From Industry to the Living Room: Metal Furniture in Interior Architecture

"How did a material conceived for bridges, factories, and large-scale structures make its way to the living room bench, the apartment bookshelf, the café table? For centuries, metal was associated with labor, machinery, and monumentality-from the exposed structures of 19th-century World's Fairs to the productive logic of modern industry. Its presence in domestic interiors is not self-evident but rather a cultural achievement: the transformation of an industrial material into an element of everyday, intimate use, in close proximity to the body."

"Its presence in domestic interiors is not self-evident but rather a cultural achievement: the transformation of an industrial material into an element of everyday, intimate use, in close proximity to the body. This transition did not happen by chance. As metal moved from the construction site and workshop into interior spaces, it underwent a process of domestication that redefined its language and potential. Malleable, precise, and structurally efficient, it allows for reduced thicknesses, stretched limits, and objects that appear to float, even while supporting weight and continuous use."

Metal originated as a material for bridges, factories, and large-scale structures and remained associated with labor, machinery, and monumentality. Historical examples include exposed structures of 19th-century World's Fairs and the productive logic of modern industry. Its presence in domestic interiors required a cultural transformation that recast industrial metal as an element of everyday, intimate use close to the body. The domestication of metal emphasized malleability, precision, and structural efficiency, enabling reduced thicknesses, stretched formal possibilities, and objects that appear to float while reliably supporting weight and continuous use.

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