Smoking Table, Eileen Gray, circa 19229

By 1929, Eileen Gray becaome involved in total planning, creating buildings and all the furnishings for them. Although some of her work was solidly Art Deco, she also designed in the International Style like her friend Le Corbusier. This sleek little table was designed by Gray with Jean Badovici for a house called E-1027 at Roqueburne. The tubular steel or brass stem on one side allows the table to be used as a bed tray for breakfast; the height of the glass top is adjustable. The small chain and the broker-circle base add visual interest.

Armchair - Jean Michel Frank, 1930

Jean Michel Frank, 1895 - 1941

Between 1932 and 1940 Jean Michel Franck completely reinvented the vocabulary of decorative arts. Working in Paris, New York and South America, Franck was inspired by Neoclassicism and by the abstraction of primitive arts, creating in the 30ies an original style, whose elegance made him gain the approval of rich clients. His name became the classic reference for 19th Century furniture collectors. The decorative principles he developed are the foundations of a minimal style that still nowadays is in fashion and continues to inspire contemporary designers.

This armchair was constructed in solid wood structure, stuffed with foam with a layer of feathers in the upper part of the seat. Covering was traditionally leather.

MR Lounges, 1931 - Ludwig Mies van der Rohe

MR Lounges were designed by Ludewig Mies van der Rohe in 1931 after the Bauhaus style from Germany. The frames of these lounges are similar to the MR Chair frame-made of tubular steel sections doweled and screwed together. The cantilevered seat is supported by leather or rubber straps; the upholstery is padded and quilted in sections. The frames of these chairs are deeper and the seats more angles than on the MR Chair-increasing the comfort of the sitter. These chairs were manufactured first in Germany and then reissued by Knoll International. Mies left Germany in 1938 to join the faculty of the Armour Institute (later known as the Illinois Institute of Technology) in Chicago, where he remained until he retired in 1958.

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Color Wheel basics to create your own palette

The color wheel portrays the relationship among the three primary colors of red, blue and yellow. The three secondary colors that result from mixing tow primary colors are purple, green and orange. Tertiary colors are derived by mixing a primary with a secondary color, which simply brings a greater focus of one primary color over the other.

There is an entire vocabulary associated with the color wheel, but rather than go through that, here's what you really want to focus on... Related or analogous color schemes usually combine three neighboring colors from the color wheel. These schemes can be warm or cool, since the colors are adjacent on the color wheel and therefore usually share these attributes. Complementary color schemes use two colors opposite each other on the color wheel. These schemes are bold and often intriguing. They can be difficult to pull off because the contrasts are bold and placing them side by side makes them seem more intense, but they can be effective if done properly. Mixing complementary colors tends to relax the eye because the colors move toward gray. This is often seen with traditional modern color schemes. Triadic schemes are based on three colors equally spaced around the color wheel, such as red, yellow and blue. These can be the most sophisticated, since the relationships among the colors are the most abstract. Experiment with intensity and values in a triadic color scheme for the best results. A red, yellow and blue scheme with all colors of the same intensity might seem too bright, but deep red and navy blue with pale yellow or deep gold used as an accent might work fine.

Kangaroo Chair by George Nelson - 1956

Although less innovative in form than other designs by Nelson Associates such as the Coconut chair, the Kangaroo chair was perhaps more functional. Relatively light in weight, the Kangaroo chair, like Eames' Lounge chair of the same year, alluded to traditional English club chairs with the buttoning of its cushion.

George Nelson (1908-1986) was an important modernist whose work cut across the fields of interior, industrial and exhibition design. Nelson studied architecture at Yale University in the 1920s, and in the next two decades earned a strong reputation as a writer on design for Architectural Forum, Interiors and Fortune. In 1945 Nelson began a long association with the Herman Miller Furniture Company where as head designer he developed an innovative line of furniture and commissioned new designs from others. His first commission was Isamu Noguchi's biomorphic glass-topped coffee table, which began production in 1947, the first of many designs that the sculptor would create for Herman Miller in the late Forties. Nelson also was responsible for bringing the designs of Charles Eames to Herman Miller, and he collaborated with R. Buckminster Fuller on a number of projects. Among Nelson's own creations are classic works of Fifties design, including the bubble lamp, ball clock, marshmallow sofa and the pole-supported wall-storage system. Nelson also designed numerous exhibitions, including the 1959 American National Exhibition in Moscow, and the Chrysler Corporation display at the 1964 New York World's Fair.

EA105 Aluminum Group side chair, Chares Eames, 1958.

The chairs in the Aluminium Group are the most famous creations by Charles and Ray Eames. Designed in 1958 they rate amongst the great achievements in the design history of the 20th century. An important characteristic of the Aluminium Chair is the intelligent combination of materials. It has a clear, transparent form and its construction is clearly visible. Aluminium sections lend the chair both stability and lightness. The material is fixed into the side sections, yet fitted loosely so that it follows the line of the body and is comfortable without requiring extensive upholstery. This material is not a cover but an integral part of the design.

Known during its development as the Leisure Group or Indoor-Outdoor Group, the Aluminum Group currently comprises of high-back, tilt-swivel lounge chair, a low and high-back, tilt swivel desk chair with an adjustable seat and a low-back side chair (all with or without arms) as well as an ottoman, a coffee table and a dining table available with a variety of tops. Originally intended for domestic retail, the group was eventually marketed for contract use.

Antroups Chair - 1949

Marco Zanuso was commissioned by the Pirelli Company in 1948 to investigate the potential of foam rubber as a material suitable for upholstery. The Antropus chair is an early design, incorporating this novel form of upholstery which did not require traditional springing; the form of the chair was made possible only through the use of this new material. Arflex, a division of the Pirelli Company, produced Marco Zanuso's innovative furniture. Still in production, the Antropus chair possesses a sophisticated, undulating line that is characteristic of many postwar Italian furniture designs.