What Is Mid-Century Modern, and Why Is It So Popular?
Mid-Century Modern furniture (MCM) is the name given to furniture produced roughly from the end of WWII until the early 1970's. Since that date range is vast, MCM encompasses a wide range of styles, influenced by many global fallouts (pun intended) of the Atomic Age. The Mid-Century Modern movement touched every facet of our lives at the time, from architecture, interior design, automobile design, furniture...even commonplace items such as toasters and clocks. This was nothing new; the decades between the world wars were ruled by Art Deco...and those designs gradually merged into MCM. I grew up in a home that had some beautiful MCM furniture...heavy, solid walnut (the preferred wood for this era) and clean, Scandinavian lines. My own love for Art Deco was born from the exposure to MCM furniture. When I was younger, I inherited (on loan, mind you LOL) my mother's old MCM pieces and my first house had all of it; I returned most of it to her, although I hope one day to reclaim them again.
The Mid-Century Modern movement regained popularity around twenty years ago when the younger generation I belong to became nostalgic for a connection to their childhood. We realized that, like everything else, new furniture had become cheaply made and uninspiring, and people wanted to spend their hard-earned money on quality again, while still maintaining a modern look. Mid-Century Modern filled those wants, needs, and gaps. Other cultural influences, such as the television series “Mad Men,” Hop onto Marketplace and you will be hard pressed to find MCM cheaply; prices have skyrocketed. If it’s cheap, it's probably damaged in some way. Even the less desirable pieces or cookie-cutter designs are costly. Formica, popular for items like countertops, found its way into furniture in the 1950's and 1960's; it was inexpensive and easy to care for and leant to the "space age" aesthetic of the time. A lot of MCM furniture incorporates Formica into the top of a piece, from tables to nightstands, and often the material was used to envelop the entire piece of furniture. Finer MCM furniture was still manufactured in hardwood, and the most sought after. Almost every furniture manufacturer produced it, and while many designs were similar in look, major names put their unique stamp on their MCM lines; a notable, and one of the most famous, is Broyhill, with their “Brasilia” and “Sculptra” Collections…mass-produced, still fairly easy to obtain, and well-made.
So, the burning question: are the high prices being placed on MCM furnishings justified? In theory, yes; MCM, like any other movement, is art-influenced. As such, it becomes collectible, just like a piece of art on the wall. It represents an era, its culture, and events that shaped that era. Like classic automobiles, MCM furniture has become collectible, functional art. With the new resurgence of its popularity, rising values, and higher demand, it’s safe to say that Mid-Century Modern is here to stay. Fashions almost always come back around again for a second encore; in the case of MCM, its charm brough it back, center stage…and I believe this time around, it will refuse to take a bow…
A Mid-Century Modern triple dresser from Broyhill's “Sculptra”
Collection