Mid Century Furniture By Thonet
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Loveseats
Leather, Walnut
Mid-20th Century Czech Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Rocking Chairs
Aluminum
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Upholstery, Walnut
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Naugahyde, Walnut
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Chrome
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Upholstery, Wood
20th Century North American Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
Chrome
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Birch, Upholstery, Bentwood
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Birch, Upholstery, Bentwood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Maple, Leather
Vintage 1960s Danish Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Naugahyde, Wood
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Naugahyde, Birch
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Chairs
Bentwood, Cowhide
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs and Desk Chairs
Aluminum
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Upholstery, Birch, Bentwood
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
Wood
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Birch, Bentwood
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Birch, Bentwood
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
Wood
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Club Chairs
Chrome
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Birch, Bentwood
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Side Chairs
Bentwood, Faux Leather
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Birch, Bentwood
Vintage 1930s Polish Campaign Stools
Cane, Beech
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Steel, Chrome
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Leather, Bentwood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Children's Furniture
Bentwood
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Birch, Bentwood
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Birch, Bentwood
Antique 19th Century German Mid-Century Modern Children's Furniture
Wood, Bentwood
Vintage 1970s Mid-Century Modern Rocking Chairs
Chrome
20th Century English Arts and Crafts Chairs
Wood
Vintage 1930s German Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
Steel
Vintage 1930s German Mid-Century Modern Console Tables
Chrome
Vintage 1950s Czech Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs and Desk Chairs
Faux Leather, Wood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Rocking Chairs
Rattan, Wood
Vintage 1980s Austrian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
Wood, Leather
Vintage 1970s Austrian Mid-Century Modern Stools
Leather, Bentwood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Upholstery, Wood, Bentwood
Mid-20th Century American Scandinavian Modern Side Tables
Wood, Plywood
20th Century Polish Mid-Century Modern Chairs
Rattan, Oak
Vintage 1930s German Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Metal
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Side Tables
Laminate, Bentwood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Stools
Bentwood, Beech
Vintage 1950s Czech Mid-Century Modern Chairs
Fabric, Beech
Vintage 1970s European Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Chrome
Mid-20th Century German Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Chrome
Mid-20th Century Polish Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Faux Leather, Wood, Hardwood, Beech, Bentwood
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Bentwood, Naugahyde
Early 20th Century Mid-Century Modern Chairs
Plywood
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs and Desk Chairs
Aluminum, Steel
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
Vintage 1950s Unknown Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Brass
Mid-20th Century Czech Art Deco Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Wood, Beech, Walnut
Vintage 1950s Austrian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
Faux Leather, Wood
Vintage 1950s Polish Mid-Century Modern Chairs
Beech
Mid-20th Century Polish Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Bentwood, Wood
Mid-20th Century Czech Industrial Chairs
Wood, Bentwood, Plywood
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Mid Century Furniture By Thonet For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a Mid Century Furniture By Thonet?
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.
Finding the Right seating for You
With entire areas of our homes reserved for “sitting rooms,” the value of quality antique and vintage seating cannot be overstated.
Fortunately, the design of side chairs, armchairs and other lounge furniture — since what were, quite literally, the early perches of our ancestors — has evolved considerably.
Among the earliest standard seating furniture were stools. Egyptian stools, for example, designed for one person with no seat back, were x-shaped and typically folded to be tucked away. These rudimentary chairs informed the design of Greek and Roman stools, all of which were a long way from Sori Yanagi's Butterfly stool or Alvar Aalto's Stool 60. In the 18th century and earlier, seats with backs and armrests were largely reserved for high nobility.
The seating of today is more inclusive but the style and placement of chairs can still make a statement. Antique desk chairs and armchairs designed in the style of Louis XV, which eventually included painted furniture and were often made of rare woods, feature prominently curved legs as well as Chinese themes and varied ornaments. Much like the thrones of fairy tales and the regency, elegant lounges crafted in the Louis XV style convey wealth and prestige. In the kitchen, the dining chair placed at the head of the table is typically reserved for the head of the household or a revered guest.
