Don Shoemaker Rosewood
Mid-20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Cocobolo
Vintage 1950s Lounge Chairs
Rosewood, Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Leather, Rosewood
Vintage 1970s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Leather, Wood, Cocobolo
Vintage 1970s Mexican Modern Dining Room Tables
Marble
Vintage 1970s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Chaise Longues
Leather, Rosewood
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Nesting Tables and Stacking Tables
Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Rosewood, Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Stools
Leather, Rosewood
Vintage 1970s Mexican Lounge Chairs
Leather, Rosewood
Vintage 1960s Mexican Modern Center Tables
Cocobolo
Mid-20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Decorative Boxes
Rosewood
20th Century Mexican Bohemian Lounge Chairs
Leather, Rosewood
Mid-20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Cocobolo, Leather, Rosewood
20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Chairs
Leather, Rosewood
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Leather, Rosewood, Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Sofa Tables
Rosewood
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Decorative Boxes
Jacaranda, Rosewood, Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Rosewood, Leather
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures
Brass
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Platters and Serveware
Rosewood
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Rosewood, Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Leather, Rosewood
Vintage 1970s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Tableware
Rosewood
Vintage 1970s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Tableware
Rosewood
Mid-20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern More Desk Accessories
Hardwood, Cocobolo, Rosewood
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Tableware
Wood
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Rosewood, Teak
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Platters and Serveware
Rosewood
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Serving Pieces
Wood
Mid-20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Platters and Serveware
Rosewood
Mid-20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Platters and Serveware
Rosewood
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
Rosewood, Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s Mexican Lounge Chairs
Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Barware
Brass
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Platters and Serveware
Rosewood
Mid-20th Century Mexican Abstract Sculptures
Wood, Rosewood
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Rosewood, Cocobolo
Vintage 1950s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Cocobolo
Mid-20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Decorative Boxes
Cocobolo
Mid-20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s Mexican Chairs
Leather, Wood
Mid-20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Platters and Serveware
Rosewood, Cocobolo
Mid-20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Fountains
Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Serving Pieces
Wood, Mahogany, Rosewood
Mid-20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Candlesticks
Cocobolo
Vintage 1970s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Platters and Serveware
Rosewood, Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Trunks and Luggage
Jacaranda, Rosewood, Cocobolo
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Rosewood, Cocobolo
Mid-20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Wood
Vintage 1970s Danish Mid-Century Modern Barware
Rosewood
Vintage 1970s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Barware
Rosewood
Mid-20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Cocobolo
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern End Tables
Wood
Vintage 1960s Ecuadorean Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Leather, Teak, Rosewood
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Serving Pieces
Rosewood
20th Century Mid-Century Modern Chairs
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Don Shoemaker Rosewood For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a Don Shoemaker Rosewood?
Don S. Shoemaker for sale on 1stDibs
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 from 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.