Dunbar Janus Lounge Chair
View Similar Items
Dunbar Janus Lounge Chair
About the Item
- Creator:Edward Wormley (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 30 in (76.2 cm)Width: 26 in (66.04 cm)Depth: 22.5 in (57.15 cm)Seat Height: 15.5 in (39.37 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Needs re-covered. Frame of chair is darker than the one actually shown.
- Seller Location:Dallas, TX
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU87851085616
Edward Wormley
As the longtime director of design for the Dunbar furniture company, Edward Wormley was, along with such peers as George Nelson at Herman Miller Inc., and Florence Knoll of Knoll Inc., one of the leading forces in bringing modern design into American homes in the mid-20th century. Not an axiomatic modernist, Wormley deeply appreciated traditional design, and consequently his work has an understated warmth and a timeless quality that sets it apart from other furnishings of the era.
Wormley was born in rural Illinois and as a teenager took correspondence courses from the New York School of Interior Design. He later attended the Art Institute of Chicago but ran out of money for tuition before he could graduate. Marshall Field hired Wormley in 1930 to design a line of reproduction 18th-century English furniture; the following year he was hired by the Indiana-based Dunbar, where he quickly distinguished himself. It was a good match.
Dunbar was an unusual firm: it did not use automated production systems; its pieces were mostly hand-constructed. For his part, Wormley did not use metal as a major component of furniture; he liked craft elements such as caned seatbacks, tambour drawers, or the woven-wood cabinet fronts seen on his Model 5666 sideboard of 1956. He designed two lines for Dunbar each year — one traditional, one modern — until 1944, by which time the contemporary pieces had become the clear best sellers.
Many of Wormley’s signature pieces — chairs, sofas, tables and more — are modern interpretations of traditional forms. His 1946 Riemerschmid Chair — an example is in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art — recapitulates a late 19th-century German design. The long, slender finials of his Model 5580 dining chairs are based on those of Louis XVI chairs; his Listen-to-Me Chaise (1948) has a gentle Rococo curve; the “Precedent” line that Wormley designed for Drexel Furniture in 1947 is a simplified, pared-down take on muscular Georgian furniture. But he could invent new forms, as his Magazine table of 1953, with its bent wood pockets, and his tiered Magazine Tree (1947), both show. And Wormley kept his eye on design currents, creating a series of tables with tops that incorporate tiles and roundels by the great modern ceramicists Otto and Gertrud Natzler.
As the vintage items on 1stDibs demonstrate, Edward Wormley conceived of a subdued sort of modernism, designing furniture that fits into any decorating scheme and does not shout for attention.
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar Tilt-Back Sheridan Lounge Chair in Walnut Cane & BrassBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Dallas, TXThis elegant lounge chair was designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar in the late 1960s and was only produced for a very short time. The frame is crafted from solid American claro waln...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsBrass
- Giorgetti Progetti Series 'Peggy' Lounge Chairs in Chocolate Brown LeatherBy Giorgetti S.p.A.Located in Dallas, TXWe have two pairs available. The list price is for one Pair. Designed by Centro Ricerche Giorgetti. The "Peggy" Armchairs are the most exquisite form in the Progetti Series develo...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsLeather, Wood
- Edward Wormley Slipper Chairs for DunbarBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Dallas, TXEdward Wormley slipper chairs for Dunbar with dark mahogany bases and original black velvet upholstery. The upholstery has faded to an interesting shade of aubergine. Includes downfi...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Slipper Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Mahogany
$4,800 / set - Dunbar Club Chairs with Original Jack Lenor Larsen UpholsteryBy Edward WormleyLocated in Dallas, TXVintage large-scale pair of Dunbar club chairs with the original Jack Lenor Larsen fabric, 1970s. Tuxedo style design with loose cushions and bronze platform base. Both chairs are in...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery
- Dunbar Wingback Chairs Designed by Edward Wormley in a Custom Cartier TextileBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Dallas, TXPair of early and important wing back chairs designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar. Professionally restored with new foam, new springs, down-filled seat cushions and upholstered in a...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Wingback Chairs
MaterialsMahogany
- Dunbar Janus Side Table by Edward WormleyBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Dallas, TXStunning tripod side table by Edward Wormley for Dunbar from the Famous 'Janus' Collection. Stunning exotic wood top and solid brass feet. Original condition. Retains brass rectangul...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Side Tables
- Edward Wormley Black Leather Janus Lounge Chair, Model 5701, Dunbar, 1957By Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Brooklyn, NYEdward Wormley black leather Janus lounge ch air, Model 5701, Dunbar, 1957 ash, leather; 33.75 H × 30.5 W × 34 D in; Stitched manufacturer's mark to decking ...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Ash
- Dunbar Janus Lounge Chair by Edward WormleyBy Edward WormleyLocated in San Francisco, CAThe Edward Wormley "Janus" armchair is a mid-century modern classic, designed by the renowned American furniture designer Edward Wormley in 1957 for Dunbar Furniture. The chair was p...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsWalnut
- Pair of Dunbar Lounge ChairsBy Edward WormleyLocated in Dallas, TXA pair of Dunbar lounge chairs designed by Edward Wormley.Category
Vintage 1950s Lounge Chairs
$8,500 / set - Edward Wormley Lounge Chairs for DunbarBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Brooklyn, NYThis pair of 1950s high back lounge chairs by Edward Wormley for Dunbar features iconic Mid-Century design and comfortably sculpted seat backs. Spacious seats with plush vintage fabr...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Walnut
$2,800 Sale Price / set36% Off - Edward Wormley Lounge Chair for DunbarBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Chicago, ILA nice simple and dramatic armchair lounge chair form by Edward Wormley. Should be purchased with the intent to reupholster. Needs to be softer on inside back.Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsUpholstery
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar Janus Collection Lounge ChairBy Edward WormleyLocated in Middlesex, NJEdward Wormley for Dunbar Janus collection lounge chair.Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsFabric