Author: modculture

I’m getting slightly obsessed with the designs on Isamu Noguchi, not least because they look so far ahead of their time. The Isamu Noguchi coffee table was designed in 1944 – and this reissue from Vitra over 60 years later still looks as sharp and modern as anything in your living room.

Available with a choice of varnished wooden base (black ash, maple, or walnut), this symmetrical/organic design features a heavy glass surface sat on two interlocking and identical base elements – creating something that’s as much sculpture as furniture.

Prices vary dependent on your finish, but start at £930.

Find out more at the Utility Design website

Everyone needs a chair to kick back in after a hard day at work – and if you have the money, the Matthew Hilton Wing Chair should fit the bill.

This is an update of Hilton’s original design, offering a more mid-century look with turned oak legs, rounded arms, a solid oak frame, saddle stitching seam detail and those wings, which should protect you from draughts.

It retails for around £1300.

Find out more at the SCP website

We mentioned the Art Deco-style Newgate Quad bedside clock the other day. If that’s a little too stylised, how about something even more traditional – the Newgate Covent Garden alarm clock.

It’s available in various sizes and finishes, with this black version being the largest at 9.8 x 7.5 x 3 inches. It has an ‘aged’ paper dial, steel surround and glass face, as well as those vintage-style numbers and detailing, along with a traditional (and loud) ring.

One thing that isn’t traditional is the power source – it runs off a battery rather than a wind-up. Yours for £20.

Find out more at the Newgate Store website

I’m guessing its not cheap, but there’s no denying that the Cute Cut Table from Roche Bobois would fit effortlessly into a 70s-style space age pad.

There’s actually two in the range, with the one above being the larger with two flat areas, while a smaller version comes in a nice retro mustard colour and with just one flat surface. Both are designed by Cedric Ragot and are made from polyester resin and fibre glass, with a lacquered finish.

In fact, the only thing we don’t know is the price. You’ll have to drop into one of the Manchester or London shops if you’re in the UK or order one of the catalogues, which you can do online for 10 Euros.

Find out more at the Roche Bobois website

The Absolute Zero Degrees Net and Ball wallpaper might be familiar design – but it’s fame actually comes from the floor rather than the wall.

It uses the design of the original 1951 carpet from the Royal Festival Hall, the work of original architects Peter Moro and Leslie Martin and apparently the visual representation of sound – with the addition of the ball purely for effect.

The wallpaper has been commissioned by the Southbank Centre and is only available to buy from the Southbank Centre Shops from April 2008 in the olive and grey colourway pictured. It retails for £50 per roll.

Absolute Zero Degrees website