Vitra Design Museum Celebrates George Nelson

If you are not planning on flying over to Germany to visit the Vitra Design Museum's retrospective on George Nelson, here's a good video taking you inside the exhibit that opened last month to mark 100 years since the influential modern architect, designer, writer and teacher was born in Hartford, Conn. Hope the exhibit will make its way to the United States, but until then...

Building an MCM Birdhouse

Want an MCM birdhouse to match your own home? Or are you like Chris in this video from Curbly? He says he wants to build an MCM birdhouse because he will never live in a modern home. Anyway, I hope the birds appreciate the design.

Modern Tools for Your Modern Home

Design Within Reach is bringing you all the modernist tools you need for your hip modern home. Its new store, DWR: Tools for Living, will open in SoHo on Sept. 19 at 142 Wooster Street (Houston Street). DWR also plans to open another store in October in Santa Monica that will carry the company's home accessory line introduced last year. The stores will be "cash and carry" unlike DWR's furniture stores, which sparked some back and forth here at Apartment Therapy about actually having the cash to purchase some of the items.

Revisiting John Lautner

An interesting New York Times review on the retrospective of architect John Lautner's work now at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles. The Times piece includes a nice slideshow featuring some of Lautner's work, including the 1960 Chemosphere House pictured above. If you're in LA on September 14 and you're a big contributor to the museum, you can visit four of Lautner's homes for a cool $145.

Kitchen Redo in Frank Gehry's First House

See the kitchen redo in this 1955 Sherman Oaks, California, home, which is said to be the first work of Frank Gehry. Wonder what he thinks about their IKEA cabinets and flea market glass tiles?

Good Lesson in the Age of the McMansion

Eric Striffler for The New York Times

Architect Carlos Brillembourg said something quite profound in a July 24 New York Times story about the modern home he designed for his family in the Hamptons. While the house is 4,000 sq. ft. and cost $1 million to build, it appears smaller than the two cottages on the adjacent properties. "The spectacle shouldn't be the house," Brillembourg said. "It should be the life that takes place in the house." Does anyone really need a 12,000 sq. ft. home? Will it make them happier? Maybe, but I doubt it.

Scenes from MOMA

A few shots from a recent trip to MOMA. Also check out images from the upcoming exhibit on pre-fab modern housing. Watch time-elapse videos of the pre-fab homes being built in the heart of New York City.

Vintage Eames Molded Plywood Dining Chair, DCM

Marcel Breuer Wassily Chair and Laccio side tables and LC4 Chaise Lounge by Le Corbusier

Ribbon Chair and Mushroom Chair by Pierre Paulin

Chairs by Jean Prouve. The exhibit focuses on Prouve's mass-production efforts.

Paintings by Mark Rothko. My walls need some of these.