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design speak: campaign furniture + prizmic & brill

I’ve never heard of the term campaign furniture until last year when I came to know about the brand Prizmic & Brill. I don’t think we’ve covered that furniture style in any of our history classes (unless I wasn’t paying attention in class and missed the discussion altogether, tsk tsk).

If you’re familiar with the movie Out of Africa (below), starring Meryl Streep and Robert Redford, the film features typical campaign furniture since the story depicted the African Colonial life during the British Empire.

Campaign furniture refers to those knock-down (whose parts could be disassembled for packing) and foldable furniture pieces designed for travel, especially during the eigteenth and early nineteenth centuries. The term “campaign” refers to military campaigns, even those as early as the time of Julius Caesar, whose traveling armies required furnishings that can be easily folded or dismantled, packed, and carried off on the march.

However, it was only during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries of the Georgian and Victorian periods that campaign furniture became popular and stylish. These periods saw the rise and expansion of the British Empire especially in Africa and India. As high-ranking British officers were sent off to military campaigns, they demanded to have the comfortable lifestyle that they have been accustomed to at home even if they were living “under the canvas” (in a camp). This demand encouraged British furniture makers to produce a kind of furniture fit for this new class of traveler. (info based on Wikipedia)

Campaign furnishings are still being manufactured today as a type of period style furniture. I know that Prizmic & Brill is a brand that specializes in such pieces. But it was only last month, during MyHome’s photo shoot in their store in Greenbelt, when I learned that Prizmic & Brill is a local brand after all. This Pampanga-based furniture manufacturer has been around since 1986. Initially, they were just producing campaign style trunks and accessories. Later on, the brand eventually ventured in the production furniture pieces and interior accessories.

Prizmic & Brill is located at the 3/F of Greenbelt 5 in Makati. Visit their site HERE for more details.

Watch out for MyHome’s July 2010 issue where I’ll be featuring Prizmic & Brill’s pieces for a home-office-under-the-stairs in the Space Starter’s section.