Of course, with luxurious vintage or antique furnishings, every chair can seem like the best seat in the house. Whether your preference is stretching out on a plush sofa, such as the Serpentine, designed by Vladimir Kagan, or cozying up in a vintage wingback chair, there is likely to be a comfy classic or contemporary gem for you on 1stDibs.
With respect to the latest obsessions in design, cane seating has been cropping up everywhere, from sleek armchairs to lounge chairs, while bouclé fabric, a staple of modern furniture design, can be seen in mid-century modern, Scandinavian modern and Hollywood Regency furniture styles.
Admirers of the sophisticated craftsmanship and dark woods frequently associated with mid-century modern seating can find timeless furnishings in our expansive collection of lounge chairs, dining chairs and other items — whether they’re vintage editions or alluring official reproductions of iconic designs from the likes of Hans Wegner or from Charles and Ray Eames. Shop our inventory of Egg chairs, designed in 1958 by Arne Jacobsen, the Florence Knoll lounge chair and more.
No matter your style, the collection of unique chairs, sofas and other seating on 1stDibs is surely worthy of a standing ovation.
- What is mid century furniture?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertFebruary 22, 2021Mid-century furniture is furniture created within the period of 1933 to 1965 but most would argue that the style began to emerge in the postwar years. This style of furniture is known for its sleek lines and organic shapes. The creators most frequently associated with mid-century modern furniture believed that good design meant good living. Mid-century modern is today by far the largest category of furnishings on 1stDibs.
- 1stDibs ExpertMay 22, 2019
Mid-century modernism first appeared in 1945 and merged a minimalist aesthetic with practicality. Mid-century modern furniture is distinguishable by its lack of decoration or extravagance and its use of clean lines, organic curves and variety of natural materials.
1stDibs ExpertFebruary 22, 2021Mid century modern furniture refers to pieces designed during the middle of the 20th century — specifically 1930s through the mid-1960s. This period represents a design and architecture movement characterized by simple shapes, clean lines, and organic materials. Some of the most famous mid century modern designers include Ray Eames, Charlotte Perriand, Isamu Noguchi and Eero Saarinen. - 1stDibs ExpertMay 5, 2023To tell if furniture is mid-century modern, examine the piece, looking for labels and markings that indicate who produced it. Then, consult trusted online resources to determine when the maker was active and what styles of furniture they made. Iconic mid-century modern furniture designers include Charles and Ray Eames, Eero Saarinen, Milo Baughman, Florence Knoll, Harry Bertoia and Isamu Noguchi. A knowledgeable dealer or certified appraiser can help you determine if a particular piece is genuine mid-century modern or a reproduction. Shop a range of mid-century modern furniture on 1stDibs.
- 1stDibs ExpertSeptember 25, 2019
Mid-century modern furniture combines sleek lines with organic shapes.
- 1stDibs ExpertFebruary 13, 2024Mid-century modern furniture is so popular largely because its characteristics align well with the trends and tastes that are dominant today. Many people love its simple look defined by clean lines, and the use of natural materials also adds to its popularity. In addition, designers created mid-century modern furniture to be as functional as it is visually appealing, making pieces executed in the style simple, convenient and comfortable to use. Find a wide range of mid-century modern furniture on 1stDibs.
- 1stDibs ExpertApril 22, 2024There is not a single year that is mid-century modern. The style emerged during the 1940s and 1950s and remained dominant through the 1960s and into the early 1970s. Some notable designers who contributed to the development of the mid-century modern style include Charles and Ray Eames, Eero Saarinen, Milo Baughman, Florence Knoll, Harry Bertoia, Isamu Noguchi and George Nelson. Shop a wide range of mid-century modern furniture on 1stDibs.
- 1stDibs ExpertSeptember 25, 2019
Some of the most famous mid-century modern furniture designers were Alvar Aalto, Charles and Ray Eames, Paul Evans, Poul Kjærholm, Florence Knoll, George Nakashima, Giò Ponti, Hans Wegner, Charlotte Perriand, Sergio Rodrigues and Eero Saarinen.
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