Midcentury has now been going for a year and it's cementing its position as the UK publication for lovers of all things Modern.

While Midcentury is firstly a print publication, we have now gone digital! Accessed via our website and free to print subscribers, you will shortly be able to view the fully interactive digital issue on your computer, tablet or smartphone. The format of devices like the iPad translates the scale of the publication perfectly and those non-subscribers who prefer this medium can purchase their digital subscription for just £6.95.

Issue 03 has now gone to print and will be distributed within the next couple of weeks. In this issue we tip our hat to the 2012 Games, with V&A expert Margaret Timmers showcasing some posters from the modern Olympic era; Architect Cat Martin takes a look at the redevelopment of Sheffield's Park Hill Estate, originally the largest public housing project in Europe; Print-maker Beth Evans talks about the contemporary renovation of a rather special family heirloom, her four-bedroom home on the Dulwich Estate; Designer Zoe Murphy gives her take on upcycling; Dealer Ben Adams reveals his Buyer's Guide to the Hans Wegner Sawback chair and Miller's 20th century specialist Mark Hill discusses the progressive glassware of Fulvio Bianconi and its value at auction. In the year of the Jubilee, Queen of British fashion Zandra Rhodes tells us about her favourite pieces of modern design, plus there's a travel profile for those who fancy staying in a rare Robin Spence steel house on the Norfolk coast.

So, If you haven't yet subscribed, please visit our website (where you can view PDF samples of the current issue) or click here.

We'll be at the Midcentury Show at Lord's Cricket Ground, London, on Sunday 27 May, so do come and say hello if you're there. With 50 top dealers and a Titanic haul of 1950s Italian furniture straight out of an ocean liner, this is definitely one for the diary!

Photo courtesy of Olivia Woodhouse

We recently met with Bristol collector and lifelong Modern design enthusiast, Ken Stradling, who has spent much of his life championing the work of designers. Now Chairman of the Bristol Guild of Arts and Crafts, where he has worked since 1948, Ken was one of the first people in the UK to sell Scandinavian glassware by Erik Hoglund and exhibit works by the British ceramicist Dan Arbeid.

Some of the most interesting items in Ken's collection are the unique Marcel Breuer pieces designed for local furniture manufacturer PE Gane. We were fascinated to find out more about how this collaboration came about.

The progressive Modernism of Bauhaus, the design movement founded by Walter Gropius in 1919, continues to trickle its 'less is more' philosophy into today's interior and industrial design, Apple being the most famous contemporary example. It was with some surprise then to find that Marcel Breuer, one of the movement's central figures, had spent a significant period working in the West Country city of Bristol during his time in in the UK between 1935-37.

Breuer joined Bauhaus as a student in 1920, becoming 'Master' of the furniture workshop in 1925 and pioneering the use of tubular metal to create minimal, lightweight structures such as the famous 'Wassily' and S32 chairs. These designs complemented the sparse, functional living spaces designed by Breuer and Bauhaus peers Walter Gropius and Mies van der Rohe.

How did Breuer come to design furniture for a Bristol furniture manufacturer?

In 1933 Crofton Gane inherited PE Gane, his father's traditional furniture manufacturing business. He had been exposed to Modern design through travel in Europe and was keen to take the company in a new direction. His aspirations were already being reflected through the work of in-house designer JP Tully but when Gane learnt that Breuer was in London, he engineered an introduction.

What work did Breuer design for the company?

Breuer designed the interior and furniture for Gane's own home, an Edwardian house in Clifton, as a showcase for the company and went on to design the Gane Pavillion, their exhibition display space for the Royal Show in Bristol in 1936. This was a very modern structure, built from local stone with a flat roof and glass front, and in an interview in 1954 Breuer named it as one of his two favourite buildings from his career.

How did the Breuer furniture come into your own collection?

I'm chairman of the Gane Trust and in 1976, after Gane's house was sold, I was asked to dispose of the furniture. Some went to his family, some to the Bristol Museum and some sold to the V&A. I had always admired Breuer's simple Modernist designs and bought two easy chairs and a coffee table for my own collection, along with a curious drawer unit. There had always been a piece absent from the drawer unit, which meant I'd never managed to assemble it properly and last year when some Breuer pieces came up for auction, I realised that a black ebonised shelf formed the missing part. I had to have it and it's now all on permanent display here in Bristol.

The Ken Stradling Collection can be viewed by appointment by calling 0117 926 5548 or by emailing info@chris-yeo.com. Our thanks go to Collections Curator Chris Yeo of Chris Yeo Antiques.

