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Midcentury East furniture show / Seating the stars (part 1)

Midcentury East furniture show / Seating the stars (part 1)

Midcentury East was a delight yesterday! The newer East London version of the much-loved Modern Shows takes place twice a year at the Goldfinger designed Haggerston School in London E2 and gathers together dealers to showcase mid-century furniture, art and decor which attracts people from all over the UK who are looking to buy collectible furniture and design for the home.

This show actually wasn’t so busy as usual but that made for some F&F style good (will) hunting.

Here’s some snaps:

midcentury furniture in goldfingers haggerston school
More mid-century delights in the main hall of Haggerston school with some fine brick work on the wall
vintage Ideal Home Exhibition poster
A vintage Ideal Home Exhibition poster
Verner Panton wire cone chairs on the 20th Century Marks stand
Verner Panton wire cone chairs on the 20th Century Marks stand

Mid century classics crop up in so many films, from Bond to The Incredibles so it was no surprise that in my chat with Michael and Adam from 20th Century Marks they mentioned that their chairs have seated the likes of Michael Caine, Angelina Jolie and Kevin Spacey to name but a few. Indeed, they have supplied and been consulted on many movie sets.

They have a Meteor Chair and footstool by Steen Ostergaard for Cado as featured in Star Trek 2 and 3 in Kirk’s apartment.

Meteor chair
Meteor chair for sale through 20th Century Marks
The Meteor chair is seen in the foreground of Kirk's apartment in Star Trek
The Meteor chair is seen in the foreground of Kirk’s apartment in Star Trek

Here is Michael Caine in Children of Men (2006) sitting in an Arne Jacobsen Egg Chair in black leather which 20th Century Marks lent them.

Michael Caine sits in an Egg chair in Children of Men
Michael Caine sits in an Egg chair in Children of Men. Image © Universal Studios
Egg Chair by Arne Jacobsen
Egg Chair by Arne Jacobsen

20th Century Marks also rented virtually all of the vintage props and furniture for Beyond the Sea (2004) featuring Kevin Spacey – more on that in Part 2.

There’s a bit of snobbery out there when it comes to mid-century furniture expertise, but I can verify that the team at 20th Century Marks are more the down-to-earth-cheeky-chappy types with heaps of knowledge.

The next Modern Show is on Sunday 23 November 2014 at Dulwich College, London SE21 7LD.

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