Blend of east and west
Evolution of Furniture in Last 5 Years in India
India has an old tradition of furniture making as there are variety of woods available in India like Shesham, teak wood, sandal wood, etc.
Indian craftsmanship has always enjoyed a fame & respect across the world since earliest days. Their expertise in using various materials for making furniture like stone, wood, marble, silver, metal, etc. can still be seen in temples, palaces and works of art in Museums.
The evolution from traditional Indian furniture to Indo western style of furniture evolved when the European came to India about 300 years ago. Both were influenced and inspired by each other. These influences gave birth to Mughal style, Goanese and the Indo Dutch style of furniture using ivory, ebony, semi-precious stone and marble. We can see the most illustrious pieces of furniture with intricate work in various palaces & museum.
In the last 5 years, I feel there is a need for a lot of space saving designs especially in Metro cities where the apartment sizes are shrinking. The trend is more towards minimalistic designs, experimenting with different materials is also bringing a lot of variety & choices in the furniture designs. For example, use of cardboard, PVC, etc. has brought a good alteration and eco-friendly furniture design in the market along with the uniqueness of the product.
Effects of technology on Indian furniture design industry can be felt on the skilled craftsman as the mass-produced furniture is becoming more popular because of its low cost & easy availability. Skilled workers & craftsman are thirsting for work & many skilled crafts are dying. We need to patronize them & revive their skills & bring them in the main stream.
Although we have talent & skill we are far behind in the world economy for designer furniture. We need to bring our traditional skills & technology together to be able to make a mark in the world economy for designer furniture.
Library room - Books storage concept
Dining room - Dining table concept
