QUINTESSENTIAL MIDCENTURY George Nelson’s Platform Bench (1946) — Recognized as an icon of mid-century design, the simple bench can serve as a table or for seating.
Amy Duncan says her home, the Trogdon House, still functions well for a modern family with two busy children and a dog — even though it was designed more than 50 years ago. YOUNG KWAK PHOTO
George Nelson Platform Bench
Eames Chair
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wo people who also found the style enticing are Amy and Glen Duncan, whose home is situated in a much different environment, rising dramatically into a steep hillside in the Rockwood neighborhood. Three years ago, when the family was relocating from a Seattle Craftsman home, Amy says she had to overcome her initial reluctance to even tour the house, with its somewhat forbidding streetside facade. Once inside, however, the home’s charms quickly captured the couple’s attention. The Trogdon House, built in 1963, was designed by architects Bill and Dorothy Trogdon in the Northwest regional style for their growing family, which eventually included three sons and Dorothy’s mother. “We were drawn to the openness of the style: the vaulted ceilings, airy spaces, and floor-to-ceiling windows,” says Amy. The home, now on Spokane’s historic registry, was featured
Tulip Table
Walnut and Glass Table
Ray and Charles Eames’ Chairs (1956) — The sturdy yet graceful plywood-and-leather lounge chair and accompanying ottoman have never gone out of production. Another iconic piece by the couple (Ray was Charles’ wife) was their molded fiberglass chair (1950). The chair was out of production for many years due to environmental concerns with the fiberglass, but resumed in 2001 in the form of molded plastic. Eero Saarinen’s Tulip Table (1956) — The tabletop perched on a graceful stem was designed to reduce the clutter of furniture legs in dining areas. The base is always cast aluminum; the top can be made of wood, laminate, granite or marble. Copies abound; on a genuine table, the top will screw onto a threaded rod from the top of the base. Isamu Noguchi’s Walnut and Glass Table (1947) — With a base constructed from two identically shaped pieces of wood and a sturdy glass top, the table was designed as “sculpture for use.” Two of the rarer tables are in New York City’s Museum of Modern Art, but the table is easily available for purchase. Production was halted just once, from 1973 to 1984, since the table’s introduction. — ANNE McGREGOR
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