The bulbous retro style seating the world back into comfort
The Featherston Numero IV after restoration in its new home
Over the past two years the functional needs of our living spaces changed dramatically. We suddenly found ourselves confined to our homes for extended periods of time with an increased need for our spaces to serve multiple functions for multiple people, often at the same time. With our lounge rooms needing to fulfill the role of playroom, classroom, office and living space, it is perhaps no surprise that one of the great comeback trends of the year was 70s modular seating. As our work and home life melted together, the necessity for less formal and more flexible spaces grew. With harsh and strict conditions outside, soft, simple and flexible interior solutions became the antidote we needed.
What is modular seating?
Modular furniture is designed with two or more uniform shapes that can fit together, or stand separately, in a variety of ways. It can easily, and quickly, be rearranged to suit the changing needs of rooms. Modular sofas are sectional sofas, but not all sectional sofas are modular. The main difference between the two is how they can be assembled. Modular sofas are designed to fit together perfectly however they are switched around and customized. Sectional sofas are typically meant to fit together in a particular way and is more suitable for larger rooms. The various sections of a modular sofa can fit together in any sized and shaped room, and you can easily add or subtract sections to suit your personal needs.
Featherston Numero IV 3- piece lounge in its original and unrestored condition
Bold designer icons of the 70s
Next to sleek and subdued mid-century furniture, the voluptuous style of the 70s can feel big and bold, perhaps even a bit shocking at first. The formal lines of classic mid-century seating are replaced with large, plump and soft shapes.
Making its way to the consumer market in the early 70s, modular seating became iconic of the era. In Paris, 1973, designer Michel Ducaray first presented the Togo sofa, hailed as the first sofa made entirely from polyutherane foam. With its recognisable toothpaste like shape made with stitched padding that create the characteristic Togo tubes, the Togo sofa became an immediate success and more elements, like an armchair and a corner piece were later added.
The same year in Australia, Grant Featherson, often hailed as ‘Australia’s most significant modernist designer’, and his partner Mary, first presented their Numero IV series. While the Togo featured tube like shapes, the Numero series was sleek and smooth.
The Featherston’s Numero series was a modular lounge made from one-piece injection moulded polyutherane foam, which was new to the market, brilliantly combining form and function. The pieces were made with removable covers which allowed for everyday use and easy repair and cleaning. To fully cater to the needs of the contour of the modular chair, the Featherston’s developed a new two-way stretch fabric, flexible enough to stretch and retain its shape.
The modularity of the design allowed for infinite seating arrangements, and as the chairs were made of foam with an added slide base, they were also light weight and easy to move.
An era of multi-tasking furniture
Modular seating is an easy to maintain and flexible solution in an era where we have a bigger need for multi-tasking furniture while maintaining maximum comfort and convenience. With their eye-catching organic shapes that adapts to the body, and typically upholstered in bold colours, they also make a quite the statement piece. As the style has had a recent renaissance, original vintage pieces have become highly sought-after collector’s items.
We recently had a 3-piece Featherston Numero IV in stock that was snapped up as soon as it hit the floor. It was beautifully restored in a bright, red wool from DePloeg, keeping it in the original colour scheme, while picking up the hues from the interior it was designed for.
Shop the look
If you are looking for similar modular style furniture, we have big slouch chairs available, easily combined or as stand-alone pieces, that can be custom designed for you.
Reminiscent of both the Featherston Numero IV and the Togo sofa, our vintage style modular lounge chair is inspired by the comfort and style of the classics. It would look stunning in leather, velvet or boucles.
We service all of Australia and deliver to the Wollongong and Sydney area.
Images:@ Dida Sundet Photography