Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
The sculptor and painter Pedro Friedeberg works in a richly detailed, Surrealist and eccentric artistic style that blends influences from neoclassical art, M.C. Escher and native Mesoamerican symbolism. He is best known for his Hand chair — a functional sculpture that is an icon of design-as-art.
Friedeberg was born in Florence to German parents and moved with his mother to Mexico at the outset of World War II. As a university student in Mexico City in the 1950s, he initially studied architecture, but his designs for fantastical buildings ran afoul of his rationalist, Bauhaus-oriented teachers.
By chance, Friedeberg’s drawings came to the attention of Mathias Goeritz, the German-born Dadaist painter and sculptor. He encouraged Friedeberg and made him a protégé. Friedeberg credits his mentor for instilling in him a fanatical attention to detail in his work. Friedeberg produced his first Hand chair in 1961, and has since created numerous iterations. He has also made several variants using other human limbs in different functional forms such as tables and clocks.
While Friedeberg’s sculptures have a gentle character that is sometimes described as spiritual, his paintings and prints are something entirely different. He employs deep perspective to create hypnotic, painstakingly rendered canvases that suggest rooms and cityscapes.
Whatever the medium, Friedeberg’s work is arresting and instantly recognizable. The Hand chair, though familiar, remains a captivating piece — both furniture and artwork — that stands apart in any interior. Examples are often priced between $20,000 and $30,000, depending on formal variations (such as a foot-shaped pedestal), material and condition. Smaller functional items such as tabletop clocks bring about $9,000. His paintings and drawings require space; they are meant to be contemplated. Prices on original examples start at about $30,000; prints generally sell in the region of $900.
As you will see on 1stDibs, the art and design of Pedro Friedeberg is singular and memorable.
1990s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Cotton
21st Century and Contemporary Mexican Post-Modern Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Mexican Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
1970s Mexican Modern Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Plexiglass, Paper
1970s Mexican Modern Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Glass, Wood, Giltwood, Paper
1980s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
1970s Mexican Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Acrylic
1970s Mexican Modern Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Glass, Wood, Giltwood, Paper
1960s Mexican Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Wood
1960s Mexican Modern Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
1960s Mexican Modern Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paint
1960s Swedish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paint, Paper
1940s Art Deco Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
Mid-20th Century American Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Masonite
1960s British Modern Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
Mid-20th Century Spanish Mid-Century Modern Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Stainless Steel
2010s American Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
20th Century Mexican Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paint
1970s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary English Other Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
1930s Lithuanian Art Deco Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Glass, Paper, Wood
2010s American Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
2010s American Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
Early 2000s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
1990s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Cotton
20th Century Mexican Other Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
20th Century Mexican Other Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
1970s Mexican Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
1960s Mexican Modern Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Gold Leaf
2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
1980s Mexican Modern Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Wood, Paper, Glass
Early 2000s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
1980s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Vintage Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper
Early 2000s Mexican Pedro Friedeberg Wall Decorations
Paper