Can furniture get drunk? A look at the works of Chinese artist Ai Wei Wei

This wouldn’t a proper blog on Chinese furniture and culture without a least a mention of the Chinese contemporary artist Ai Wei Wei, who reinterprets traditional and classical furniture designs in unexpected ways. In one instance, “officials hat chairs” are carved  from solid blocks of white marble (and with no joinery I might add). In another, a terra-cotta Han dynasty vase is emblazoned with the logo of Coca Cola. An excellent quote by Geoff Manaugh sums up Ai Wei Wei’s work just nicely!

“For “Grapes”, 2008, Ai partially merged ten stools; they force their way into the others structure, like mutant siblings slowly fusing in the womb. Here, several centuries’ worth of artisan furniture production have been hybridized to form something altogether new. In Ai’s Table with Two Legs on the Wall, 1997, a single table has been folded in half to rear up like a horse and rest its legs against the wall. It is cousins with the centaur: a mythic being trapped between two forms, two competing versions of itself. Another table – “Table with Three Legs”, 2008 – has been turned into a spidery mechanism, a low-tech machine of wood, its legs akimbo and stance slightly askew. Carefully poised, it seems so unsure of itself – yet strangely at ease with its unusual new form. Can furniture get drunk?, one might ask. “Table with Three Legs” offers an answer in its very geometry.”

For more on Ai Wei Wei see: http://phillipsartexpert.com/forums/7/597/ or http://www.phillipsdepury.com/exhibitions.aspx?sn=EXUK1009

 

Tibetan painted furniture: Dinning table made from an old door.

asiatic table 1.thumbnail Tibetan painted furniture: Dinning table made from an old door.

We have a fair amount of Tibetan painted furniture, though most of it is not genuine Tibetan antique furniture (despite what many claim). Most are either new or vintage, though we do sometimes find real antiques. In general, it tends to be a bit too bright and colorful for my tastes, though nevertheless, Tibetan furniture does have its place and if the designs and motifs are subtle, they make beautiful accent pieces.

Tibetan painted furniture: Dinning table made from an old door.

A while back we had a few old door panels which went out in a container, and surprise surprise, I stumbled upon our doors, modified into dining tables and coffee tables on the website of J.W Kinsey’s Woodcraft (Cabinetry/custom furniture makers) in Modesto California. Looks like Josh Kinsey did a pretty nice job of both preserving the original items and turning them into something more functional in the home.

tibetan door asiatic table 2.thumbnail Tibetan painted furniture: Dinning table made from an old door.   tibetan door asiatic table 3.thumbnail Tibetan painted furniture: Dinning table made from an old door.

He did a nice job of solving the issue of how to mount the door on the frame without modifying it (notice the strut across the bottom of the door) . The table bases seem to work.

asiatic table 4.thumbnail Tibetan painted furniture: Dinning table made from an old door.   asiatic table 81.thumbnail Tibetan painted furniture: Dinning table made from an old door.

The rest of the photos are on their site at:

http://jwkinseyswoodcraft.com/jwkinseys%20woodcraft/projects%20portfolio/Portfolio.html

Dutch designer Maarten Baas in Shanghai: Interesting twists on Chinese traditional furniture designs

transformation stage 1 and 2.thumbnail Dutch designer Maarten Baas in Shanghai: Interesting twists on Chinese traditional furniture designs

I stumbled upon this rather amusing post on designaddict.com which talks about Maarten Baas‘s, recent Jully 2008 exhibition at Contrasts gallery in Shanghai.

While participating in Contrasts’ residency program, which brings Western artists to China to study local artistic and cultural practices, Baas became fascinated with traditional Chinese woodcarving; this exhibition is dominated by the results of this interest. His work pushes the boundaries of this time-honored Chinese craft, while also revealing the designer’s playful imagination.

Needless to say, these are some very interesting interpretations on Chinese furniture.  The plastic garden chair in wood is just brilliant.

chinese lawn chair side in wood.thumbnail Dutch designer Maarten Baas in Shanghai: Interesting twists on Chinese traditional furniture designs

Personally, I like his smoke series in which wooden furniture has been burned with the remaining charcoal’ed pieces  then preserved with a coating of clear epoxy.

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Fun and funky distressed finishes to brighten up any room

In this recent gloomy economic climate, it would be nice to add a bit of color and I though sharing some of the neat distressed finishes we have been working on, might brighten up the days a bit.

s6002526.thumbnail Fun and funky distressed finishes to brighten up any room s6002527.thumbnail Fun and funky distressed finishes to brighten up any room

img 0763.thumbnail Fun and funky distressed finishes to brighten up any room

 The hand rubber, distressed finish sky blue hutch adds some pleasantness to the room and may even pass as French Provincial, as does the lemon flavored traditional Chinese stool with a worn down finish for that “clean but aged look.”

 bench s6003562.thumbnail Fun and funky distressed finishes to brighten up any room

Lacquer colors like Popsicle, Cherry Candy, Green Apple and Salty Licorice bring more to mind then just plain old furniture.

Fun and funky distressed finishes to brighten up any room Fun and funky distressed finishes to brighten up any room

French country – Chinese country – whatever it is, its pretty cool. These pieces were on their way to new homes.

side table.thumbnail Fun and funky distressed finishes to brighten up any room

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A look at this years international furniture trade fairs

For those furniture importers, wholesalers, trade buyers, interior designers or furniture retailers in the business who were unable to make it to this years Shanghai furniture fair, its worth heading over to our China sourcing blog to see what you missed.

 furniture trade fair.thumbnail A look at this years international furniture trade fairs

Shabby chic remains a strong look and some of this years other nicer offerings included vintage Italian leather armchairs, upholstered furniture designed in Spain,  leather trunks and  french country style furniture.

furniture trade fair 2.thumbnail A look at this years international furniture trade fairs

To read the full article click over to
 “The latest from Furniture in China 2008 expo“

Integrating Asian style furnishings: Practical ideas from real homes.

Any furniture retailer will tell you that, many times the “end all be all” for retail buyers will be just how the item integrates into their home space. Sure, comfort, durability and quality are all top consumer preferences but overall dimensions, depth and height along with usability all have a lot to do with furniture-buying preferences as well. According to High Point Market industry reports, “Foremost, you must understand that the typical furniture buyer is a she, not a he.” Which means “she” is probably not going to spend time attempting to fit a round peg into a square hole (Unlike “he” who will either just hammer it in, or pull out the tools and change the dimensions of the hole).

176898558 82af374ad6 Integrating Asian style furnishings: Practical ideas from real homes.

Sometimes though even the most experienced sales people need some extra help. So what better place the photo sharing site Flickr to see just how real people are integrating items into their homes then on. Unlike glossy magazines like Better Homes and Gardens or ELLE DECOR these homes are real.

840556675 fc40cb3e83 Integrating Asian style furnishings: Practical ideas from real homes.

There is a article by Jim Green in the furniture industry publication Furniture Today entitled “Knowing Too Much” which touches briefly on this subject.

” A nightstand is a small piece of furniture, with or without doors and drawers, normally placed beside the head of a bed. It provides a surface to set a lamp or place a glass of water, a book, or pair of reading glasses. BUT…a nightstand might not be a nightstand at all. It may, in fact, be a chairside commode. It also may be a telephone table or a stand for a small 20” TV set.

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The specialists guide to Chinese antiques is Stephen Fry proof thanks to caching by WP Super Cache