T. H. Robsjohn-Gibbings for Widdicomb Credenza
View Similar Items
T. H. Robsjohn-Gibbings for Widdicomb Credenza
About the Item
- Creator:T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 31 in (78.74 cm)Width: 67.5 in (171.45 cm)Depth: 20.5 in (52.07 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:Restored.
- Seller Location:San Diego, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU88781103234
T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings
British-born designer, interior decorator and author T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings (1905–76) was one of the great American tastemakers in the middle decades of the 20th century. Much like Edward Wormley, Robsjohn-Gibbings was a design classicist by education and inclination, but he would come to create some of the most gracious and livable modern furnishings of the era.
Robsjohn-Gibbings studied architecture at the University of London, then held various jobs that included designing décors for passenger liners and working as the art director of a film studio. In the early 1930s, while employed by the upper-crust interior designer Charles J. Duveen, Robsjohn-Gibbings experienced an epiphany during a visit to the British Museum. Examining the furniture depicted on ancient Greek ceramics — lithe stools and klismos chairs — he realized that he had found a design touchstone. By 1936, he had moved to New York and set up a showroom on Madison Avenue for his modern reinterpretations of classic Greek designs. Aided by contacts he’d developed while working with Duveen, he quickly established a clientele that included Elizabeth Arden, Doris Duke and Thelma Chrysler Foy.
Through his writings for magazines and books, Robsjohn-Gibbings earned a public following and was established as an urbane arbiter of taste. From 1943 to 1956, he produced an understated line of modernist furnishings for Widdicomb, which included one of the icons of the period: the tiered, biomorphic Mesa coffee table (1951). Robsjohn-Gibbings moved to Athens, Greece, in 1966, and created a new line of antiquity-inspired pieces for the firm Saridis. The series turned out to be his swan song.
Collectors’ interest in Robsjohn-Gibbings was reignited in the 1980s, when the 200-plus pieces from his 1936–38 commission for the Bel-Air estate of Los Angeles socialite Hilda Boldt Weber — pared-down neoclassical pieces rendered in blond wood (with the occasional flourish) — came on the market. (Up until then, the collection had remained in the house, despite its having changed hands several times.)
But his work for Widdicomb remains his most widely known, appreciated for its elegance and generous proportions. Robsjohn-Gibbings despised the stern aesthetic associated with his Bauhaus contemporaries, and a keynote of his modernist pieces is that they have no sharp angles. His chair and sofa frames, table legs and even many cabinets feature softly contoured edges. In whatever styled he designed, Robsjohn-Gibbings was guided by simplicity and timelessness. He wanted his furniture to be lived with happily.
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar Pair of Club ChairsBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in San Diego, CAPair of side upholstered side chairs by Edward Wormley for Dunbar. Medium brown lightly textured fabric and dark brown lacquered wood base. Chairs have been completely redone. Wonder...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsWood
$4,800 / set - Vintage Modern Lounge Chair w/Ottoman by Donald Knorr for Vista of CaliforniaBy Donald KnorrLocated in San Diego, CALounge chair and ottoman by Donald Knorr for Vista of California. While most pieces in this line typically have tubular metal frames, this example has the less common square metal fr...Category
Mid-20th Century North American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsBrass, Steel
- Vintage 1957 Coquille for Flygsfors by Paul Kedelv Studio Art Glass Bowl SwedenBy Paul Kedelv, FlygsforsLocated in San Diego, CAFine Swedish studio art glass "Coquille" bowl designed by Paul Kedelv for Flygsfors and dates from 1957. Signed and dated by the artist on the bottom. Great design and form. In excel...Category
Mid-20th Century Swedish Decorative Bowls
MaterialsArt Glass
- Modernist Vivianna Torun for Dansk Silver Plate Tea Sugar Creamer SetBy Dansk, Vivianna Torun Bülow-HübeLocated in San Diego, CAFantastic modernist cream and sugar bowl designed by Vivanna Torun for Dansk Designs. Great sculptural design. Silver plated and hard to find acce...Category
Mid-20th Century Tea Sets
- Fulvio Bianconi Fasce Orizzontali Murano Bottles with Stoppers for Venini, PairBy Fulvio Bianconi & Paolo VeniniLocated in San Diego, CABeautiful pair of matching Fasce Orizzontali bottles with stoppers by Fulvio Bianconi for Venini. Seldom seen color. Both bottle have faint hairline cracks that almost appear to be o...Category
Mid-20th Century Bottles
MaterialsArt Glass
- Vintage Edith Heath for Heath Ceramics 4 Slot White & Brown Pottery AshtrayBy Edith HeathLocated in San Diego, CAWonderful Edith Heath for Heath Ceramics white and brown 4 slot ashtray dating from the 1960's. In excellent condition with no chips, no nicks, no repairs ...Category
Mid-20th Century American Tobacco Accessories
MaterialsCeramic
- Two Modern T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings for Widdicomb CredenzasBy T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings, Widdicomb Furniture Co.Located in Dallas, TXIconic mid-century modern! This set of two from Widdicomb's "Modern Originals", designed by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings, circa 1940's. His signature style, defined by clean lines and arch...Category
Vintage 1940s American Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
MaterialsBrass
- 'Ming' Sideboard / Credenza by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings for Widdicomb, 1950sBy T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings, Widdicomb Furniture Co.Located in Los Angeles, CAThis elegant fully restored 'Ming' sideboard by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings for Widdicomb (USA) features gorgeous walnut grain with large brass handles. The center cabinet has four intern...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Sideboards
MaterialsBrass
$7,100 Sale Price24% Off - Robsjohn Gibbings for Widdicomb Mid Century Walnut Cane and Brass CredenzaBy T.H. Robsjohn-GibbingsLocated in Countryside, ILRobsjohn Gibbings for Widdicomb Mid Century Walnut Cane and Brass Credenza This credenza measures: 67.5 wide x 21.5 deep x 31.25 inches high All pieces of furniture can be had in w...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
MaterialsBrass
- Wonderful Hermes Orange T.H. Robsjohn Gibbings Widdicomb Credenza MidcenturyBy T.H. Robsjohn-GibbingsLocated in Pemberton, NJWonderful credenza designed by T.H. Robsjohn Gibbings for Widdicomb, circa 1950s. It has a low slung design, making it perfect as a media cabinet for a flat screen TV. The three door...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
MaterialsWood
- T.H. Robsjohn Gibbings Credenza for Widdicomb in Blue Lacquer with Nickel PullsBy T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings, Widdicomb Furniture Co.Located in Saint Louis, MOMid Century Modern blue lacquered Credenza designed by T.H. Robsjohn Gibbings for Widdicomb in the early 1950s with large Nickle plated Ring Pull...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
MaterialsNickel
- Mahogany Cabinet by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings for WiddicombBy T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings, Widdicomb Furniture Co.Located in Dorchester, MAT.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings designed this handsome mahogany cabinet for the Widdicomb Furniture Company. The solidly built case has three roomy center drawers with linear wooden pulls and additional shelving behind doors...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
MaterialsMahogany