For the Detailistas – Industrial Modern

This follow up is for all you Detailistas! Remember those jaw-dropping upcycled silk sari rugs I featured a few weeks ago? Well, many of you noticed the cool light fixtures and furnishings as well. Always happy to oblige, today I’m dishing the deets on the other furnishings that caught your attention.

First the lights. These “Workshop Cage Lamps” from ELTE are inspired by the wire cages that were once used to protect the light bulbs in workshops and factories back in the time of The Industrial Revolution. These cage lights are shown paired with ELTE‘s Edison 40W bulb – a classic filament style bulb also entirely reminiscent of a bygone era. In a time when compact flourescents and LED’s are dominating the market, I find it fascinating to see this return to the origins of the filament light bulb, first brought to life by Edison in 1879.

The chair from this grouping is a perfect example of hand-hewn nods at history. The distressed leather, panelled aluminum back and exposed screws and nail heads all speak to human crafstmanship paired with the powering of machine-driven manufacturing. The aesthetic is reminiscent of the first airplanes from the turn of the century, also crafted in sections with panels of aluminum.

The desk – a combination of a Light Burnt Oak top with sawhorse-style steel legs – brings to mind a time when people worked hard to create and innovate using their hands while harnessing the newfound power and strength of what machines could produce.

Check out similar details in this vintage style trunk, also from ELTE.
One of my favourite design colleagues recently asked me why I think there has been such a strong resurgence of the Industrial Modern look in Interior Design in the last 2-3 years. While I am not an expert on social psychology, I would hazard a guess that it is a combination of two things: 
ONE, our desire to feel connected to history in an era where change is coming at us faster than ever before. We live in what has been heralded as the Digital Revolution, and just like the Industrial Revolution, it marks a major turning point in history. Almost every aspect of our daily lives is affected in some way. Think about the way you work, plan, communicate, shop, research and create! Virtually nothing has been left unchanged. In harkening back to another era of rapid change and innovation, we remind ourselves that our ancestors survived that life-altering pace of change, and we will too.
TWO, there is visual evidence with most of these “Industrial Modern” products that human hands were involved in their making. Wood is generally raw and often reclaimed. Exposed nail heads and grommets and signs of hand hammering are all essential to the aesthetic. In a time when more and more of our daily products are made exclusively by machines and are increasingly disposable, I think we want to remember our humanity and our ability to handcraft timeless, lasting quality.

Is the Industrial Modern look leaving you inspired? If you’re looking to inject your interior with some Industrial flair, ELTE has an entire department dedicated to this aesthetic. Be sure to go and check it out and let me know what you think!
xo
s.