Neither marble nor laminate

Back to our constantly changing and evolving dining set.

For a long time, our shared object of desire has been a Tulip table by one of the most famous Finnish designers Eero Saarinen (1910 - 1961). Introduced in 1958 by the manufacturer Knoll, the Tulip was part of the Pedestal collection, which consisted of several different sized tables and chairs.

Our dilemma has been that this beautiful table is available in various top materials, and we have had very divergent views on which one should we choose. Since the very beginning, Pekka has been insisting on marble, which Minna simply refuses even to consider preferring laminate instead. Finally after circling around the decision for months, the solution finally presented itself - once again in the form of an internet auction. Instead of marble OR laminate, it would be a Tulip with a teak top and black base.

Tulip, Cherners, Artichoke and yes - a dachshund.

The Dining Room Trio - the Tulip, the Cherners and the PH Artichoke really seem like a perfect match. First, it is remarkable that all three items date back to 1957 - 1958. Second, the black/wood color palette of the table and chairs complement each other in a very appealing way. Also, the oval shape of the table works really well with the shape of the Cherners. And the Artichoke is just simply fantastic. The only thing missing is a carpet underneath (we'll get back to that in due time).

The key design driver for the whole pedestal collection is the single base construction. In Saarinen's opinion under any table there usually was an ugly, confusing and unrestful world - the so called "slum of legs". With this notion he naturally referred to the conventional "four legs per item" construction which is very typical for furniture.

It took Saarinen and the product development team at Knoll five long years to finalize the revolutionary design. The single base construction creates an impression of a top loating in the air. It is actually quite amazing how a single, narrow base can steadily support such a large top as in the table we recently acquired. Measuring 245 x 137 cm our Tulip can easily accommodate 8 - 10 guests.

Single supporting base

It is actually funny that during all this time of intense collection of vintage furniture we have actually never owned an item by Saarinen or Knoll, which is one of the classic US manufacturers of design items for home, workplace and textiles. Founded in 1938 by Hans Knoll the company has produced several award winning designs by the top designers of the world.

For the 50th anniversary of the pedestal collection Knoll reintroduced rosewood (Santos Palisader) and teak table tops and subsequently made these line additions permanent. Items manufactured during the anniversary year (2007 - 2008) carry a special commemorative medallion. Ours seems to be one of these as indicated by the medallion underneath.

Anniversary label

Not only is the base construction remarkable visually, but its ingenuity becomes truly evident when the table is used by diners. The single base allows everyone to sit comfortably around the table without being distracted by table legs. Chairs can thus be added to any side or position around the ellipse whenever required.

There is, however, an (unfortunate) downside to all this. Ideally a table of this size is meant for eight guests, but we only have six Cherners. A chair hunt ahead, perhaps?

Sideways

The Tulip has another curiosity we have noticed. The elliptical table top creates an interesting visual phenomena. If you look at it on the side, the oval shape "narrows" the table down making it visually very light. Subsequently, the 137 cm wide table looks smaller than it really is. However, when you move and look at the table directly from the narrow end of the ellipse, you can see how wide it actually is and how much space there is between the opposite diners to lay dishes or any other necessities.

Slim oval

Oval edge

The overall condition of the table is good, but based on little (spoon?) marks here and there, the table has been hosting some younger generation diners also in the past. Pekka already has a plan to treat the table, but it is very likely that no matter how successful he will be now, the marks will miraculously return, sooner or later.

And what happened to our old dining table? Well, as some of you might remember the table top was actually a DIY, whereas the legs are genuine parts from a table called the Super Ellipse, manufactured by Fritz Hansen. The legs have now been disassembled and are for sale. So if you are interested in a set of genuine Super Ellipse legs, with or without a table top please let us know!

Super Ellipse legs

Super Ellipse legs looking for a new home

PH Artichoke

Let us start this one with a piece of history.

Undoubtably, Danish Poul Henningsen (1894-1967) is one of the legendary names when it comes to MCM lightning design. Henningsen (PH) started his career in developing modern lighting solutions when such technologies as an incandescent bulb was a relatively new innovation. According to his design philosophy, the beauty of an object must rise from the connection between its purpose and shape. Any practical challenges, such as e.g. the glare associated with the use of incandescent bulbs, had to be solved before the question of the light fixture's beauty could be addressed.

