Shakers as the original Modernists
by Brooklyn Modern | September 7th, 2008
Brooklyn’s furniture maker, Eric Manigian referenced the Shaker’s as one of his design influences. I spent the month of August in a small upstate NY town close to Old Chatham, where the Shaker Museum is located. I decided to pay a vist
The Shakers seem to be one of the very first modern designers. All of their pieces have a very pared down, utiliatrian feel, which also demonstrates the way they lived. Their sense of proportion also has a very modern feel, with form following function being the design dictate. Scale also play a very interesting role in their furniture, with dining tables and Windsor style benches made to seat over 20 people.
Below is my cell-phone video edit and beneath that is an interesting tour of another Shaker museum in Kentucky.
Bard had a show earlier this year that included some contemporary furniture inspired by Shaker design. I have a review on my blog:
http://greenjeansbrooklyn.blogspot.com/2008/05/greenjeans-review-shaker-design-at-bard.html
Evidently, Danish Modern was inspired by a Shaker chair, too.
http://www.shakerworkshops.com/slegacy3.htm
Shakers may have been a little nuts when it came to religion, but they were total furniture visionaries.