How to Create a Zen Home - Metal Furniture

The first time I made the connection between metal and Zen was in this rustic private home featured in An Di Magazine: the frosted aluminum surfaces reflect a soft light, giving an intriguing sense of dislocation in a set filled with oriental elements. I can't figure out if it's Beijing or New York? Is it the East, or is it the West? Although Chinese interiors do not have the tradition of using metal on a large scale, the scenery here is Zen-like, and the aluminum cabinets are not at all out of place in the set, but rather add some layers to the materials in the picture: the smoothness of the metal surface corresponds to the roughness of the rocks, the metal's austere feeling corresponds to the wood's sense of vitality, and finally, the green branches and yellow apricots are the finishing touches, making the whole picture a desirable one.

Previously, I have written about the case of a light coloring home, the owner collected an antique silver kettle in the sunlight flashing soft and holy light. The creation of light is especially important in Western religious architecture because it represents a sign of God.

In Eastern cultures, the divinity of metal is not so much in the light it reflects, but more in the image it reflects. Ancient bronze mirrors, reflecting the image of the hazy, false and real. Dream of the Red Chamber in the "Wind and Moon" mirror, the front side of the mirror out of a beautiful woman, the reverse side of the skeleton, positive and negative reflect the phenomenon and the essence of things. Mirror flowers and water and moon, to all realms to empty, the world to the end of the time, found that everything is just a big dream. And the metal mirror seems to be the door to another world.

The polished metal surface forms a mirror effect. Being in the midst of nature, the building reflects nature without self, and the building becomes nature. Like a Taoist immortal, the metal quietly tells us the truth of "Empty yourself and you are the whole universe".

The element of gold in the five elements of the Chinese tradition implies the imagery of sinking, killing, convergence, and the concept of minimalism that eliminates complexity and returns to the origin coincides with the concept. The aluminum alloy in the picture above perfectly creates a minimalist fashion studio space.

Compared with the expensive brass that has become very popular in recent years in China, the silver-colored metal looks more vulgar and avant-garde. The use of cool aluminum alloy in a space with a strong sense of the Orient is a step into the future of an ancient civilization.

Looking at the front of so many pictures, careful you may find that the use of large areas of metal surfaces will make the space become cold and unsympathetic, more suitable for commercial space, not enough for residential space. Frama, a famous Danish furniture brand, is good at embellishing aluminum furniture in small areas in its minimalist residential spaces.

The Triangolo Chair, pictured above, was designed in 1989 and still looks great today. It's made of steel, with geometric elements and minimalist lines, and retails for 1,050 euros.

Ferrer Charlie, the antiques dealer and famed New York interior designer, also favors small silver metal pieces, and the chair used in the piece above is a cast-aluminum version of designer Pierre Guariche's "Tonneau" from the 1950s. As antiques go, you can buy them secondhand from different sellers online in varying degrees of newness/price.

Chinese artist Shao Fan's circle chair in stainless steel blends tradition and modernity, East and West. As a work of art, it is also a piece of furniture to be used and collected.

The Frama family, which is very fond of silver metal accents in the home, has also developed an aluminum side table, the Rivet Side Table/Rivet Box Table, which is assembled with a strong sense of design: since aluminum is soft and cannot be easily welded or screwed together, the table uses the traditional Chinese rivet-and-dovetail technique to connect the different components. Each side table costs around 500 euros.

It is very appropriate for a minimalist living room.

French architect Joseph Dirand, who is a fan of minimalist style, used a mirrored metal coffee table in his own apartment in Paris, which became the highlight of the whole space.

Silver metal is also a kitchen décor godsend, thanks to its ease of cleaning and seamlessness when paired with clean white ceramics.

Frama's Rivet Case can be placed horizontally or vertically and is suitable for the living room table. The price is around 1,500 euros.

The Rivet Shelf costs around 500 euros each. It can be mounted on the wall in the living room or kitchen.

The kitchen of the villa has enough space to try a stainless steel center island. Of course, please pay attention to the use of different materials, such as the picture above, using mottled brick old wall, black wooden cabinetry and light wood flooring, so that the space material level rich. If you use too much stainless steel, your kitchen will look like a restaurant kitchen.

Finally, if you have enough power, you can challenge the use of metal surfaces in a larger area of the home. For example, in the space above, the cabinet doors are made of aluminum panels, which become the wall surface. On the one hand, it introduces more soft light into the space (due to the metal reflecting light left and right), and on the other hand, it interacts with Chinese elements like the round windows on one side and the wooden lattice doors in the background, creating a more alternative Zen feel.

The only thing I don't quite agree with is the cactus sculpture in front of the metal wall, although the color combination and the space is very integrated, but it gives a person a kind of frozen desert imagery, making the space seem more cold and lonely. The feeling of home should be cozy and natural, add some greenery to bring it back to life and hope!

The above content was shared by Good Living user Healing Home, hope it can help you~