I recently watched 2001: A Space Odyssey and it's safe to say it's an interesting watch. Overall I enjoyed it, though at times very droning and lacking in dialogue for me I respect what the director was doing and the style he chose. The sounds in the film I'm not sure I liked across the whole film with some harsh sounds that took me out of what I was watching, but the music choice was great and I very much enjoyed the visuals, cinematography and the design of the set. Because of this I've chosen to do a deep dive into some of the furniture that appears in the film.
Djinn Chair by Olivier Mourgue
Olivier designed the chair for Airborne in 1965. I like this chair because I can see both the 1960s in the fun colours and bubbly look but also a futuristic chair from the simplified form and and Kubrick's use of the chair in the film. The chair was also designed to be lightweight which you can actually see in the film when the doctors aboard the space station question Dr Heywood Floyd on his way to the moon, This image is so iconic with the curved floor and it really shows off the design of the chair.
Model 042 Lounge Chair by Geoffrey Harcourt
These chairs were designed in 1963 for Artifort. The design has a flat looking steel frame with leather upholstery and fits this briefing scene perfectly in my opinion while also giving that futuristic look that the film is so famous for. They have the look of a chair an important person would sit in but the steel frame gives it a new look. Again, Kubrick has done really well to select the right furniture for this film.
Not a seat but something you use then you"re sat,
Cutlery by Erne Jacobsen
I had actually seen and liked the set before but when seen in the film they fit perfectly. The set was actually designed for a hotel in Copenhagen in the 1950s by Erne but the hotel decided not to use them because they didn't like the look. At that Time the design didn't fit, however in 2001 they fit perfectly. For these I'm not sure how much I would like to eat with them if it isn't food paste like in the movie as they look a bit awkward but I appreciate the aesthetic in the film.
Though I'm not really a film critic, this film will be the benchmark for set design and product choices in films for me going forward. The fact that Kubrick used objects that existed outwith the film and saw them in a futuristic context is so cool.
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