Normam Mercer

Organically shaped, clean-lined and elegantly simple are three terms that well describe vintage mid-century modern furniture. The style, which emerged primarily in the years following World War II, is characterized by pieces that were conceived and made in an energetic, optimistic spirit by creators who believed that good design was an essential part of good living.

ORIGINS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN

• Emerged during the mid-20th century 
• Informed by European modernism, Bauhaus, International style, Scandinavian modernism and Frank Lloyd Wright’s architecture
• A heyday of innovation in postwar America 
• Experimentation with new ideas, new materials and new forms flourished in Scandinavia, Italy, the former Czechoslovakia and elsewhere in Europe

CHARACTERISTICS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN

• Simplicity, organic forms, clean lines  
• A blend of neutral and bold Pop art colors 
• Use of natural and man-made materials — alluring woods such as teak, rosewood and oak; steel, fiberglass and molded plywood 
• Light-filled spaces with colorful upholstery 
• Glass walls and an emphasis on the outdoors 
• Promotion of functionality

MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW

• Charles and Ray Eames
• Eero Saarinen
• Milo Baughman
• Florence Knoll
• Harry Bertoia 
• Isamu Noguchi 
• George Nelson 
• Danish modernists Hans Wegner and Arne Jacobsen, whose emphasis on natural materials and craftsmanship influenced American designers and vice versa

ICONIC MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNS

• Eames lounge chair
• Nelson daybed
• Florence Knoll sofa
• Egg chair
• Womb chair
• Noguchi coffee table
• Barcelona chair

VINTAGE MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS

The mid-century modern era saw leagues of postwar American architects and designers animated by new ideas and new technology. The lean, functionalist International-style architecture of Le Corbusier and Bauhaus eminences Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Walter Gropius had been promoted in the United States during the 1930s by Philip Johnson and others. New building techniques, such as “post-and-beam” construction, allowed the International-style schemes to be realized on a small scale in open-plan houses with long walls of glass.

Materials developed for wartime use became available for domestic goods and were incorporated into mid-century modern furniture designs. Charles and Ray Eames and Eero Saarinen, who had experimented extensively with molded plywood, eagerly embraced fiberglass for pieces such as the La Chaise and the Womb chair, respectively. 

Architect, writer and designer George Nelson created with his team shades for the Bubble lamp using a new translucent polymer skin and, as design director at Herman Miller, recruited the Eameses, Alexander Girard and others for projects at the legendary Michigan furniture manufacturer. 

Harry Bertoia and Isamu Noguchi devised chairs and tables built of wire mesh and wire struts. Materials were repurposed too: The Danish-born designer Jens Risom created a line of chairs using surplus parachute straps for webbed seats and backrests.

The Risom lounge chair was among the first pieces of furniture commissioned and produced by legendary manufacturer Knoll, a chief influencer in the rise of modern design in the United States, thanks to the work of Florence Knoll, the pioneering architect and designer who made the firm a leader in its field. The seating that Knoll created for office spaces — as well as pieces designed by Florence initially for commercial clients — soon became desirable for the home.

As the demand for casual, uncluttered furnishings grew, more mid-century furniture designers caught the spirit.

Classically oriented creators such as Edward Wormley, house designer for Dunbar Inc., offered such pieces as the sinuous Listen to Me chaise; the British expatriate T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings switched gears, creating items such as the tiered, biomorphic Mesa table. There were Young Turks such as Paul McCobb, who designed holistic groups of sleek, blond wood furniture, and Milo Baughman, who espoused a West Coast aesthetic in minimalist teak dining tables and lushly upholstered chairs and sofas with angular steel frames.

As the collection of vintage mid-century modern chairs, dressers, coffee tables and other furniture for the living room, dining room, bedroom and elsewhere on 1stDibs demonstrates, this period saw one of the most delightful and dramatic flowerings of creativity in design history.

Antique, new and vintage Lucite furniture has been on design editors’ radars for several seasons now, but thanks to a renewed interest in Lucite coffee tables, chairs and other pieces from the late 1960s and ’70s, the trend has reached fever pitch.

“I think there’s a freshness and cleanness to it,” says Fawn Galli, an interior designer based in New York. Not only is Lucite, or transparent plastic, practical, since it can work in nearly any environment, it’s incredibly stylish.

Some of the most acclaimed furniture designers share the same love for Lucite as an effective and practical material for use in any interior.

“I think there’s something really nice about the simplicity of anything Lucite or acrylic — it feels lightweight,” says Tamara Eaton, whose eponymous firm deftly balances traditional and modern designs. Even in the most historical setting, “you can still introduce some Lucite or something kind of lightweight and not have it feel like a distinct interjection, but a playful one that’s more about the shape,” she says.

For the living room in a mid-century modern townhouse in Park Slope, Brooklyn, Eaton chose a pair of box-shaped Lucite tables with copper handles from Jamie Dietrich. “We didn’t want anything to be too heavy, and that area was a place where [the family] would sometimes move those tables so the kids could play,” she says. The tables doubled as snack trays since the kitchen is nearby. “They have this transportable feel to them that I think was really fun.”

Browse a range of antique, new and vintage Lucite side tables, table lamps and other furniture now on 1stDibs.

Styling your home with vintage, new and antique sculptures means adding a touch that can meaningfully transform the space. By introducing a sculptural work as a decorative finish to any interior, you’re making a statement, whether you tend toward the dramatic or prefer to keep things casual with modest, understated art.

A single, one-of-a-kind three-dimensional figurative sculpture mounted on your dining room wall is a guaranteed conversation piece, while a trio of abstract works arranged on your living room bookshelves can add spontaneity to the collection of first-edition novels or artist monographs you’re displaying as well as draw attention to them. Figurative sculptures are representational works that portray a specific person, animal or object. And while decorating with busts, which are sculpted or cast figurative works, hasn’t exactly topped the list of design trends every year, busts are back. According to designer Timothy Corrigan, “They give humanity in a way that a more abstract sculpture can’t give.” Abstract sculptures, on the other hand, are not meant to show something specific. Instead, they invoke a mood or scene without directly stating what they are portraying.

Busts made of stone or metal may not seem like a good fit for your existing decor. Fortunately, there are many ways for a seemingly incongruous piece to fit in with the rest of your room’s theme. You can embrace a dramatic piece by making it the focal point of the room, or you can choose to incorporate several elements made out of the same material to create harmony in your space. If an antique or more dramatic piece doesn’t feel like you, why not opt for works comprising plastic, fiberglass or other more modern materials?

When incorporating sculpture into the design of your home — be it the playful work of auction hero and multimedia visionary KAWS, contemporary fiber art from Connecticut dealer browngrotta arts or still-life sculpture on a budget — consider proper lighting, which can bring out the distinctive aspects of your piece that deserve attention. And make sure you know how the size and form of the sculpture will affect your space in whole. If you choose a sculpture with dramatic design elements, such as sharp angles or bright colors, for example, try to better integrate this new addition by echoing those elements in the rest of your room’s design.

Get started on decorating with sculpture now — find figurative sculptures, animal sculptures and more on 1stDibs today.