PH aimed to develop totally glare free lighting solutions by optimally fitting of the incandescent bulb and designing the light fixture to reflect diffuse light. He also wanted to be able to concentrate the light in a preferred direction, usually downwards, which was naturally achieved by reflecting the light by the shades indirectly. The colour of a given light was always chosen to match the function in the most cost-effective way possible to give each light the exact level of warmth desired.

See no glare?

The PH Artichoke (Originally named PH Kogle) was introduced in 1958 in the Langelinie Pavilion in Copenhagen, Denmark. Only a year earlier the demanding task of Pavilion lighting design was passed to Henningsen by the architects Eva and Nils Koppel, who were responsible for designing the space.

As only very rough sketches exist from the time before installation of PH Artichoke in the Pavilion, it is believed the light was developed extremely quickly. This is different from the other PH lights, demonstrated by the numerous archived sketches still available. The surprisingly fast development time of the light was indeed enabled by the fact that the PH Artichoke is actually believed to be based on an other PH light designed 30 years earlier, the PH Septima. During the development of the Septima, Henningsen had in fact designed also a metallic version of this light, but the concept never reached production. These drawings later on formed the basis of the PH Artichoke, launched some 30 years later.

PH Artichoke

Since it's launch, the Artichoke has expanded to include a series of four lights in different sizes: 84, 72, 60 and 48cm diameters. The largest Artichoke requires a stunning 500W bulb and it is used in spacious public or corporations settings, whereas smaller models, suited for a residential set up, use a 300W bulb with a dimmer. Originally in the Langelinie Pavilion a 1000W bulb was installed in each Artichoke to ensure the right warm atmosphere. It has been said that once the lights were installed, PH found the light to be too strong and realized weaker bulbs could have been used.

In the original Artichoke, the shades were lacquered brushed copper on the outside and coated with weak pink (same than in Pink Septima) in the insides. In the mid-70's, an optional new leaf material, stainless steel was introduced, and in early 1980's the completely white Artichoke became available to the public.

And why are we suddenly so interested in the PH Artichoke?

The Olive Green Window has been a host for quite a few PH lights, some of which have already found a new owner on their journey. Without a doubt, however, the above introduced Artichoke is one of our all time favourites. This particular piece was a recent find from an internet auction and arrived to our home from Denmark. It is an early, 60 diameter model made of copper...and upon its arrival, was in horrid condition, stinky and covered with tar, nicotine and dead insects. Exactly something you want hanging above your dining room table.

Desperately needing a face lift

We are not sure about the exact date of manufacturing of this piece. Inside the light we found a label with some sort of numbering, perhaps a specific product code in the Poulsen product portfolio.

Type 17080?

Pekka stripped the filthy Artichoke down to the bone in order to update it properly so it would be safe to use in every day life. Regarding the functional dimension of this light, one of the focus areas was clearly the electrical components such as sockets and wiring. All these were either throughly cleaned or changed during the process to allow safe use.

Wired out electrics

With a vintage Artichoke, one has to be aware of the existence of sulfur spots, also known as the flyspecs in the numismatic society. These dark brown or black spots appear on copper leafs and are formed when copper is exposed to the sulfur from the environment. Actually, it is quite normal for a vintage light to have some spots on it. In our case, however, they were all over and something needed to be done, desperately.

Sulfur spots on copper leaves

There are several different ways one can clean the copper leafs of a PH Artichoke. The chosen method depends on how dirty the item is. We were looking at the dirtiest end of the spectrum, basically everything from dust to tar, and nicotine to sulfur spots. The first three are really not a problem, whereas the sulfur spots change the game completely.

These anomalies on the surface finish are an outcome of the process called sulphatation and require a bit more intrusive method than just wiping to get rid of them. To remove the spots, Pekka first removed the clear coat finish. Once treated and cleaned, the difference between before and after was dramatic. A word of warning: if you choose to clean one, it is a one way road - to have an uniform look you have 71 more to go, regardless of them being in need of cleaning or not.

A piece of advice: work the leaves only in the direction of the brushed surface finish, and the end result will be fine. The observed down side was that by treating the leaves you also wipe off the years of patina. Unfortunately, in the case of the copper Artichoke is a major thing, but a compromise we needed, and wanted to make.

Old and new

When disassembling a structurally rather complex item such as the PH Artichoke, it was essential to do it in a systematic manner. There are 72 leaves of copper in 12 rows, all of which are different in size. After taking all the copper leaves off, all that was left was a bare steel structure.

