It is important to study the fine handcrafted furniture made in America. Most quality pieces are identified by the cabinetmaker that made them. Some of the earliest furniture maker's were the Shakers. Dedicated to a simple, communal lifestyle outside of society, this movement spread throughout New England and the Midwest during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The furniture produced by Shakers for their own use was beautiful in its simplicity and functionality.
The sleek lines of Danish Modern furniture took the design world by storm in the mid-twentieth century. This style is widely known today for simple lines of blonde furniture. American families desire this type of furniture for an informal yet sophisticated look through its Danish Modern and related lines produced in the 1950s and 1960s.
It should be know renowned designers, including Charles and Ray Eames, George Nelson, Harry Bertoia, Isamu Noguchi, and Eero Saarinen, and produced by companies such as Herman Miller, Knoll, and Heywood-Wakefield, created this highly collectible modern furniture of the 1950s.
Another style of furniture is Art Deco and it cannot be seen only in its historic reference. Looking at today's furniture it can be seen that a number of designers are incorporating Deco elements into contemporary settings. Here, both interiors and furniture exemplify the sinuous lines and geometric shapes of Deco as part of today's interiors.
American does not collect only home grown but also European furniture as well. The demand is still great with container loads of cabinets, bureaus, wardrobes, secretaries, sofas, chairs, and tables arriving almost daily. French provincial furniture, striking furniture of the nineteenth century Biedermeier era in Austria and Germany, and the famous Harrods Ltd. of London are all in demand.
Looking toward the east and focusing on provincial furniture most of the early 1800s to early 1900s (late Qing Dynasty), have become extremely collectible furniture. Especially chairs, benches, tables, storage pieces, beds, and screens originally created and used in eight Chinese provinces.
So it can be said that no matter if the furniture is from the east, west or here at home, there are eras that a very collectible. The likes and dislikes of furniture can be extremely complicated and widely diverse. It can be said that most collectors have a distinct preference whether their furniture is going to be modern, contemporary, or provincial. |
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