Rare Warren McArthur Secretary circa 1938
View Similar Items
Rare Warren McArthur Secretary circa 1938
About the Item
- Creator:Warren McArthur (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 84 in (213.36 cm)Width: 72 in (182.88 cm)Depth: 24 in (60.96 cm)
- Style:Art Deco (Of the Period)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:c.1938
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Minor losses. Minor fading. There is the expected wear to various surfaces, minor veneer lifting and minor veneer losses as one would expect on a well cared for piece of 75 year old furniture. Full condition report available by request.
- Seller Location:Camden, ME
- Reference Number:Seller: App 2901stDibs: LU8984839547
Warren McArthur
Few 20th-century designers had influential furniture that regularly flew at 30,000 feet, but Warren McArthur did. His work on seating for military aircraft came near the end of his career, following decades of Machine Age furniture shaped from tubular forms and made of steel, chrome and aluminum.
Warren McArthur Jr. graduated with an engineering degree from Cornell University in 1908. After moving to Los Angeles in 1929, he founded the Warren McArthur Corporation a year later. His initial output of sleek, metal designs were popular in offices and hotels.
At the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair, Americans witnessed a new “Streamlined America” campaign, which included everyday furniture made from metal, opening the door for McArthur and other Machine Age designers to a residential audience. With this increase in demand for metal furniture, the Warren McArthur Corporation relocated to Rome, New York, and sold their aluminum furnishings out of a showroom on Park Avenue in New York City.
Actors Marlene Dietrich, Fredric March and Clark Gable were among his A-list clientele. McArthur also produced furniture for the dining cars on the Union Pacific Railroad and the Chrysler Headquarters. His designs were featured in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s 1934 exhibition “Contemporary American Industrial Art.”
During World War II, McArthur pivoted production after a ban on the private use of aluminum. McArthur made an estimated three-quarters of all American military aircraft seating, including adjustable seats for the Beechcraft C-45 and revolving seats for navigators aboard the Grumman HU-16 Albatross.
Warren McArthur closed his business in 1948. He died in 1961.
On 1stDibs, find vintage Warren McArthur armchairs, tables and other seating.
- Warren McArthur Z Chair Model 708, circa 1938By Warren McArthur, Warren McArthur CorporationLocated in Camden, MEWarren McArthur anodixzed aluminum light armchair Model 708 manufactured by the Warren McArthur Corporation circa 1938.Category
Vintage 1930s American Art Deco Armchairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Warren McArthur Adjustable Chaise Style No. 636, circa 1938By Warren McArthurLocated in Camden, MEA Warren McArthur webbed adjustable chaise Style No. 636 manufactured in the mid-1930s.Category
Vintage 1930s American Machine Age Chaise Longues
MaterialsAluminum
$14,400 Sale Price20% Off - Warren McArthur Rolling Cart Yellow and Green Anodized Rings, circa 1938By Warren McArthur, Warren McArthur CorporationLocated in Camden, MERare Warren McArthur bar cart / service cart from the late 1930s with yellow and green turnings. Green Vitrolite shelf inserts are replacements. Good condition.Category
Mid-20th Century American Art Deco Serving Tables
MaterialsAluminum
- Warren McArthur Set of Four Webbed Lounge Chairs Style No. 612, circa 1938By Warren McArthurLocated in Camden, MEWarren McArthur rare suite of four webbed anodized aluminum armchairs from a Long Island New York estate. Light weight anodized aluminum frames with original webbing distinguish these lounges. This design was known as the tennis chair...Category
Vintage 1930s American Art Deco Armchairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Pair of Aluminum Warren McArthur Sling Chaises / Lounge Chairs, 1938By Warren McArthur, Warren McArthur CorporationLocated in Camden, MEPair of lounge chairs by Warren McArthur manufactured at his factory in Connecticut in the late 1930s. The designs that Warren introduced in the very beginning of his furniture making he referred to as "suspension chairs...Category
Mid-20th Century American Bauhaus Chaise Longues
MaterialsAluminum
$10,000 Sale Price / set20% Off - Warren McArthur Four Lounge Chairs, Circa 1939By Warren McArthur, Warren McArthur CorporationLocated in Camden, MEWarren McArthur suite of four lounge chairs circa late 1930s. These seldom seen examples retain their original finish to their tubular aluminum fram...Category
Vintage 1930s American Machine Age Lounge Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
$11,200 Sale Price / set20% Off
- Warren McArthur for Warren McArthur Corporation Table or DeskBy Warren McArthur, Warren McArthur CorporationLocated in Chicago, ILWarren McArthur for Warren McArthur Corporation Table or Desk from the Virginia State Library, Richmond V.A. Aluminum base, wood top with laminate surface Dimensions: 30¼"high 50½" w...Category
Vintage 1930s American Art Deco Desks
MaterialsAluminum
- Warren McArthur DeskBy Warren McArthurLocated in Brooklyn, NYBlack lacquered top and drawers in aluminium tube base, with aluminum handles. Original lacquer finish.Category
Vintage 1930s American Machine Age Desks
MaterialsAluminum
$8,500 - Antique Oak Secretary Desk, Belgium, circa 1920Located in Chorzów, PLAntique secretary from the beginning of the 20th century. Made of oak wood. Very good condition. Dimensions: height 107 cm / width 100 cm / depth 47 cm.Category
Vintage 1920s Belgian Louis Philippe Secretaires
MaterialsOak
$1,153 Sale Price25% Off - Antique Oak Secretary Desk, Sweden, circa 1920Located in Chorzów, PLAntique secretary from the beginning of the 20th century. Made of oak wood. Very good condition. Dimensions: Height 111 cm / width 88 cm / depth. 52 cm.Category
Vintage 1920s Swedish Chippendale Secretaires
MaterialsOak
$1,318 Sale Price20% Off - Rare Warren McArthur Two-Tier Desk with Drawers, Reversible, Machine Age 1930sBy Warren McArthur Corporation, Warren McArthurLocated in Chicago, ILWarren McArthur two-tier desk with drawers Aluminum and black lacquered wood Warren McArthur Corporation, 1930s Measures: 48" x 24" x 30" desk height Desk is reversible, and ca...Category
Vintage 1930s Machine Age Desks
MaterialsAluminum
- Secretary Desk, Northern Europe, circa 1920, After RenovationLocated in Chorzów, PLSecretary desk, Northern Europe, circa 1920 Very good condition, after professional renovation. Dimensions: height: 101 cm, width: 94 cm, depth: 52 cm.Category
Vintage 1920s Scandinavian French Provincial Secretaires
MaterialsWalnut
$1,538 Sale Price20% Off