PAST EXHIBITION
Calderwood 2: Design 1960-1980
May 16, 2008—August 31, 2008
Press Release
Enter the 60s. The times, they were a'changing. Attitude was avant garde, mood was upbeat, music was revolutionary, the political arena centered on the youthful American President. Art was op, pop and conceptual. And the modern design movement blew the lid off the lockdown on conventional -- replacing it with recognition of aesthetics and technology, exuberance in form and color, and mirthful irreverence expressed in exquisite designs.
Though it had never been etched in stone that a living room had to have an upholstered sofa and two stuffed armchairs, a pair of wood end tables and a coffee table, it seemed that it had always been so. Enter the 60s – and encounter sophisticated furniture in materials unimagined for that use before – plastics, fiberglass, Lucite, steel, foam rubber, synthetic textiles, and stone.
New technologies that had evolved in the postwar years were applied to modern designs with élan in styles that challenged previously-entrenched ideas of exactly how furniture was meant to look and be used. A cantilevered chair in stainless steel with no apparent support structure, a rocking chair with tubular Lucite ovals as its bases, lamps made of layered Lucite and coral, entire dining tables in stone and brass – technology had allowed designers to create whatever they conceived.
Hot pinks, bright oranges, shades of green ranging from pond slime to avocado, lime to celery ruled walls, floors, and upholstery. Add some surrealistic lighting in granite or geometric stainless steel, drums of cork, columns of translucent plastic and brass, or a ceiling fixture reminiscent of a space station
A robust economy fed the appetite for innovative design that was well executed. A mod squad of high end shops and adventurous interior designers embraced the creation of a fab environment with a lot of glam, and a dash of pop.
Calderwood 2, design in the time of mod, pop, op, fab, and glam is a tribute to the combination of elements at work in this renaissance of imagination and creativity. The exhibition (and sale) includes some two dozen pieces of furniture including the chairs, dining table and lighting mentioned above.
Hours: Tuesday-Friday 11-5:30. Saturday 12-5:30. May 16-August 31, 2008
*Projected opening of Calderwood 2 at 631 North Broad Street, Philadelphia, is September 2008
Thank you again for your time.
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Calderwood Gallery, 1622 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA. 19103. 215-546-5357. www.calderwoodgallery.com |
