Don S. Shoemaker Coffee and Cocktail Tables
American, 1919-1990
If it weren’t for his honeymoon, American furniture designer Don S. Shoemaker might not have played any role in Mexican modernism of the mid-20th century.
Born in Nebraska in 1919, Shoemaker studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago during the 1930s. In the 1940s he got married, and he and his wife, Barbara, ventured to Mexico for their honeymoon. Enamored with the country, Shoemaker decided that Mexico should become the newlyweds' permanent home. They settled in a town called Santa Maria de Guido in Michoacán, where Shoemaker spent his days painting and growing rare plants.
Through horticulture, Shoemaker became inspired by Mexico’s tropical woods, such as cocobolo, a Mexican rosewood, and he decided to delve into furniture design. In the late 1950s, he started a small factory, producing hand-carved desks, armchairs, dining room tables, decorative boxes and bowls, and serveware. The popularity of Shoemaker’s furnishings grew throughout Mexico, and his small factory became the Señal S.A. company, employing more than 100 skilled artisans and carpenters.
Shoemaker’s handcrafted designs were essentially a mid-century modern interpretation of traditional Mexican household furnishings, and like Clara Porset — an unsung Cuban-born activist, writer and designer who drew on Mexican craft traditions in her concepts for furniture — he found inspiration in his adopted country. These influences can be seen in iconic Shoemaker originals like the Sling collection of seating, the Suspension stool and several of his table designs.
Shoemaker's furniture was exhibited in showrooms in several major Mexican cities and across the U.S., including Houston, Chicago, and Los Angeles. (And mid-century modernist ideas that traveled between Mexico and California didn’t make one-way trips — they bounced back and forth.)
After Shoemaker died in 1990, his son George took over Señal S.A. The company closed after George’s death in the early 2000s.
Shoemaker’s Mexican modern furnishings continue to be coveted by avid furniture collectors around the world. From 2016 to 2017, the Museum of Modern Art in Mexico City dedicated a retrospective exhibition to honoring his work.
On 1stDibs, discover a range of vintage Don S. Shoemaker desks, seating, decorative objects and serveware.
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Creator: Don S. Shoemaker
Mexican Modern, Rectangular coffee table, 1960's Don S. Shoemaker
By Don S. Shoemaker
Located in Uccle, BE
Label: Señal S.A.Hecho en Mexico.
Cocobolo wood and black leather mid-century modern coffee table from the sixties. The leather has a beautiful sensual feel and is in excellent cond...
Category
20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Don S. Shoemaker Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Materials
Leather, Cocobolo
Don Shoemaker Sculpted Rosewood & Leather Coffee Table for Señal Furniture
By Senal, Don S. Shoemaker
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Transforming a piece of Mid-Century Modern furniture is like bringing history back to life, and we take this journey with passion and precision. With over 17 years of artisanal exper...
Category
1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Vintage Don S. Shoemaker Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Materials
Leather, Rosewood, Cocobolo
Don Shoemaker Senal S.A. Cocobolo Rosewood Parquetry Table, Mid Century
By Senal, Don S. Shoemaker
Located in Vienna, AT
Rare parquetry rosewood table in wonderful condition, Don Shoemaker 1960
We also have a rare sofa available from Don Shoemaker.
A sculptural masterpiece by Don Shoemaker. We have this table in our collection at the moment together with a matching sofa...
Category
1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Vintage Don S. Shoemaker Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Materials
Rosewood
Don Shoemaker Mid-Century Modern Coffee Table with Leather Top
By Don S. Shoemaker
Located in Mexico City, CDMX
We offer this fantastic coffee table made in pieces of solid cocobolo wood with leather top designed by Don Shoemaker for Señal S.A., circa 1960
About Don Shoemaker:
Coming from an affluent family, Don was originally from Nebraska. During the 1930s he studied at the fine Arts Institute of Chicago thinking to become a painter. Visiting Mexico for his honeymoon he fell in love with the country and he finally decided to move to Mexico in the late 1940s. He lived for a while and painted in San Miguel Allende, Guanajuato, but finally he settled down in a little uphill town called Santa María de Guido, overseeing the city of Morelia, in the state of Michoacan, Mexico.
Don began the manufacture of his furniture in tropical precious woods and other wood products. What started as a little factory in the late 1950s called SEÑAL, S.A., grew to the point where Don employed more than a hundred skilled craftsmen. Soon Shoemaker became an important milestone of the economic and cultural life of his adopted home. SEÑAL, S.A. brought great wealth and economical boost to the village and Don was well known for his good heart and charity projects.
Don S. Shoemaker delivered furniture pieces in to his showrooms in Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston and large cities in Mexico. His designs were very much appreciated by wealthy Mexican families...
Category
1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Vintage Don S. Shoemaker Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Materials
Cocobolo
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Don S. Shoemaker coffee and cocktail tables for sale on 1stDibs.
Don S. Shoemaker coffee and cocktail tables are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of wood and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Don S. Shoemaker coffee and cocktail tables, although brown editions of this piece are particularly popular. Many of the original coffee and cocktail tables by Don S. Shoemaker were created in the mid-century modern style in north america during the 1960s. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider coffee and cocktail tables by Genaro Alvarez, and Arturo Pani. Prices for Don S. Shoemaker coffee and cocktail tables can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $2,895 and can go as high as $4,500, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $3,900.
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