midcentury
Post-war design era
Midcentury refers to the middle of a century, typically the 1950s when discussing the twentieth century.
The term appears most often in design and architecture contexts, where midcentury modern describes a distinctive aesthetic of clean lines, organic curves, and functional simplicity: a midcentury ranch house, midcentury furniture.
Sometimes hyphenated: mid-century.
After hostilities end
- 1950sDecade after WWII
- 1960sDecade after the fifties
- baby boomers1946-1964 birth cohort
- cold warHostility without open fighting
space race · civil rights · decolonization · McCarthyism · Korean War · Vietnam War · Sputnik · Cuban Missile Crisis
Longing for the past
- kitschTasteless, garish art
- chromeReflective metal coating
- linoleumSmooth resilient floor covering
- jukeboxCoin-operated music player
diner · tailfins · tiki · drive-in · vinyl · turntable · bouffant · beehive
Midcentury furniture designer
- NoguchiMidcentury sculptor-designer
- KnollDesign firm surname
- teakTropical shipbuilding timber
- danishFlaky filled breakfast sweet
plywood · molded · tulip · sunburst · biomorphic · organic · sculptural · modular
House with offset floors
- ranchLivestock-raising estate
- clerestoryElevated fenestrated church wall
- carportRoofed vehicle shelter
- open-planLacking interior walls
Quality from past eras
- antiqueOld valued collectible
- heirloomInherited family treasure
- authenticVerified as original
- patinaSurface film from aging
timeless · period · preservation · memorabilia · artifact · classic · curio · restoration
postwar
After hostilities end
- 1950sDecade after WWII
- 1960sDecade after the fifties
- baby boomers1946-1964 birth cohort
cold war · space race · civil rights · decolonization · McCarthyism · Korean War · Vietnam War · Sputnik · Cuban Missile Crisis · Kennedy
nostalgia
Longing for the past
jukebox · diner · tailfins · tiki · drive-in · vinyl · turntable · bouffant · beehive · hi-fi
Eames
Midcentury furniture designer
danish · plywood · molded · tulip · sunburst · biomorphic · organic · sculptural · modular · form
split-level
House with offset floors
- ranchLivestock-raising estate
- clerestoryElevated fenestrated church wall
- carportRoofed vehicle shelter
open-plan · breeze-block · post-and-beam · cantilever · terrazzo
vintage
Quality from past eras
patina · timeless · period · preservation · memorabilia · artifact · classic · curio · restoration · provenance
midcenturyVictorian
Of a prim era
contemporary · Edwardian · Baroque · postmodern · Art Nouveau
century, mid, mid-century, centuries, midyear, centennial, bicentennial, centenarian, tercentenary