Furniture

Rudimentary in the Middle Ages, furniture has evolved over time according to social and political developments. Summed up with a few benches, seats and chests, the furnishings of feudalism are rough and crude. They must be transportable rather than aesthetic or comfortable. The inactivity will allow the development of the notions of amenity and decoration. Reserved for a few nobles, the furniture gradually gained the other classes, in the 18th century especially with the development of the bourgeoisie. Dressers, sideboards, chests of drawers and armchairs are becoming more democratic. Chandeliers get dressed and style is born. Exotic woods, Chinese porcelain, Japanese lacquer: the discovery of foreign influences the creation and participates in the concern for refinement. The trades specialize: carpenters, cabinet makers, turners, upholsterers, bronziers ... Techniques become more complex. The great upheaval will take place with industrialization and mass production. Developed after the war, in 1950, the furniture in series meets the need of countries in full reconstruction and the emergence of the middle classes. After the social creations of the UAM by Mallet-Stevens, Gascoin, Perriand, Prouvé or Mouille, designers and firms associate. It is the birth of the design and its stars: Pierre Paulin, Joseph-André Motte, Charles and Ray Eames, Verner Panton, ...