The 22nd Century - New York (Patreon)

Art by Nick Raimo

Mid-century modern architecture and interior design has always fascinated me. I'm not alone in that respect. It's long been celebrated in magazines, films, tv shows, and countless books.

My introduction to the style came while viewing North by Northwest as a kid. The Vandamm House, the featured set-piece at the climax of the movie, was set against the backdrop of Mt. Rushmore. The exteriors were striking, in particular how it fit so well into the environment. The interiors were truly about form and function. Everything in the house drew you out into the social areas. It felt lived in, yet clean and sleek at the same time.

Mid-century modern still exists today, side-by-side with styles that came before it, and the ones that have populated the landscape since. It is possible that by the turn of the 22nd Century a movement could exist similar to the Gothic Revival of the early 19th Century -- a Mid-century Revival, perhaps. In which society re-embraces its themes and designs.

I conveyed that idea to artist Nick Raimo when I commissioned him to draw this piece. In it Sam, a writer living in New York City, sits in his apartment, a throwback to an era that thrived 150-years ago.

More on Sam, Mid-century modern and The 22nd Century soon...