Each day, we find ourselves using furniture in one way or the other. No matter how active you are, at some point you need to sit down and relax. Perhaps you’re reclining in a chair, or sprawled across a sofa as you read this right now. Maybe tonight you’ll take a seat at a dining table. Chances are very likely that you’ll fall asleep in a bed tonight! The thing about furniture is that we tend to take it for granted. But a lot goes into making cool modern furniture; furniture has a rich history, and there are many different styles available. Furthermore, most high end modern furniture today is derived from furniture made centuries ago, if only in a subtle way. Furniture is a part of the impression that we make upon people when they first look within our homes. It’s a part of the feeling our homes give off. Many people don’t feel satisfied with their houses until the furniture is just right. At the same time, furniture isn’t just about durability, quality, and appearance. It’s also about comfort. From American leather furniture to European wooden furniture, you’ll have a lot to choose from when on the hunt for furniture. With that being said, let’s look into the history of furniture and how we’ve gotten to where we are today. Hopefully, this will make your hunt for cool modern furniture a bit easier!
Before Ultra Modern Furniture: The Beginnings
How far back does the use of chairs and tables go? Perhaps a lot further than you might initially think. Some of the earliest known tables were made by Ancient Egyptians. With that being said, they don’t bear much of a resemblance to the modern style furniture you picture today. They were little more than raised slabs of stone, meant to keep food off the ground. But they got the job done. Later, ancient Greek and Romans became the first to create true dining tables. In fact, Greek dining tables could be pushed underneath beds when not in use. Although sofa is originally an Arabic word, meaning bench, the Romans were well-known for their use of sofas. They perhaps derived their sofas from those made by ancient Egyptians, dating back to 2000 BC. For Romans, sofas were about not only relaxing for a few moments. They ate on sofas, slept on sofas, and usually had plenty out for guests at gatherings and parties.
Moving Along: The Path Towards The Cool Modern Furniture Of Today
Furniture moved along from the ancient times, gradually evolving. In the medieval times, chairs weren’t for everyone — a fact that might seem shocking for us today. While peasants were forced to sit on the floor or small, backless stools, nobles were the only people who got to use real chairs. This is why the word “chairman” refers to someone in a position of authority or power. Time moved on, with certain famous individuals having a role in the popularization of some types of furniture. Charles Darwin, for example, is called by some the inventor of the office chair. To move around his office more easily, he installed wheels on one of his work chairs, thus creating the office chair we know of today!
Finding Modernism: The Move From The Past To The Present
We’re finally moving towards the cool modern furniture we use today. When using the term “modern furniture”, you could be referring to furniture made in the late nineteenth century, to furniture made today. The two earliest schools of modern furniture were the German Bauhaus, and the American Arts and Crafts movement. Modernist art is certainly not what some might imagine it to be. The modern art movement rejected realism, resulting in art and furniture that embraces the unexpected and to some, looks even a bit weird. Modernist furniture is not plush or ornate, but rather embraces clean simplicity, sometimes to the point of bareness. It’s no wonder that so many embrace this striking style.
