Plywood If I Could

People have already blogged about plywood. Don’t care.

I first started noticing plywood being used to aesthetic ends in restaurants around Brooklyn a couple of years ago. Plywood continues to grow in popularity and people are doing some pretty rad things with it. Plywood’s relatively low cost encourages use on a large scale, thus we get the floor to wall to ceiling applications that have been cropping up. It’s been used to make high falutin’ stuff for decades, MoMA in NYC has a show running until February, 2012 called Plywood: Material, Process, Form featuring Mid-Century Modern beauties. Historically plywood has been generally perceived as a cheap building material, and it is, which isn’t a bad thing. It also has sustainability going for it. Not to be confused with particle board, (which has also been having a bit of a moment) plywood is commonly used for quick and dirty projects, or things like sub-floor, but it can also be “molded” or “bent” using various techniques involving steam and whatnot to make some really badass furniture.

You may be familiar with exhibit A:

Eames Plywood Lounge Chair, aka the LCW

This chair is a classic and you can certainly spend a fine fair amount of cash on one if you wish. You can also get knockoffs for somewhere in the $150 range if you google responsibly.

So, there you have it. Plywood is classy. There are different grades of plywood, including marine plywood which is good for projects that might go in the drink.

Now for some plywood Glamour Shots;Single Family House by Andreas Fuhrimann Gabrielle Hächler Architects

Oh how fresh! Oh how modern! Is it also trending right now to not have any art on the walls? Ok I guess the walls ARE the art…hmm. Also, someone needs to go rescue that chair that seems to have lost its balance. But don’t mistake me, I REALLY like this and would deffo live here.

Sebastian Cordoleani Molded Plywood Chaise Capas

Hey you, I like you. I’ll bet my friends would like you too.

This has been shown many places. I think it was originally posted on Design-Crisis, but it’s just so bang on I had to.

Interior by h2o architectes in Chatou, Paris

from MoMA.

Look at this crazyness! Apparently it was “designed for a family”??…hmm…okay, I guess if you want to spend all your time keeping your kids from climbing up that narrow stair of a shelf thing and probably killing themselves then go for it. But on the other hand it does somehow look oddly like a magical Montessori preschool. 

Daniel Blochwitz for Aswoon/Susan Woods Studio

Wheeee!!!!!!!! I would probably slowly slide off this mid-conversation while awkwardly trying not to spill my wine. But at least the wood sofa would still look cool.

from Remodelista

So bottom line – would you want to be surrounded by this much wood? (oh the pun temptation) I don’t know if I could, but it sure makes for some delicious photos.

Besos,

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