The company’s name says it all. The product range offered by German furniture and lamp maker ClassiCon unites the classical legacy of the early 20th century with the contemporary avantgarde. A successor to the Vereinigte Werkstätten in Munich, the producer succeeded in the 1990s in developing a distinct profile that derives its fascination from the dialogue between re- editions of classical modernist pieces and up-to-the-minute designs. A leading role in the collection of re-editions is played by one of the few women to ascend to the design firmament, Eileen Gray of Ireland. Many of the best-known designs by the Paris-based talent are now being produced in Germany and sold worldwide. Also featured at ClassiCon is the work of US designer Norman Cherner, who made important contributions to 1950s furniture styles. This historical focus is complemented by a few pieces by Otto Blümel, the former director of the drawing school at the Vereinigte Werkstätten, as well as objects that Eckart Muthesius conceived for the Maharaja’s palace in Indore. Some of the most delightful objects of the 1930s were created for this exotic project, moulded by the patrician taste of the client, who prized clear contours. In the contemporary department, the Dia tubular steel garden furniture series by onetime Munich resident Gioia Meller Marcovicz builds a bridge to classical Modernism. From Munich-based Christoph Böninger come the Sax folding table and the Acca shelf. One of the newer pieces is the Satyr easychair, designed by the Austrian studio ForUse, in which retro and contemporary aesthetics meet and meld. Last but not least, the longstanding collaboration with Konstantin Grcic, likewise based in Munich, gives the ClassiCon program its present- day relevance. His slanting geometric furniture series Chaos, Mars and Diana, standouts in the company’s Contempora collection from contemporary designers, reflect the bravado of both their designer and the manufacturer. These products go beyond a mere facile desire to please, exhibiting with their echoes of the functionalism and matter-of-fact forms realized by designers such as Herbert H. Schultes or Swiss studio N2 the company’s ambitious stance. This dedication has brought ClassiCon to the fore as one of Germany’s premier design-oriented brands.