Scandi chic
Sydney Morning Herald
Thursday March 31, 2011
Sleek blonds are still more fun, writes Susan Redman. At the Cologne furniture fair in January, a new trend called "surprising empathy" was identified as being characterised by spare and folded furniture with a dominant shade of grey brightened by yellow and orange, with taupe to add softness. To my mind, it's not a style that's surprising or empathetic but it is familiar.The Scandinavians have been serving up this formula for more than half a century - blond wooden furniture upholstered with fabric or accessorised with soft furnishings or homewares in chalky black, grey and cream or, conversely, colours from a citrus palette. Anything mid-century Swedish or Danish is prized, even those designs in modern manufacture - Finn Juhl's Pelikan chair is a case in point. This classic is at home with the best that Minotti or Moooi might have to offer yet still has the clean lines, colour and comfort that are on trend.The colourings of natural birch, oak and teak substitute for taupe while doing the same job of bridging light and dark shades. These Air table lamps from Spanish design house LZF are even more beautiful when lighting up a room.The retro-inspired Boomerang Chill lounge chair and footrest, designed by Quim Larrea for Sancal, covers all bases. It's upholstered in a gorgeous ochre-yellow fabric on an ash frame and looks as if it was designed at the same time as Arne Vodder's No. 26 sideboard, which was created in 1959. Good looks can still deceive.
© 2011 Sydney Morning Herald
