For years (and years) I’ve been a fan of industrial “antiques”.  Perhaps it’s my fondness for Chaplin’s “Modern Times”, or the design school attempt I had at creating a chaise lounge from a giant gear and some corrugated steel.  Whatever the inspiration, I still find the rusted, battered ghosts of the machine age inspiring.

Cleveland Art is a paradise to someone with my quirky aesthetic.  Founded in 1994 by Jason Wein, who saw the potential of industrial machinery and surplus being re-purposed and recycled as functional design, Cleveland Art has become a draw for many designers and architects.  Each piece is truly unique, and lends a sense of purpose both fulfilled, and reclaimed, that cannot be replicated.

A perfect coffee table, made from a vintage factory cart

Recycled glass is another favorite medium for Jason Wein, and the freeform shapes of his vases, bowls and light fixtures are perfect foils to the hard, metallic edges of the vintage factory pieces.

Freeform glass bowls

There are a million ways to use this terrific table.  TV console?   Cocktail cart?  Dog house?  I want to buy it and play!

And who… WHO wouldn’t want their very own, explosion proof cabinet???

Cleveland Art receives new shipments frequently, so make sure you check back from time to time.  You never know what they’ll come up with.