What a great start to the month! We've just spent a fantastic weekend staying in a Robin Spence designed Modernist house on the Norfolk coast. Amid the big skies and sandy dunes sits a steel-framed structure with glass walls to front and back, and an equally stylish interior (with a design library to die for!). In fact, once installed, it was hard to leave the house - even with the beach just around the corner! This haven of light and space made a refreshing change to the typical seaside flint cottage, and is all set for an appearance in the next issue of Midcentury.

And while we're talking inspiring places to visit, read below about a Modernist home a little further afield - that of iconic Danish designer Finn Juhl.

But it hasn't all been lazing by the beach - we've also been busy putting together issue 03, due out in May, and have got plenty of exciting content in store! If you haven't yet subscribed, please visit our website or click here.

We will also soon be launching a Midcentury app, making your favourite design magazine available through iTunes and Apple Newsstand. Our digital version will be free to our subscribers for a more interactive experience. Watch this space for more details!

Come and see us at the Midcentury Modern show in Dulwich, SE London, on Sunday 18 March - we'll be at the top of the stairs in the fabulous 1960s Christison Hall and will be offering an exciting subscription incentive and a retro sweetie or two for those in need of a sugar boost!

Oh, and we have a few choice businesses featured this month - please click on the banners on the right to check them out.

Photos courtesy of www.ordrupgaard.dk

Finn Juhl (1912-1989), a key protagonist in Scandinavian design, is acknowledged as being instrumental in bringing Danish furniture to the world stage. Working usually in teak and employing his own construction techniques, he used soft, sculptural lines, reflecting a fondness for abstract sculptors like Hepworth and Arp and also for African art. This is evident in signature pieces like the 'Model 45' chair (1945) and the 'Chieftain Chair' (1949) produced for Niels Vodder, as well as his carved bowls for Kay Bojesen and glassware for Georg Jensen. Juhl had actually trained as an architect and it is incredible that his skills as a product designer were largely self-taught. In 1945 he became Senior Instructor at the School of Interior Design in Copenhagen, from which position he helped steer the course of Danish design.

This year is the centenary of Juhl's birth and in Copenhagen the bunting is out (or at least an understated Scandinavian version of it), so what better time for a long weekend in this refined city and a visit to the great man's house? Mid-century dealer and design blogger Dan Thomas of Modernish packed off the kids, bought a couple of air tickets and did exactly that.

Juhl believed that design and art helped to create harmony in the home and had the opportunity to put his theories into practice in 1942, when he built his house in Ordrup. It is a unique example of Danish Modern and, left almost exactly as it was when he died in 1989, it serves as a visual representation of the designer's career. It was opened to the public in 2008 and visitors can now see how Juhl lived with his own design.

Set at the edge of a quiet forest, a half-hour walk from the city, the location of the house could not be more apt, sitting between turn-of-the-century country house Ordrupgaard and the 21st century style icon-de-jour, Zaha Hadid's sleek black lava art gallery. Juhl's work references the craftsmanship of earlier times and yet his organic forms continue to influence designers today.

And so to the house itself. 'Understated' is an understatement - it is a simple, single-storey urban cottage, composed of two blocks standing at right-angles to each other. The plain exterior gives way to a visual treat of an interior, with its early example of open-plan design. It was his furniture that drew me to the house, and it is the seating that provides the focus for each room. Beautifully modelled, the aged teak complements the leather and monochrome upholstery. Similarly to his contemporaries Hans Wegner and Kaare Klint, his solid, defined shapes set him apart from the more utilitarian European designs of the time.

With a deliberate colour palate of mustard, soft blues and creams, only the startling Yves Klein blue ceiling in the entrance lobby defies the theme. I spot some clues to his influences in a minimalist Japanese tea set and volumes on classical painting. His abstract ceramics and sculptures are on display and the master bedroom contains two fantastic examples of Juhl's colour experimentation from the early 1960s: a low-level bed inlaid with long turquoise panels and a small multi-coloured filing cabinet, the superbly named 'Skuffemobel'.

On view in the small lobby are his plans for a council chamber at the UN headquarters in 1950s New York, a reminder that Juhl was also an accomplished architect. There is a temptation to pigeonhole him as just a designer of sublime domestic furniture given his prevalence in the Danish capital: the previous day I had sat on his 1941 Poeten sofa in Cos, the Danish clothing store, and later browsed re-issues in the revered department store Illums Bolighus.

Feeling suitably inspired, I take the ten-minute bus journey to 'Bellavista', Arne Jacobson's coastal housing and theatre complex, which dates back to 1934 and is located next to his Bellevue Beach development. The icy North Sea wind soon forces me to take refuge in the restaurant he created. I install myself in one of his Swan Chairs next to the fire and order a Jacobsen beer - a homage to the founding Carlsberg brewer rather than the iconic designer - and contemplate the day. All is well in Copenhagen.

Words by Dan Thomas

For more information on the museum, visit www.ordrupgaard.dk. And while you're there, check out Furniture for the Senses - Finn Juhl 100 at Design Museum Denmark, Copenhagen, which is on until the end of the year. For more details go to www.designmuseum.dk/en

Ever seen such a stylish fireplace? This is the work of Algerian born designer and sculptor George Ciancimino, who settled in the UK in the 1960s and designed for Mobilier International and Jens Risom. This piece, called the Wedge, was made by the now defunct Wade Lewis Limited of Weybridge, and was bought by a couple at the Ideal Home Show in 1976.

