Dunbar On Sale
Vintage 1950s North American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
Mahogany
Vintage 1950s Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Walnut
Vintage 1950s Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Walnut
Vintage 1970s Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs and Desk Chairs
Chrome
Vintage 1950s Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Mahogany
Vintage 1940s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Mahogany
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern End Tables
Carrara Marble, Brass
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Bronze, Wrought Iron
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Stools
Wool, Upholstery, Mahogany
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
Wood, Mahogany, Cork
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Walnut
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Brass
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs and Desk Chairs
Metal
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Desks
Oak, Rosewood
Vintage 1950s Mid-Century Modern Slipper Chairs
Bouclé
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Wood
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Fabric, Mahogany
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Carts and Bar Carts
Wood, Cork
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Tables
Wood
Vintage 1960s North American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Ash
Vintage 1970s Mid-Century Modern Benches
Wood
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery
Vintage 1970s Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Chrome
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Dry Bars
Walnut
Mid-20th Century North American Modern Nesting Tables and Stacking Tables
Walnut
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Side Tables
Walnut
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Steel
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Mahogany
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Walnut
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Cabinets
Walnut
Mid-20th Century North American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Mahogany
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Walnut, Glass
Mid-20th Century North American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Walnut
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Cotton, Walnut
Mid-20th Century North American Mid-Century Modern Stools
Mohair, Wood
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Wood, Upholstery
Vintage 1970s British Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
Nutwood
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
Bronze
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Cane, Mahogany
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Pedestals
Burl
Vintage 1940s American Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
Brass
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
Mahogany, Rosewood
Mid-20th Century North American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail T...
Oak
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern End Tables
Wood
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern End Tables
Wood
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Brass
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Bronze
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Slipper Chairs
Upholstery, Mahogany
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Upholstery
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Slipper Chairs
Upholstery
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Club Chairs
Leather, Mahogany
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Sets
Fabric, Mahogany, Rosewood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Upholstery
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Wood
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Upholstery
Vintage 1960s American Credenzas
Stainless Steel
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Travertine
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Dunbar On Sale For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a Dunbar On Sale?
Dunbar Furniture for sale on 1stDibs
Revered for its handcrafted and highly collectible mid-century modern sofas, coffee tables and other furnishings, Dunbar Furniture was founded in 1910 in Berne, Indiana, but it didn’t gain widespread recognition until the ’30s, following the introduction of its president to a designer who would leave an indelible mark on the company’s legacy: Edward Wormley.
After a stint at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Oswego, Illinois-born Wormley worked as an interior designer for Marshall Field’s before joining Dunbar in 1931. Initially focused on developing the company’s cheapest furniture line, which could be bought with soap coupons, he was soon leading Dunbar Furniture into a new era of residential furniture for modern American homes. He would serve as the company’s design director for over three decades, designing about 150 pieces each year.
During that time, he oversaw the production of designs in a wide range of materials, with influences ranging from Scandinavian modernism to Art Deco. There were modern upholstery pieces, like swiveling lounge chairs and low-slung sofas, and experiments with textural wood on bar carts and cabinets as well as minimal, sculptural tables and functional office furniture. A passionate collector of Tiffany Studios lamps, Wormley used their glass tiles in Dunbar tables in 1956. He also worked on the reproduction of pieces by designers such as Jean-Michel Frank and Richard Riemerschmid.
One standout Dunbar Furniture collection was Janus, introduced in the 1960s, with Austrian-born ceramicists Otto and Gertrud Natzler. These pieces see the Natzlers’ uniquely artful ceramic tiles set into several styles of wooden tables. They remain some of the most sought-after mid-century modern Dunbar pieces on the vintage market today. During the peak of his design career and, indeed, the height of Dunbar Furniture’s history, Wormley amassed a whopping 30 Good Design awards between 1950 and 1955 through the “Good Design” exhibition, hosted by the Chicago Merchandise Mart and the Museum of Modern Art. Dunbar today produces a limited selection of archival Wormley designs, but many sales of original Dunbar pieces are through the resale market.