You can read a more extensive interview with Ken in Issue 03 of Midcentury Magazine.

Subscribing is a great way to get Midcentury delivered to your door and we have five pairs of tickets for the outstanding Barbican exhibition Bauhaus: Art as Life (more details in our Midcentury Listings below) to give to the first five people to subscribe following the process below.

For the chance to win a pair of tickets, subscribe as normal through our subscriptions page but select 'Yes' to 'Is this subscription a gift?' and enter code BB03.

By Geoffrey Rayner, Richard Chamberlain and Annamarie Stapleton

While the contribution of textile designers like Ben Rose, Lucienne Day or Marian Mahler cannot be underestimated in making post-war textiles an art form, this title charts the involvement of leading fine artists with the design of industrially produced fabrics from the 1940s onwards. Many of these artists saw textiles as a way of democratising their work, bringing their art to the masses, and there are useful biographies of every relevant designer and manufacturer at the back of the book.

This is as comprehensive an account of these fruitful and sometimes surprising collaborations (Picasso ski-wear anyone?) as you could possibly wish for. From Nicholson to Hepworth, Matisse to Dali, Chagall through to Warhol, they're all here. Although many of the repeat patterns can be easily attributed to the artists who created them, it is fascinating to see how each artist created designs to fit this mass-produced medium.

What makes this book so special is the extent and quality of the beautiful images within it; page after page of inspiring design with three gate-fold pull-out spreads. With informative and well-researched narration from Rayner, Chamberlain and Stapleton, this title is a must for anyone maintaining a well-stocked design library and would also make a worthwhile addition to any stylish coffee table.

The book is published this month and we have managed to secure a special 30% discount for our readers. To order your copy for just £20.96 (RRP £29.95), call 01394 389977 and quote 'Midcentury Magazine'.

Published by the Antique Collectors' Club, ISBN 9781851496297, 304 pages, dimensions 270 x 215mm, 200 colour images.

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

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

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

This exhibition provides an insight into the relationship between these two great Modernist artists in the 1930s, with some of their greatest works on display.
www.courtauld.ac.uk/gallery

A three-day design festival showcasing the work of contemporary designers and architects. It takes the form of a series of exhibitions, workshops, product launches and presentations, livened up with street entertainment, music, food and parties.
http://www.clerkenwelldesignweek.com

The UK's premier 20th century design show comes to Lords, home of cricket. 50+ dealers bring out their best pieces to this classy setting, and of course your very own Midcentury Magazine will be launching Issue 03!
www.modernshows.com/the-shows/about-our-shows

A lively mix of vintage events including a 1940s tea party, circus acts and music as well as a furniture and homeware section.
www.judysvintagefair.co.uk/events

The second outing for the Design Boerse in Cologne, this large 20th century design fair attracts 130 dealers and galleries from across Europe, presenting international design classics. Plus a section for one-off private sellers and also young new designers.
www.designboerse.info/en/koeln

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

This year, with an increased focus on 20th century design, 200 exhibitors provide a huge selection at the Olympia exhibition space. Whether you are a dealer, seasoned collector, first time buyer or an interiors enthusiast, there is something for everyone.
www.olympia-art-antiques.com

The Norfolk-based auction house hosts an all-day auction of Modern design goods.
www.twgaze.co.uk

An all-day event at Brighton Racecourse including a large vintage marketplace for furniture and clothing, live music acts, a man-made beach, food stalls and a vintage car show.
www.vintagenation.co.uk

Discover Vintage presents The Vintage Home Show in Manchester, promising an event full of Mid-century, Retro & Kitsch rolled into one stylish show.
www.vintagehomeshow.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

Alexander Payne, Worldwide Director of Design at Phillips de Pury & Company, leads a tour of Bauhaus: Art as Life focusing on design pieces in the show and their place within the collector's market today.
www.barbican.org.uk

This is the summer edition of Designmarkt, gathering design galleries and dealers from across Europe with a cross-section of pieces to view and buy, from the affordable to the 'it's OK to dream'.
www.designmarkt.be/eng

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. Includes the recently announced winner, the London 2012 Olympic Torch by Barber Osgerby.
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

The 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

That’s all from us until July - in the meantime, check out our updated Directory of where to source the best mid-century and mid-century influenced design. Oh, and please click on the banners on the right to check out this month's choice dealers!

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.

© Midcentury Magazine
PO Box 53583, London SE19 9BJ

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