Modern Southern Design

An oxymoron? Not at Robin Wade Furniture. Modern Southern design abounds at Robin Wade Furniture’s Florence, Alabama, Slow Studio. Wood artist Wade's aesthetic, something he calls both rustic, "obviously from nature," he says, and modern, "minimal, with straight, clean lines," he says, celebrates Mother Nature’s inherent artistry. Although Wade’s tables and benches accentuate each log’s curved, natural shape and imperfections—knots, holes, splits, and cracks—the resulting look is quite sleek and contemporary in its simplistic, clean approach.  In his drive to be certain that Mother Nature remains the artist, Wade takes inspiration from each piece of lumber, letting the wood divine its shape, stature, and next life as furniture. In addition, Wade finishes pieces with a hand-rubbed coat of oil so that the natural wood grain brings texture and life to each table and bench. Inspired, in part, by the work of George Nakashima, Robin Wade Furniture’s modern southern design is speaking volumes to the marrying of modern and Mother Nature.