The exhibition presents industrial design from the mid-1950s and 1960s in two Central European countries: Poland and Czechoslovakia. It was an extraordinary time: thanks to the Khrushchev Thaw of 1956, a new wave of modern design hit the market – not only furniture, ceramics and lamps, but also textiles, electronic and technical equipment.
Numerous objects of everyday use, which once transformed the look and feel of Polish and Czech households, will be on display. Despite all the time that has passed, the designs are still fresh, exciting and modern.
The 1950s and 1960s mark a milestone in furniture design: instead of furniture sets made with specific rooms in mind, consumers could chose individual pieces according to their needs. As Polish furniture became an international success, in the 1960s it became one of the main goods exported to Western markets as well as to other countries in the Soviet bloc. What’s especially interesting is that already in 1961, Polish design companies began working with IKEA.
The artefacts come from two private collections: the Polish pieces come from the collection of Filip Spek, an art historian and a curator of the exhibition, while the Czechoslovakian collection belongs to Jan Jeništa, a Czech collector and Polish expert. The furniture and accessories are accompanied by reproductions of Hungarian posters of the time, which decorate the walls just as they would have in the 1960s.
IED Madrid lent its space for the exhibition. The exhibition was prepared, designed and organised by the students and teaching staff of the 2nd year of the Graphic Design Department and 4th year of the Interior Design Department.
Source: own materials; Compiled by MKD, Apr 2017, translated by WF, Apr 2017