Furniture

Furniture Medic

Furniture - furniture makers and furniture dealers in the United States

Furniture
Such movables as chairs, tables, beds, chests, and cabinets; the term may also be used for draperies, rugs, mirrors, and lamps. Since ancient times furniture has been made of many materials, with styles and techniques showing great variety, but in the past most pieces were fashioned of wood and decorated by inlaying, painting or gilding, carving, veneering, and marquetry. Ancient Asian furniture displays carving and inlay on ebony and teak. Egyptian pieces 6,000 years old have animal carvings and gold and ivory inlay. The Greeks used low couches and curved chairs. The Romans adopted Greek and Etruscan forms. Heavily carved Gothic furniture reflected architectural styles. Renaissance pieces were richly decorated. Peasant furniture was solid, painted or carved, and slow to change in style. Provincial pieces were simple and of native woods. Period styles, such as the Louis period styles, directoire style, and empire style, developed in cultural centers. English period styles include Elizabethan, Jacobean, Queen Anne, and Georgian and were represented by such designers as Chippendale, Hepplewhite, and Sheraton. Early American cabinetmakers adapted English styles in utilitarian form, using such native woods as pine, maple, and cherry; later, Phyfe and others added walnut and mahogany. In the 19th cent. mass production of furniture began. Early in the 20th cent. art nouveau influenced furniture design. Later, such architects as Rietveld, Miës Van Der Rohe, and Eero Saarinen developed functional pieces using modern materials. After World War II, elegant, simple Scandinavian furniture of fine woods became popular worldwide. Trends in the late 1970s to early 90s include the austere, minimal look of built-ins, a return to the opulent, padded look of art deco, and a relaxed country style influenced by the American farmhouse and the furnishings of the Shakers.