The Thayer Coggin and Milo Baughman 60th Anniversary "whistle stop" tour continues!  Next week they're hitting the west coast at yet another Contemporary Design Group Store, Lawrance Furniture in San Diego, CA.

Mid-century modern fans, listen up!  Twenty-one exclusive designs will be featured in the Roadshow Event, including the Scoop Chair and Circle sofa, made famous by the duo.

In many ways, a California stop is a bit of a homecoming for these iconic designs.  Milo Baughman was raised in Long Beach, CA and studied at the Art Institute of Los Angeles and the Chouinard Art Institute (later to become the California Institute of the Arts, located north of Los Angeles).  It was here that Baughman began to develop and evolve the trademark style that he and Thayer Coggin would later make famous.

Southern Californians will have two opportunities to attend a cocktail reception featuring a lecture on Thayer Coggin and Milo Baughman, given by Phil Miller, Director of Sales and Marketing for Thayer Coggin.  Select pieces will also be available at Lawrance Furniture locations through December.  To learn more, visit Lawrance Furniture at www.lawrance.com

This year Thayer Coggin is celebrating the big 6-0 by hitting the road.  The Roadshow, titled “Thayer Coggin and Milo Baughman: A Design Union” will be touring the nation making stops in 23 cities. 

CDG stores will be hosting the show in the following cities: Richmond, VA (La Difference), Boston, MA (Circle Furniture), Pittsburg, PA (Perlora), Boca Raton, FL (Sklar Furnishings), Oklahoma City, OK (Suburban Contemporary), and San Diego, CA (Lawrance Furniture).  La Difference in Richmond, VA was the third stop on the tour and owners Sarah Paxton and Andy Thornton shared their experience with us.

CDG:  What are your personal thoughts about Thayer Coggin and the mid-century modern trend?

LaDiff: “We have been Thayer Coggin fans for years.  We love hearing the stories about how Mr. Coggin and Milo Baughman met, formed a business relationship of 50 years with a handshake, and basically created the mid-century modern upholstery movement.”
“Mid-century design came out of the technology of the 40’s, developed during the war to streamline production, incorporate plastics, bent veneers, and lighter weight materials into useable objects, and to celebrate the ‘form + function’ ideas.  Milo Baughman should be as celebrated as Charles and Ray Eames for his designs.  They are as classic, functional, and beautiful today as when they were first introduced.  While it’s true that Don Draper, the philandering marketing guy from ‘Mad Men’ (the AMC drama series), may have helped bring mid-century design to the fore front for many Americans, mid-century furniture design has become as ‘classic’ as Chippendale, Queen Anne, Colonial, or French Provincial.”

CDG: How was the roadshow experience?

LaDiff:  “Our staff are huge Thayer Coggin fans, so the energy and excitement going into the Road Show was palpable.  Our guests on our special cocktail night were real aficionados. Everyone there was eager to hear about the history of the company, presented by Phil Miller, VP of Sales and Marketing for Thayer Coggin.”

CDG: Any favorite pieces, eras or colors?

LaDiff: “Picking a favorite Baughman piece is like choosing a favorite pet!”  

Sarah’s personal favorite is the Groovy swivel chair because it is such a statement piece; but is also fond of the Viceroy recliner and Boldido chair and ottoman (the only design Milo did in the 1980’s).  As a former woodworker, Andy loves all of the chairs with the solid walnut arms and the olive burl elm tables. Both love the turquoise upholstery option.

“For us, the best part of the show was seeing the history.  The Road Show was curated by date, so you could walk through the pieces from 1953 to 1997 and see the changes to Mr. Baughman’s designs.” Sarah says