Mechanized Furniture That Makes You Think, "Hmmm..."

     I will admit that this post is not really about steampunk, though I really can see the Fletcher table being used on an airship or a submarine to save space. But, in my opinion, the design of these pieces of furniture embody the spirit of invention that transcends genre and celebrates imagination.
     Spoiler alert: All are real items except for the last, which, sadly, is a concept only. (As a fan of robotics, that disappointed me a bit. *sigh*)


Walking table

Dearden Expanding Glass Table

Fletcher Automated Capstan Expanding Table

 Personal Automated Library Chairs

Representation of a student graduate project at the Design Academy Eindhoven. Visitors can use a card to "check out" a seat, which will then follow them around the library for seating wherever needed. When the library visitor passes a designated line in the room near the checkout area, the chair returns to its' charging base to be ready for the next user.  Logistical nightmares aside (obedient chair traffic jams during busy library hours might occur), I think this idea has potential.

Beautiful Bronze Octopus Table on DeviantArt

Bronze Octopus Table by Isaac Krauss and Alex Friend

This is one of my favorites on DeviantArt.com.

One of the artists, Alex Friend, says of the piece:

 "This is the finished bronze octopus, modeled off the blue ring octopus, my friend (Isaac Krauss) and I worked on. He came up with the concept and sculpted the body of the octopus and I came in to help with the wax work and welding. The glass tabletop sits level on top of the legs. Welding the legs to hold the glass tabletop was a very rewarding and challenging process. I've certainly improved my TIG welding skills a lot because of my work on this octopus. An interesting thing about this sculpture is that the eyes are hand blown glass. are curious the table is still for sale."

View more amazing artwork on Alex Friend's DeviantArt page:
http://thisisfake1234.deviantart.com/

Magnificent Maggi Massimo -- Hard Country

All I have been able to say about this next discovery is, "WOW," over and over again.
Though reported elsewhere, I believe that my coverage of this phenomenon is more detailed than some, and I definitely have more pictures of individual pieces!

"Okay, okay, but what IS it," you ask?
A phenomenon called "Hard Country."

Sooo.  What is that?  It is a design created by Maggi Massimo of Italy that has a very definite steampunk aura about it, because "country" and Victorian era items often share similar rustic materials, colors, and design.

Above is the MM website's photo of one version of a wine serving area.  Other items I found fascinatingly steampunky and possibly useful include a dry goods dispenser with plenty of metal, a couple of innovative light fixtures, a beer keg bar, a computer desk, a wine bottle opener, and much much more.

How much do these items cost?
My question, exactly!!!  Apparently these designer items are only available though exclusive boutiques, and the prices and sellers are thus closely guarded secrets.

I checked several dozen promising places online, and at each one I was redirected to either the Maggi Massimo web site form which asked me oodles of questions as to who I was and what my interest was in the pieces, or to a collection of veritable "re-tweets" of a single Blogger article drooling about MM.  There seems to be not one price or list of shops to be had without seemingly passing a security check ( a "how much of our stuff will you sell" check), or at least filling out a form and hoping someone got back to you.  Grr.


At the very least, I think these pieces have some definite steampunk/yesteryear aura to them, and seem to be of high quality.

Architectural Expo Site with MM photos and links
Maggi Mossimo Home Page


The up side?  The massive alcohol bar and wine fridge combo comes with the booze glasses in sets of 6.  Woo!  Enjoy.

~ DS