Join interior designers, influencers, collectors, auctioneers, fashion designers, art gallery owners and vintage junkies at the show with the midmod mojo, a biannual event a stones throw from Dulwich Picture Gallery and Park that is as sexy as it is sustainable. Expect to see celebrities (actor Andrew Garfield is a regular) including some of the dealers. Watching comedienne Jenny Eclair touting limited edition prints and Saxon from Salvage Hunters talking all things industrial while Antiques Roadshow favourites sniff around for a bargain is all part of the fun. Even one of the organisers will be appearing on the Beeb this Spring although it’s all hush hush. 

Brexit doesn’t seem to have slowed the flow of unique and hugely collectable pieces coming from far and wide. Expect a mix of quirky and classic 20^th Century gems from all over Brazil, America, Scandinavia and Europe. Sharpen up the look with the cream of contemporary upstairs in the Christison building. Enjoy your day chatting to our loyal midmod dealers and designers plus meet our incredible newbies to boot. 

Christison Hall at Midcentury Modern® Dulwich College © modernshows.com 

‘Held in the beautiful and very appropriate Christison building designed by Wates in the Sixties, this show is stuffed with all the recognisable classics of Scandinavian, American and British heroes of 20C design. It’s like visiting a design museum where you can sit on the classics, talk to knowledgable people and then take the exhibits home with you. I enjoy every show immensely and would recommend this show to any lover of design.’ Matthew Hilton – furniture designer

Founders Petra Curtis and Lucy Ryder Richardson, an ex graphic designer and former fashion journalist, have been whipping us all into a frenzy with Midcentury Modern® for sixteen years now. They were the first people to throw the term about with gusto in this country. Antiques fairs come and go but this one has no sign of disappearing anywhere soon unless the organisers other job staging houses for high end estate agents takes off or the Beeb puts them on full time contracts. And even then they will probably find some way to squeeze in the time. The organisers passion for what they do is palpable. You can feel the love throughout the seven rooms spread across 4 buildings filled with 85 top midcentury dealers and contemporary designers stands. This is a day out to top them all for the fan of twentieth and twenty first century design. The fair where you daren’t turn your back for fear of losing the antique of your dreams to another eagle-eyed customer.

Gerald Summers desk and chair 1934 at Form & Function

‘Midcentury Modern is a dangerous show. All the must-see vintage furniture, lighting and accessories dealers in one place makes for serious temptation. Lucy and Petra organise the shows with their idiosyncratic verve and energy and in atmospheric locations so the events feel like an occasion / day out and not just a shopping experience.’ Jenny Dalton. Freelance. How To Spend It. Financial Times.

Twisted abaca rope framed mirror by Adrien Audoux and Frida Minet. French 1950’s available from Sauce at Midcentury Modern® 

Sauce will be premiering at the show with a heady mix of gorgeous midcentury pieces including one of Adam’s favourites, a rope mirror by designers Adrien Audoux and Frida Minet. The French duo produced a lot of designs using more affordable and accessible materials as a ‘rebellion’ to the high end lavish pieces made for the Parisien elite in the early 20th Century. These have now become highly desirable and are sought after by top dealers. 

 

Bamboo and woven parquet rattan desk/dressing table purchased as an antique from Harrods in 1982 available from Sauce at Midcentury Modern® 

Don’t forget to head upstairs in the Brutalist Christison Hall location for the contemporaries too that keep the space perfectly on-trend. “No-one wants to live in a museum. We need these fantastically talented modern designers to sharpen the whole look up and so many are working in sensitive sustainable ways these days,” says founder Lucy Ryder Richardson who says look upstairs and downstairs in midcentury and contemporary for upholstery in heavy-weight wools, bouclé, mohair and sheepskin this season as well as midcentury furniture like Safari chairs with belts and buckles and low slung upholstered chairs on a sculptural base of natural wood. Yves Klein blue ceramics and pots that look handcrafted in muted colours. Black and white is a huge trend although the textures and shades will be all mixed up and we will not be looking for that bright bleached white as we try to go for more eco products.

Bespoke sideboard by Eckford Chong

Young designers and dealerships come and go but often pop back to go shopping like the Minimoderns® lads. The Repair Shop’s lovable presenter Jay Blades launched here and was soon snapped up to appear in Heal’s windows. Eleanor Pritchard, Sophie Cook, Darkroom and Another Country – all now huge – did a stint in the early days. Poppy Norton, Design Bros, People Will Always Need Plates are regulars and will be back this spring with Sansho, The Regular, Kevin Dutton, Living Room and Eckford Chong plus a host more of the UK’s top contemporary designers. Also see Tabitha Bargh making a welcome return. She says, “This was the first show I ever did back in 2008 so its always special going back.” We are looking forward to seeing Tabitha and her stunning designs again at the show.

Sustainable corrugated cardboard lighting by Tabitha Bargh 

Baines & Fricker will be launching its brand new upholstery fabric designed by Eliza Fricker herself, which will be seen adorning the oak framed signature rocker at the March show. The SB03 Rocker is its best selling design. In the past Baines & Fricker have collaborated on a special edition version for Liberty London as well as it being featured on the front cover of the Evening Standard ES Magazine. 

New fabric by Baines & Fricker for its signature rocker 

Stunning handmade contemporary jewellery will be in abundance at the show with some fantastic designers. Elsiem Jewellery, newbies to the show will be on hand with modern pieces inspired by architectural and geometric forms. Other first timers include Anja Capuzzimati with minimalist earrings and rings made from concrete, sterling silver and other materials, Jess Lelong bringing her art nouveau and deco style to the mix and Bronwen Gwillim who creates statement sculptural jewellery using recycled plastics and resin. Plus Poppy Norton is returning with architectural pieces to die for, one of her rings has made an appearance on The Great Pottery Throw Down recently sported by none other than potter extraordinaire Sue Pryke. 

Elsiem Jewellery with Vibe Circle earrings 

Other newbies include Hopesprings Chairs with its new take on the classic Windsor, Nick Hammond who recently joined our directory The Modern Marketplace and is premiering at the show with his modern twist on lighting, handmade in his rural studio using traditional techniques such as wood turning.

Hopesprings Chairs windsor chair

Plus enjoy Richard Mason Art’s beautiful mobiles created from materials such as wood and metals which are stunning to look at and will bring calm to any environment. Add to this AMWA Designs appearing with The Bespoke Boutique plus the revival of prints by Florence Broadhurst bringing stunning wallpaper, lamps and cushions with designs inspired by Florence’s archives and midcentury-inspired fabrics from Sarah Jane Hemsley Upholstery and you have a show crammed full of all the goodies both midcentury and modern you will need to create the perfect home or work environment. 

Sarah Jane Hemsley Upholstery 

 

The brilliantly curated Modern Shows is a must-visit event for anyone after original mid-century design.” Charlotte Abrahams, freelance design writer FT How to Spend it, Guardian, Observer, Elle.

Items from £5 – £5,000 Midcentury Modern®  Dulwich College  London  SE217LD

85 top midcentury dealers and designers stands 

Seven rooms spread across 4 buildings

Sunday 15th March 2020 10 – 4 

£10 on the door at Christison Hall

Advance discount tickets 10am – £9, 1pm – £10 for two, 3pm – Free entry with mailing list sign up, Last entry 3.30pm, Doors Close 4pm

TICKETS

modernshows.com

Contact: lucy@modernshows.com for quotes and tanya@modernshows.com for more info and the latest dropbox full of images.

Main image: © Studio Yaya