Chairmania Finds a Permanent Home at the Grand Rapids Public Museum

Growing up in New York City, I was surrounded by chairs. My father, George M. Beylerian, was known as a visionary of modern design,  an importer of furniture created by designers from across Europe and beyond, for both home and office. Our house was an eclectic realm of modern furniture, endless varieties of chairs in every room, and modern and contemporary art,  his other great passion,  on every wall.

A devout collector, my father eventually turned his eye toward miniature chairs. What began as a passion project grew into a celebrated collection, a book entitled Chairmania, and a traveling exhibition, with designers and artists from around the world contributing pieces along the way.

“Growing up, I made art for my father — for Father’s Day, Christmas, his birthday. It became a ritual that continued my entire life. These chairs were sculptural works of art I made for him and his collection, from my heart to his,  a bridge, a way to connect father and son on a level that spoke to him. He wasn’t the type of father to play catch or ride bikes; he never learned. His idea of fun was visiting museums, galleries, and artists’ studios. You don’t need a degree in psychology to see why I became the artist I am today.”

A Home in America’s Furniture City

A curated selection of the finest pieces from Chairmania is now part of the permanent collection at the Grand Rapids Public Museum. My father chose Grand Rapids deliberately,  the city’s deep historical legacy earned it a global reputation as America’s “Furniture City,” making it the natural home for a collection devoted to the art of the chair.

Rather than functional furniture, Chairmania celebrates the miniature: three-dimensional works representing diverse movements in furniture design and artistic expression from around the globe. The collection is woven into the museum’s broader celebration of design and local industrial history, including interactive spaces like the Furniture Factory Exhibit, where families and students study these historic miniatures and design their own scale-model furniture from recycled materials alongside design experts.

Visitors anywhere in the world can browse the full collection of miniature chairs through the Grand Rapids Public Museum Online Collection.