Wednesday, March 13, 2013 at 3:09PM deja vu friends, clients and neighbors Doug and Rochelle were recently featured on Houzz!
If you like mid century modern design then this is the perfect eye candy. The article includes numerous photos of their stunning Cliff May home...you'll even see pieces they bought from deja vu, like the twin units seen below.
Cliff May home in Long Beach, CA
Wednesday, February 20, 2013 at 2:44PM We knew these Steelecase chairs were hip the minute we saw them. What we didn't know, was that they were used in a chic mid century modern restaurant in Atlanta, Georgia.
Set of 2 Steelecase Chairs in chrome + leather 1968 - available now at deja vu
Thanks to a tip from one of the set designers of 'Mad Men' (she frequents the shop, hunting pieces for the show – see previous blog post) we found out that the chairs were part of the modern charm of the Midnight Sun restaurant. Midnight Sun was built in the Peachtree Center Office Building in the late 60's, by architect John Portman, with the goal to revitalize the city's downtown area.
His Peachtree Building established a model for multipurpose complexes globally, due to his famous Hyatt Regency Hotel (1967), which included a 22-story expansive lobby and became the prototype of countless atrium hotels that he and others built during the 1970s and after.
Portman also designed and built the Polaris Restaurant in 1967. The rotating restaurant atop the Hyatt was the tallest building in the Atlanta sky. Both the Polaris and Midnight Sun quickly became tourist attractions for the unique architecture and interior design.
Midnight Sun interior featuring Steelecase Chairs by Warren Platner
Midnight Sun in Atlanta, Georgia 1968
We have two of the chrome and leather chairs by renown designer Warren Platner for purchase, just click here to be taken to the listing for more information
Thursday, February 7, 2013 at 3:02PM We recently acquired this gorgeous chest of drawers designed by Eliel Saarinen and Eva Lisa Saarinen Swanson, which inspired me to dig a little deeper into the Saarinen family.
1940's Chest of Drawers by Eliel and Pipsan Saarinen - available now at deja vu Long Beach
Most of you already know who Eero Saarinen is. If you don't, you've undoubtedly come into contact with his designs, or a knock off version – one of the biggest examples of his work, the Arch in St. Louis. Yeah, he's kind of a big deal.
But did you know that he came from a family of artists?
Considering his creative feats it shouldn't shock you to find out that his sister was a furniture and interior designer, his mother a sculpture, weaver and textile designer, and his father an architect and painter; and that Eero shared an architectural practice with his father and brother in law.
Do you know why he designed the famous pedestal base for his Tulip Collection?
Or how the 'Womb Chair' came to be?
Read on for a quick overview of the talented family that inspired a design legend.
Pipsan, Loja, Eero, Eliel and Juho Saarinen (Eliel's father)
Although Eero may be the most well known of the Saarinen's, his father, Eliel, achieved fame for his Art Nouveau buildings in the early 20th century. His first work was a blend of Finnish wooden architecture, British Gothic Revival and Jugenstil and was later christened the Finnish National Romanticism. It was with this style Eliel won the design competition for the Helsinki Central Railway System in 1904. However, demands for modern architecture arose and Eliel completely abandoned the romantic style for a more rational take, completing new plans by 1909. The station was built by 1919 and has since had various renovations. In 2000, a glass roof was added to the station, which was in the original plans by Eliel, yet they were done with a new design.
Helsinki Railway Station - photo by Jorge Lascar in 2008
In 1904 Eliel married his second wife, Finnish sculpture Louise (Loja) Gesellius. Together they had two children, Eva Lisa (also known as Pipsan) and Eero. The Saarinen family moved to Illinois in 1923 when Eliel contributed to a design competition to build the tribune tower. He lost, coming in a short second, yet years later the plans came to fruition in Houston, Texas for the Gulf Building.
In 1925 George Gough Booth, major newspaper tycoon and art philanthropist, asked Eliel to design the campus of Cranbrook Educational Community. This led to the creation of Cranbrook Academy of Art in 1932 and was initially run by Eliel. Booth intended the school to be an American equivalent of the Bauhaus, with teachings focused on design practices and theories from various styles. Loja became the director of weaving and textile, while Eva Lisa taught the first official contemporary furniture design class and student Eero took sculpture and furniture classes. It was while here at Cranbrook that Eero gained friends, some that led to revolutionary collaborations, with the likes of Ray Eames (then Ray Kaiser) and Charles Eames, Florence Knoll (then Schust) and Harry Bertoia.
Eliel and Loja dressing the part for "Crandemonium" held at Cranbrook - courtesy Cranbrook Archives
Florence Knoll and Eero Saarinen with Tulip prototype
The Saarinen's lived and breathed art and it's evident that creativity was part of their daily life. Eliel was know to have costume parties, while years later, Eero would encourage guests to wear funny hats. While Eero didn't have his own school to teach his children, he found unique ways to inspire creative thinking with fictional mysteries that the kids were to solve, some lasting for days.
His sense of humor can also be seen in his designs. When Florence Knoll expressed her desire for a chair she could curl up in, he created the “womb chair”, a padded cocoon like structure to ensure comfort. He went on to say “its unofficial name is the Womb chair because it was designed on the theory that a great number of people have never really felt comfortable and secure since they left the womb.” His tongue-in-cheek attitude is also evident in his creation of the iconic tulip series, with the intention to “clear up the slum of legs in the U.S. Home”.
The Tulip Series (left) and the Womb Chair
While Eero was designing for Knoll, Eva Lisa went on to design interiors for many of her father's commissions. She married architect Robert Swanson and opened an interior design department in his firm. She designed custom furniture for clients and eventually sold a line to Johnson Furniture Co, called F.H.A. (flexible home arrangement).
1950's Lounge Chair by Pipsan for the 'Sol Air' Line
Eero went on to share an archtectural practice with his father in the mid 1930's, called Saarinen, Swanson and Associates. It was headed by Eliel and Robert from the 30's until Eliel's death in 1950. While working at the practice Eero also designed furniture for Knoll, thanks in part to his early friendship with Florence. Eero became the principal partner in 1950 until his death in 1961.
Eero died at the young age of 51, yet he is not forgotten. With a sparse 20 years (give or take) as a designer and architect, over 50 years later, Eero's designs remain modern yet classic. His work is still relevant, the womb chair and Tulip series, among others, are still in production. Eero Saarinen remains one of the most recognized figures in mid century modern design.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012 at 1:55PM I just came across these two photos of Ray and Charles Eames. They are both photos I've never seen and they just made me smile - so I thought I'd share.
Look at that smile - pure bliss!
Ray Eames trying out an experimental model of a plywood lounge chair. Although this prototype was never produced, it was an important forerunner for the Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman, introduced in 1956: http://www.vitra.com/en-gb/home/products/lounge-chair-ottoman/overview/
www.vitra.com
© Eames Office, LLC (eamesoffice.com)
Self portrait of Charles Eames - isn't it grand!
Happy Holidays!!!
Wednesday, November 28, 2012 at 2:16PM 
If you're heard of Eero Saarinen then you'll be pleased to know the Architecture and Design Museum in Los Angeles has an exhibit until January 3, 2013
If you don't know who he is, you should go and find out...or just google him to find out all about his amazingness
Find out about the exhibit here: http://aplusd.org/exhibitions-current
