How to Design Modern Office Furniture

Modern office furniture design must achieve a balance between form and function. Since this design emphasizes minimalism and clean lines, a furniture piece must achieve this aesthetic while incorporating electronic devices with cords and accessories that may detract from it. The task of the modern furniture designer is thus to make today's work space feel organic and uncluttered.

Instructions

Designing a Modern Office Desk

1

Browse through online images of modern office furniture for design inspiration. Look for designs that stand out, and pick a certain element in your overall desk design to serve as the focal point. Capture the essence of modern design by combining clean lines and an organic or reclaimed element. Modern furniture designer Andre Joyau uses this technique to create stunning furniture pieces that could stand alone as works of art. (Reference 3)

2

Draw the basic shape of the desk on graph paper using a pencil. Draw chunky straight legs to create a visual anchor for the desk.

3

Make the top of the desk the focal point. Design the desk to include a reclaimed barn board top. Use the distressed boards to add an organic element that will contrast with the other parts of the design.

4

Draw a storage drawer underneath the desk top. Conceal the drawer by adding an apron that is set inside the top by at least six inches. Make the apron continue around the entire desk. Indicate holes in the back of the desktop to allow for cords and cables to be routed neatly off the desk top and concealed behind the desk.

5

Note in the margin that the desktop is to be left in its natural color. State that a clear lacquer coating should be applied to the top. Indicate that the legs and apron should be a sleek modern color such as a gunpowder gray or matte black to allow the single organic and reclaimed element, the top, to stand out.