Monday, August 30, 2010

The Simple and High Quality Designs of Paolo Buffa!

We’ve got another great Italian Mid-Century Designer that we had never heard of before to show you today, this time the talented Paolo Buffa. As usual, much of his life is an enigma to us (even as seasoned researchers) but that’s okay; there’s plenty to talk about with his amazing designs.


From Italy, Mr. Buffa was born at the turn of the century in 1903, a prime birth date for someone who would go on to create some pretty gorgeous Mid-Century Modern stuff. Though we don’t know a lot about his early years (okay—you caught us! We don’t know anything about his family life or his schooling), we do know he must have had a great respect for historical furniture designs and innovative new ideas and styles.

We say he must have had a great respect for historical styles and futuristic designs because we don’t know that we’ve ever come across someone whose work exhibits a brilliant mix of traditional, current (like Hollywood Regency) and future details.

Take for instance several of his great side board and credenza designs. The sleek, straight lines, warm wood material and simple hardware choices smack of Mid-Century Modernism. You can see similar attributes in desks, chairs and other case goods of his. But, you can also see a more traditional look in something like a pair of side tables that looks more like a traditional antique, or some pieces that still showcase a relic of antique design.


His many designs for wingback chairs are confusing to the eye: they are shaped perfectly between a traditional wingback chair looks like and what a futuristic wingback chair might look like. Somehow he manages to balance those two divergent ideas with material, pattern and color choices.



Also a pretty talented Italian architect in his time, Paolo Buffa isn’t the most well-known designer to come out of Mid-Century Italy, but his designs are just amazing enough to get him on our list of new “old” favorites. While his work might not be the most unique or stand out as completely unusual, he did design high-quality work that continues to inspire others.

We know what you’re thinking. Swank Lighting is an amazing resource not just for the best vintage Murano glass lamps in the market today, but also a wonderful resource for interior design inspiration and a great place to get an education about past and present designers. Keep up-to-date with everything we do on our Facebook page and our twitter.
 

Interior Design Ideas 2011 Sponsored by Mansur Caem