos of the American west, particularly of cowboys for a Marlboro ad campaign – has collaborated with Modernica on a series of fiberglass chairs featuring wrangling and riding. If you can’t sit on a horse, this must be the next best thing. (On view at Danziger Gallery on the Lower East Side through Dec 22nd).

Jim Krantz, Modernica x Jim Krantz Collaboration, Fiberglass Shell Chair (1 of 5), 32.5 x 18.5 inches, 2017.

Lino Lago in ‘Flat Earth Conspiracy’ at George Adams Gallery

Spanish artist Lino Lago’s recent ‘Reality (Show)’ series jumbles art and artifacts from pop culture and art history together on the flat surface of a canvas. This shaped artwork in the form of a chair, part of the same series, allows collectors to make their own groupings. (At George Adams Gallery in Chelsea through Feb 11th.)

Lino Lago, Point of View, oil on wood, 14 x 10 ½ x 1 inches, 2016.
Lino Lago, Point of View, oil on wood, 14 x 10 ½ x 1 inches, 2016.

Ron Arad’s Thumbprint at Paul Kasmin Gallery

It’s not an official exhibition, but Paul Kasmin Gallery’s 515 West 27th Street space is currently hosting a selection of artworks including designer Ron Arad’s shimmering chair-like sculpture ‘Thumbprint,’ which seems to shape-shift on the gallery floor.

Romy Scheroder in ‘Museum Starter Kit’ at El Museo del Barrio

Trinidad-born artist Romy Scheroder explains that she was thinking of the strictures of colonial culture (wood) vs adaptation by the population (rubber bands) in her sculpture Skin (seen here in the background). Despite the serious subtext, two mirrored chairs delight in the foreground with a joyful dance. (At the Museo del Barrio through September 6th).

Romy Scheroder, Mirror, Mirror, found chairs, 2014.