A solid-fuel fire is no longer practical for the pair and in a bid to save it from going to scrap, their daughter is giving our readers first dibs! She told us: "It's just the most stylish thing and still in excellent condition. It's different from any other fireplace and it's never dated. People walk into the room and look in wonder. It's so functional as well, and it heats the room brilliantly."

If you want to find out more, or would be interested in making an offer, please contact Sally at studio@wickedpoppy.co.uk.

What to do and where to do it: here's our list of exhibitions, markets, and other fun things.
If you have something to recommend, please email listings@midcenturymagazine.co.uk.

A unique event for lovers of vintage furniture and fashion. 200 exhibitors expected in a space of over 4000 square metres.
www.salonduvintage.com

An exhibition to mark the centenary of the birth of British Painter Keith Vaughan (1912-1977). Vaughan was one of the most significant artists of his generation, best-known for his painterly depictions of the male nude in the landscape.
www.pallant.org.uk

Quality contemporary art, with a huge array of paintings, sculpture, photography and prints. A price ceiling of £4,000 and the compulsory labelling of all artwork ensures you know what you can and can't afford.
www.affordableartfair.com

Large antique and collectors fairs with everything from paintings and antique furniture to vintage teddies and luxury leather luggage.
www.iacf.co.uk

Lucienne Day, Jacqueline Groag and Marian Mahler were at the forefront of international textile design in the 1950s and '60s. This exhibition explores these women's pioneering roles in combining art and manufacturing to change the direction of the modern design industry.
www.ftmlondon.org

The UK's premier 20th century design show, in the stunning Christison Hall. 50 mid-century dealers, 25 hand-picked contemporary designers, great food and coffee stalls (plus your very own Midcentury Magazine!).
www.modernshows.com/the-shows/about-our-shows/

Meanwhile in West London, Discover Vintage presents The Vintage Home Show. The event promises Mid-Century, Retro & Kitsch rolled into one stylish show.
www.vintagehomeshow.co.uk

If you happen to be in Berlin then this looks to be well worth a visit! This is the most comprehensive European exhibition of Brazilian furniture design to date, with pieces from a private collection of Modernist objects displayed beside contemporary design. Includes the work of Lina Bo Bardi, Oscar Niemeyer, Sergio Rodrigues, and the Campana Brothers.
http://brazilianfurnituredesign.com/exhibition/en/

Traders from all over the UK with Ercol, G-Plan, barware, kitchenalia, furniture to figurines, posters and magazines, lampshades, mirrors and more - from toys to telephones, ceramics to lighting, no box is left unticked!
www.judysvintagefair.co.uk/furniture

Following shows in London and New York, the PAD is back in Paris. Devoted to design, the decorative arts and 20th century painting, the PAD brings together the most talented French and international dealers of the moment.
www.padparis.net

The V&A's upcoming exhibition celebrates the best of British post-war art and design from the 1948 'Austerity Games' to the summer of 2012. Over 300 objects highlight significant moments in the history of British design and demonstrates how the country continues to nurture artistic talent.
www.vam.ac.uk

Specialist fair, incorporating Art Deco, Art Nouveau, Arts & Crafts Periods and Early Post War design.
www.abbeyfairs.co.uk

The first major exhibition in the UK to showcase Hockney's landscape work. Vivid paintings inspired by the Yorkshire landscape, many large in scale and created specifically for the exhibition are shown alongside related drawings, films and ipad drawings.
www.royalacademy.org.uk

Marking Sir Terence Conran's 80th birthday, this exhibition explores his unique impact on contemporary life in Britain. It traces his career from post-war austerity through to the new sensibility of the Festival of Britain in the '50s, the birth of the Independent Group and the Pop Culture of the '60s, to the design boom of the '80s and on to the present day.
www.designmuseum.org

Jonathan Stephenson presents work from Keld Helmer-Petersen, credited as the man who brought Danish Modern to photography.
www.rocketgallery.com

Need an excuse to take a holiday Stateside? The Los Angeles County Museum of Art presents the first major exhibition of mid-century modern Californian design. The show examines the state's key role in shaping the material culture of the country, with more than 350 objects on display, including furniture, textiles, fashion, graphic and industrial design, as well as two period re-creations - most notably the living room of Charles and Ray Eames.
www.lacma.org

Yayoi Kusama's pioneering work spans over six decades and she is one of Japan's best-known living artists. Well-known for her repeating dot patterns, her art encompasses an astonishing variety of media including painting, drawing, sculpture, film, performance and immersive installation. This is the largest exhibition of her work in the UK to date.
www.tate.org.uk

The Design Museum's Design Awards, 'the Oscars of the design world', showcase the most innovative and progressive designs from around the world, spanning seven categories: Architecture, Digital, Fashion, Furniture, Graphics, Product and Transport.
www.designmuseum.org

The biggest Bauhaus exhibition in the UK in over 40 years presents the modern world's most famous art school. From Expressionist beginnings to a pioneering model uniting art and technology, the Bauhaus' utopian vision sought to change society in the aftermath of the First World War.
www.barbican.org.uk

That’s all from us until May - in the meantime, check out our Directory of where to source the best mid-century and mid-century influenced design: www.midcenturymagazine.co.uk/directory

The information provided in this newsletter is accurate and correct to the best of
the knowledge of the Midcentury editorial team. In no event will we be liable
for any loss or damage arising out of or in connection with any of the content.

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