Arguably one of the most iconic architectural forms referenced today, the arch remains resolute in its strength, stability, and visual vibration. While its capability as a construct is inextricably tied to material performance, its broader application as a cultural fixture continues to proliferate. Semicircular, stilted, shouldered, and segmental. Or perhaps pointed, parabolic, basket, and depressed – sometimes even flat. The structure’s storied résumé includes countless lifetimes that now echo through contemporary home furnishings.
But what is the source of their staying power? “The soft edges of an arch bring harmony to a form, making it approachable and visually kind,” says Andrew Kline, associate principal at Workshop/APD and leader of their product team. “The arch’s historic sensibility makes it common, comforting, something that our eyes and bodies have experienced countless times – so we naturally react well to it.”
Seemingly effortless, undeniably seductive, and inherently pragmatic, the curvilinear form is a beguiling gesture within any context. Doorways and mirrors use them to articulate thresholds into another realm. Seating, shelving, and chifferobes become monuments accessible at an interior scale. And other furniture, like tables and task lighting, become tiny feats of engineering. As industrialization has traded timeless archways for homogenous new builds, these 12 products promise spaces filled with joie de vivre.
Paddy Pike’s polished steel doorways draw inspiration from the work of Ron Arad while expressing their own visual language. Each iteration within the collection pays homage to a typically mundane, liminal space through the transformative powers of material performance.
Dimarmo’s Portici bookcase, designed by Sissy Daniele, is as fashionable as Fendi’s Rome headquarters in Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana. Equally as magnificent, this structure is carved from a solid block of marble where repetition of form conspires with depth for an awe-inspiring visual impact. While seemingly extravagant, it serves a variety of functions from shelving unit to room divider.
Photo: Native Studio and Massimiliano Tuveri
The Arcate seven-drawer dresser uses wood to realize its homage to the archway typical of Romanesque constructs found in Italy’s Veneto region. Designed by Milanese studio Accardi Buccheri for the brand MEDULUM, this furnishing represents one piece of a broader architectural collection.
Reminiscent of a three-centered arch, Workshop’s Warren Bedside Table strikes a balance between quiet luxury and statement piece. The trayed arch detailing comprising the structure is accentuated by contrasting finishes of an inset drawer.
The impressive span of Antonio Pio Saracino’s Arc Sofa is reminiscent of man’s achievement in architecture. Equal parts seating and sculpture, it somehow makes being sedentary a monumental occasion while soft tailoring brings a sense of approachability.
Orior’s Onze offsets its incredible size, exaggerated by graining and veining as the materials present, is tempered by its nimble form. Slabs of walnut and marble are softened by a bullnose edge with cast bronze articulates a nearly visually weightless form.
Fernando Mastrangelo makes magic out of cement and silica. The Baby Radius Console is exemplary of the artist’s ability to fuse the organic with incredibly precise forms. Differences in color, material, and finish create the contrast onlookers crave.
The self-taught designer and furniture maker, Morten Stenbaek, pulls sculpture out of the ether with his Delicia Curv Chair. Something of a performance piece, the cunning wood form is the most graceful interpretation of the arch yet with it sinuous, nimble form.
The Office of Tangible Space’s solid oak electric standing desk features an arched task-meets-floor lamp integrated as a fixed pendant. Every detail, from material changes to connections between structural components, is carefully considered. And the simple silhouette sparks great joy.
Snelling Studio remixes the classic Parisian brasserie chair, in both form and material palette, with their Arch Cane Chair. Bent American Ash, velvet, and rattan hug, bend, and wrap themselves around simple geometric forms for an experience that truly elevates thatchwork home furnishings.
Despite the PA-01 Arch Lamp’s simple silhouette, Edouard Sankowski’s material choice – a brass structure and alabaster globe – applied to a very 3-dimensional form makes the tabletop luminaire quite a romantic experience.
Bower Studio employs the parabolic arch to create a mirror of great magnitude. Its impressive scale is emphasized by edge detailing as two-tone glass options meet a variety of wood frames. Its epic proportions carve pseudo-spaces within its reflection.