Find a collection of authentic vintage Dunbar Furniture today on 1stDibs.
A Close Look at Mid-Century Modern Furniture
Organically shaped, clean-lined and elegantly simple are three terms that well describe vintage mid-century modern furniture. The style, which emerged primarily in the years following World War II, is characterized by pieces that were conceived and made in an energetic, optimistic spirit by creators who believed that good design was an essential part of good living.
ORIGINS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
- Emerged during the mid-20th century
- Informed by European modernism, Bauhaus, International style, Scandinavian modernism and Frank Lloyd Wright’s architecture
- A heyday of innovation in postwar America
- Experimentation with new ideas, new materials and new forms flourished in Scandinavia, Italy, the former Czechoslovakia and elsewhere in Europe
CHARACTERISTICS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
- Simplicity, organic forms, clean lines
- A blend of neutral and bold Pop art colors
- Use of natural and man-made materials — alluring woods such as teak, rosewood and oak; steel, fiberglass and molded plywood
- Light-filled spaces with colorful upholstery
- Glass walls and an emphasis on the outdoors
- Promotion of functionality
MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW
- Charles and Ray Eames
- Eero Saarinen
- Milo Baughman
- Florence Knoll
- Harry Bertoia
- Isamu Noguchi
- George Nelson
- Danish modernists Hans Wegner and Arne Jacobsen, whose emphasis on natural materials and craftsmanship influenced American designers and vice versa
ICONIC MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNS
- Eames lounge chair
- Nelson daybed
- Florence Knoll sofa
- Egg chair
- Womb chair
- Noguchi coffee table
- Barcelona chair
VINTAGE MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS
The mid-century modern era saw leagues of postwar American architects and designers animated by new ideas and new technology. The lean, functionalist International-style architecture of Le Corbusier and Bauhaus eminences Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Walter Gropius had been promoted in the United States during the 1930s by Philip Johnson and others. New building techniques, such as “post-and-beam” construction, allowed the International-style schemes to be realized on a small scale in open-plan houses with long walls of glass.
Materials developed for wartime use became available for domestic goods and were incorporated into mid-century modern furniture designs. Charles and Ray Eames and Eero Saarinen, who had experimented extensively with molded plywood, eagerly embraced fiberglass for pieces such as the La Chaise and the Womb chair, respectively.
Architect, writer and designer George Nelson created with his team shades for the Bubble lamp using a new translucent polymer skin and, as design director at Herman Miller, recruited the Eameses, Alexander Girard and others for projects at the legendary Michigan furniture manufacturer.
Harry Bertoia and Isamu Noguchi devised chairs and tables built of wire mesh and wire struts. Materials were repurposed too: The Danish-born designer Jens Risom created a line of chairs using surplus parachute straps for webbed seats and backrests.
The Risom lounge chair was among the first pieces of furniture commissioned and produced by legendary manufacturer Knoll, a chief influencer in the rise of modern design in the United States, thanks to the work of Florence Knoll, the pioneering architect and designer who made the firm a leader in its field. The seating that Knoll created for office spaces — as well as pieces designed by Florence initially for commercial clients — soon became desirable for the home.
As the demand for casual, uncluttered furnishings grew, more mid-century furniture designers caught the spirit.
Classically oriented creators such as Edward Wormley, house designer for Dunbar Inc., offered such pieces as the sinuous Listen to Me chaise; the British expatriate T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings switched gears, creating items such as the tiered, biomorphic Mesa table. There were Young Turks such as Paul McCobb, who designed holistic groups of sleek, blond wood furniture, and Milo Baughman, who espoused a West Coast aesthetic in minimalist teak dining tables and lushly upholstered chairs and sofas with angular steel frames.
As the collection of vintage mid-century modern chairs, dressers, coffee tables and other furniture for the living room, dining room, bedroom and elsewhere on 1stDibs demonstrates, this period saw one of the most delightful and dramatic flowerings of creativity in design history.