This Style Influenced An Entire Generation | A Style Is Born

Welcome to A Style is Born, hosted by Youtube bookworm and historical curious cat, Ariel Bissett! Join us as we go down the rabbit hole and uncover the unique histories and origin stories behind our favorite design trends.

From geography to geopolitics, industry and technology, music and more, we’re set out on a knowledge quest. And in this episode, we’re starting our journey with one particular style movement: Mid-Century Modern. Heard of it? Of course you have. Come find out more.

0:00 INTRO TO MID-CENTURY MODERN
1:35 MODERN ART EXPLAINED
2:11 MID-CENTURY HISTORY
4:08 HIT THE BOOKS
5:55 ICONIC CHAIRS
7:31 RAY AND CHARLES EAMES
8:45 INTERVIEW WITH AN EXPERT
10:24 THE BIG PICTURE
12:12 THANKS FOR WATCHING!

Check Out Our Host Ariel Bissett and Special Guest Paige Wassel!

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Wayfair products featured in the episode!

Learn more about mid-century modern design by reading our guides:

Archival sources that appear on screen!
Library of Congress
Wikicommons
National Gallery of Art
The Smithsonian
National Archives
Getty Images
Adobe Stock
Raw Pixel

Research sources that helped inform the episode!
Videos:

Books:
Mid-century Modern Design: A Complete Sourcebook by Dominic Bradbury
Mid-century Modern: Icons Of Design by Frances Ambler
The Encyclopedia Of Furniture: Third Edition by Joseph Aronson
100 Midcentury Chairs: And Their Stories by Lucy Richardson
Mid-Century Modern: Interiors, Furniture, Design Details by Bradley Quinn
The Interior Design Handbook: Furnish, Decorate, And Style Your Space by Frida Ramstedt

Articles:

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[Evelynfromtheinternets]

More Ariel please! 🎉 I’ve been watching her home renovation on her channel and this is the perfect collab!

[allentowngal]

Ariel is the best!!! So fun and creative. Her home is exciting to watch her transform it!

[anniebanana]

That explanation of midcentury modern pieces feeling simultaneously retro, nostalgic and romantic while also feeling sleek and modern and futuristic, well that is exactly the feeling I get when I look at a midcentury modern piece.

[ModestGirl]

Ariel this is WONDERFUL!!! Miniatures make everything great!

[neweverymorningmercy]

Good segment. Really appreciate what Ariel had to say about mid-century being retro, nostalgic and romantic while at the same time being sleek and futuristic...I agree, that's the magic.

[annfinke]

It's funny to think of MCM furniture as vintage, because that makes me vintage. I grew up in the 60's, so I grew up with this style of furniture and I have many pieces of that in my home now- inherited them.

[katielanedavis]

How thoughtful. Ariel knocked this out of the park. And a guest appearance by wasselpa! A delight!

[mypointofview]

Mid-century spanned from 1956 all the way to 1979. I know I was there. Televisions were not widely adopted until the 1960s, people still preferred to go out or do things such as knitting or reading or even talking to each other, yes that really was a thing. You engaged with family

[leenanorms]

This was so informative and lovely, got lots of inspo, thank you!

[brandyparker]

What a great combination... Wayfair and Ariel Bissett! Everything Ariel does leaves me feeling cheerful and excited! Such a fun and informative video. Now, I feel like buying new furniture!

[mariaordal]

The Bauhaus was actually a design school; that’s why that quote from the Met about it mentioned how it combined fine arts and design education :)

[nancyjuarez]

I absolutely love mid century modern pieces. I had them all around my home growing up and I still love them today.

[louibeans]

I loved this! I never knew how the background of midcentury modern furniture, but it's super fascinating. If I had to suggest one thing to improve, I'd tone down the music ever so slightly. I have ADHD so trying to concentrate on what Ariel was saying over the volume of the music was a bit of a challenge for me. But great video nontheless!

[antonellabassi]

I would do Art Deco, since with the 80s nostalgia going on right now that style is finally back in fashion (it was very much a source of inspiration for 80s interiors)!

[dusty]

This woman is so darned likable with all her enthusiasm and folksiness. More please!

[hensgrej]

Ariel and Paige is the collab I wasnt expecting, but needed.

[littlestenographer]

Yay, Ariel! Great to see Paige, too! Really enjoyed the video, it was so well thought out and nicely edited. The tiny furniture! I'd love to see a video in this series on art deco or art nouveau and the way it might be influencing more maximalist styles we're seeing like grand millennial :) I hope to see Ariel pop up on this channel again.

[sfl]

Mid Century furniture is like fine art, I’m obsessed with the furniture and homes. When people come to my home they do not realize the chair they love was designed in the 50’s, they actually think it’s new and fabulous. Designs that stand still when time keeps moving on….it just never goes out of style.

[liv]

It's important to point out that a big part of modern architecture was flexibility and freedom. One of Corbusier's five points of modern architecture is, literally, free design of the floor plan. That goes perfectly with what you guys mentioned, that mid-century furniture fits in with a lot of different styles. The basis of design then was to be able to fit in and blend well with the desires or styles of a lot of different people, in the same way that you were meant to be able to take the free floor plan of your house and make it your own. It's not *just* mid-century furniture that's popular; our contemporary love of open-floor, unimpeded spaces can also be traced to modern architecture. Plus, the simplicity of the designs, their straight lines and their "slimness" means that they're rarely overwhelming, which I think contributes to their lasting power. Take the Barcelona chair, for example: you could style it in a room with designs from any of the last 60 years and it would look like it belongs.

[Moka]

The point about more people working from home is definitely true for me. If I'm going to be home full time, I want the space around me to feel inviting. The warm wood tones and more natural shapes of a lot of MCM furniture are a nice way to do that for me.