Reflections on the History of Modern Design

     There were two different kinds of chairs in my elementary school. One of the two types was made of a thick, heavy plastic-like material and metal; nobody liked these ones because they were uncomfortable and cold. Everyone wanted the other kind because was light and comfortable (plus, you could carve your name into this one and leave your mark on the school forever). Polyprop Chairs     At the time I knew nothing about the chair, other than the fact that I liked it more than the other one my school had purchased for some strange reason. I now know that this remarkable piece of furniture was designed by British designer Robin Day in the early 1960s (V&A · Polypropylene chair ). Day and his wife were prominent designers in Britain after WWII and played a large role in the design of the Festival of Britain in 1951 (Conekin, 1999). Their work was widely popular exemplified the modernist movement that had started in Europe during the inter-war period (V&A...

       It has now been almost twenty years since the release of the Sony Librie, the first e-reader introduced to the public, yet people are still debating whether or not they are better than traditional print books (Kozlowski, 2020). Personally, I believe print books are better and there are many who would agree with me. Advocates of the hard copy will give you many reasons for why they believe real paper to be better; from the feeling of turning the pages to the weight of the book in your hands.        One argument for keeping it classic that I have never considered is about the benefits of filling out a bookcase. Bookcases are underrated but can really make a statement, and it doesn’t get better than the Penguin Donkey Bookcase designed by Egon Riss in 1939 for the Isokon Furniture Company in London.   The Original Penguin Donkey Bookcase      Jack Pritchard’s Isokon company was dedicated to the new modernist movement in des...