Piles of copper

Steel structure

The steel skeletal was also disassembled down to single components enabling a more effective cleaning. For these elements a wash with warm water and soap was sufficient to rid the nicotine and tar accumulated over the years.

Clean steel skeleton

The painted components were first washed and dried. Afterwards, they all received a new layer of fresh white paint.

Warm bath

Once everything had been cleaned and re-treated, the big moment was finally there. Pekka was able to start the assembly, the moment everybody had been waiting for.

Installation of the copper leaves

After two and half months of intensive restoration this stunningly beautiful MCM light finally hangs above our dining table. It is unbelievably beautiful. Just gorgeous. And we are completely in love with it!

Finally, the Artichoke has found its place

And last but not least - what are Urho's thoughts on this? Well, as so many times before, he could not care less. In Urho's opinion, the best thing about the Artichoke is that the 300W bulb creates some additional heat to the chilly autumn days. We are nearing the time of the year Urho starts cuddling closer and closer to warm human bodies, or when there is no warm body around, he simply digs his way between the couch pillows. So any extra heat, even a fraction of a degree, is warmly welcomed by our heat-seeking sausage.

Between the pillow and a hard place

Dining set - revisited

Finding the right pieces at the right time is not always easy.

You might remember we had some challenges with the dining set. This crucially important project seems to be eternally fluctuating between random progression and inevitable reverse, and is really not expected to be completed any time soon. However, being such a dynamic process it deserves some attention, and thus we thought a report of the current status would be justified. To revise the story so far you can also scan through these two posts: (1 & 2).

So, we did find another Cherner chair and once again Pekka invested several hours in restoration so the chair could actually be used for sitting again. Even if it most certainly is a stunningly beautiful chair, unfortunately it doesn't match the rest of the set. The wood used in plywood is birch, whereas the rest of the set is made of walnut. Another mismatch is the lack of upholstery. We would actually prefer the complete set without upholstery (at least from the visual perspective), however, considering dinners usually tend to take more than 15 minutes, a chair with at least some softness to sit on is just much more comfortable.

Because of these two issues, we decided to continue searching for two Cherners to better match the existing walnut set of four. As a consequence, we also decided to say goodbye for the beautiful single birch made chair, and were really glad that in the end, it found a new home with of a good friend and a true collector who really appreciates its beauty.

Two Cherners and a dacshund

Related to the picture above there is a funny story to share about Urho. As you might have noticed, every now and then we have kindly requested our beloved dachshund to strike his best pose and model in the blog shots. After a photo shoot he always receives a treat for a job well done. Apparently, the number of repetitions has reached a critical point, and the smarty sausage has figured out the link between camera and treats! Now, every time Pekka pulls out the camera Urho quickly arrives to the scene, extends his lengthy figure and models patiently in the front row. What a great team member!

But back to the Cherners. We are very proud to present the complete set of six! It took Pekka about eight months to find all of them, but finally a matching set of two armchairs and four side chairs is complete. Interestingly, all of these wonderful chairs arrived from the Sunshine state of Florida. We are quite happy!

The whole family

Just like the side chairs, the new armchairs have a walnut finish and black vinyl upholstery, and they were also manufactured during the same period (early 1960's). The are stunning - just like with so many vintage items, the decades of encounters with users have left behind characteristic marks and imperfections of life making them unique and beautiful.

Vintage beauty

There is slight variation in the level of shininess in the vinyl naugahyde upholstery between the side chairs and the newly arrived armchairs. Fortunately for Pekka (and his continuously growing toolkit of restoration necessities), this is nothing to worry about. The shininess can and indeed will be adjusted later perfecting this slight visual mismatch!

Arm- and side chairs

Having all six chairs finally around the same table feels like a mission accomplished - well, at least partly. The set really screams for a carpet, which would nicely define the dining area. One of the options we are considering is some type of sisal carpet, but this has not been locked yet. It also has to be admitted that we are currently in negotiations for a new dining table (fingers crossed). This is quite exciting of course, and something we will definitely return to later on.

The set (and the dog)

Last but not least - anyone noticed that the Bubble light by George Nelson which used to hang above the table has given way for another pendant? This also something we will return to shortly, so if you are interested in reading about a complete transformation of a vintage PH Artichoke by Poul Henningsen currently shining above the dining table, stay tuned...