Going with the flow

For the last 15 years, Normand Mainville, owner of the mid century-modern furniture store Machine Age, has been a Fort Point Channel pioneer, living and working in the artsy industrial loft neighborhood.

But three months ago, Mainville moved out of his 1,800-square-foot loft and into a very sleek and sunny 1,440-square-foot condo in the Trolley House, a new building on West Second Street along the industrial -- but up-and-coming -- fringe of South Boston.

(He is also moving his business from Congress Street, in the heart of Fort Point, closer to the Boston Design Center, where the shop will reopen in September. Machine Age devotees can shop by appointment in the meantime.)

Despite the upheaval, Mainville has settled quite nicely into his new home, although he had to edit his vast chair collection -- he owns 40 Eero Saarinens -- to fit his slightly smaller condo.

``The size of the space is not important," he said. ``It's how you manage the space."

To that end, Mainville checked the dimensions of all his key pieces of art and furniture, including vintage Knoll and Herman Miller credenzas, and then made sure the walls were just the right length to accommodate them. He knocked down a wall, turning two bedrooms into one with an office/sitting area. Then he removed a door between the office and the dining room, for better flow.

``I'm used to a loft," he said. ``I didn't want a dead corner."

He also eliminated from the design such things as classic Barcelona chairs because they were too bulky and partially blocked his view through a bank of windows that line the main wall of the top-floor condo. Mainville kept only 11 chairs, including a Finn Jull, pieces by Wagner, Knoll, Eames, and Jorgen Hovelskov, whose 1968 graceful hammock-like design is made of rope and wood.

``I have pieces that I keep in storage and one day I will live with them," he said.

However, moving your old things to a new place is not just about what will fit in . ``Every place has its own spirit," he said.

To that end, he realized that a yellow Saarinen chair was too bright near a gorgeous fireplace wall clad in maple and granite. So he replaced the chair with an oatmeal-colored one. ``It matches the light, airy feel of the space."

Near the windows he has a wooden bench and wire sculpture, both by Harry Bertoia. The 1954 sofa is Knoll, as is a credenza with rattan doors that was made specifically for IBM, circa 1957. ``It's very rare," he said, admiring the piece. The 1950s coffee table is by French ceramist Capron. Behind the couch, a pair of black leather chairs that Charles Pollock designed for Knoll bracket a Herman Miller credenza with a rosewood top and an ebonized base.

The room is also filled with Edward Wormley side tables, two marble ones and another with rosewood-molded legs. A shiny arching floor ``Argo" lamp and another on the credenza are by Castiglione.

In the dining room, Saarinen chairs surround an oval wood-topped table by Knoll, one of Mainville's favorite designers. The pendant lamp above the dining table is called ``PH Contrast," designed by Louis Poulsen in 1962.

In fact, everywhere you turn is another bold-faced design name. Yet his artwork is also noteworthy, particularly the Miro prints above his bed. And he collects ceramic animals, mostly Danish. ``It's so addictive," he conceded.

Mainville, originally from Montreal, studied architecture. He moved to Boston to operate a franchise on Newbury Street in the 1980s. That's when he began collecting modern furniture. He opened Machine Age in the Fort Point Channel area in 1991, making it one of the few retail shops there for more than a decade. ( There is still very little retail, besides a hardware store and a lighting shop.) ``I was ahead of my time, I guess -- with a vision."

That statement might also hold true for his new neighborhood. All around the 24-unit Trolley House -- where some units are still for sale in the $400,000 to $500,000 range -- new construction is underway up and down West Second Street, hard by warehouses and vacant lots. Next door, at 321 West Second, developer Michael Niskanen, who built the Trolley House, is erecting 15 more condos . At 555 West Second, eight condos designed by Utile (the firm that did the Trolley House with the Office of David Neilson) are being built. ``It's cheaper than the South End," Mainville said. ``You have more space and there's very easy access."