Hideous upholstery on modern pieces  

Omigosh!
That looks like what happens when someone with no knowledge of MCM or Scand-sense hires same from a craigslist upholstery ad!
C'est dommage! Tabernacle! Mon Dieu!

Hehe!
Read my mind.

Well, it can be yours
For $650.

Let me start by saying that...
Let me start by saying that I do not love it so much that I would spend $650.00
For all those zebra "haters" out there I'd like to offer the following (and I do have at least a modicum of both MCM and Scand-sense)
-dolts (with neither MCM or Scand-sense) like Josef Frank, Alvar Aalto and Robert Mallet-Stevens have incorporated zebra hides and prints in modern designs since the 1920's The Aalto chairs are still offered in Zebra print today.
- Its a Pollack chair for god's sake (originally designed in 1965). Zebra is perfectly appropriate..... Its not the same as an egg chair upholstered in patchwork.

Noted.
The examples you showed are true zebra hide (or more realistic zebra print), with which I have less of a problem, from an aesthetic standpoint.
The applied zebra print on the Pollock chair is much worse, but perhaps not quite "hideous" to many (judging from the reactions here).
Poor / questionable taste can exist even in modernism.
P.S. I'm not sure if zebra print on an executive office chair qualifies as "perfectly appropriate".

"P.S. I'm not sure if...
"P.S. I'm not sure if zebra print on an executive office chair qualifies as 'perfectly appropriate'"
Touché! 😉 Indeed, all valid points.

Comment on the...
Comment on the Volkswagen.
I do not know all the factual details but the multi-colored VW was a huge artistic success.
There were limited numbers of Golfs that had their panels switched around at the factory. No two were the same.
They are collectible and in my opinion... original, fun and cool and fit VW's image perfectly.
Now, if say Ford did this today, it would be cheesy.

As I said, I'd like to say I hate...
But I just can't.
Faux office tacky?
Yes.
In a good way?
Maybe?

Geez!
Geez, Jesgord, I was replying to the original post (daybed) and have no beef (haha) with the Zebra. As a former roller derby queen related, BTW, to Mallet-Stevens the zebra was my daemon on wheels and as long as no real zebras are harmed, I'm happy.

way back
Crap. my photobucket is acting up.

Oy vey
"Girard" upholstery...
Phhhffffbbbbbb

Diamonds
Are not a modernist's best friend.

.
From a distance there is harmony
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeBMHnJqAvM

Jesus Woody...
That lizagator chair made me laugh so hard, milk came out of my nose....but the flamestich sofa...priceless.

Knoll
This could not be original?