Free-Standing Double-Sided Bookcase and Room Divider in Oak by Giuseppe Rivadossi
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Giuseppe Rivadossi for Officina Rivadossi, bookcase, oak, glass, Italy, 1970s This bookcase by Giuseppe Rivadossi is conceived as a freestanding architectural element rather than si...
Glass, Oak
Mac Gee Library, Philippe Starck, Baleri, 1980
By Philippe Starck, Baleri Italia
Located in Milano, Lombardia
Mac Gee bookcase, design by Philippe Starck for Baleri, Italy, 1980. An icon of postmodern design, the Mac Gee bookcase is made entirely of bent metal, with a lightweight but solid s...
Aluminum
Angelo Necessario by Paolo Pallucco and Mireille Rivier, 1989 Italy
By Pallucco, Paolo Pallucco & Mireille Rivier
Located in Palm Springs, CA
"Angelo Necessario" is a sculptural shelving unit designed by Paolo Pallucco and Mireille Rivier in 1989. This example is the second version of the design, executed as a freestanding...
Metal
Roberto Bonetto for Magis Italian modernist Scalo fold up three step stool
By Magis
Located in Ferndale, MI
Roberto Bonetto design for Magis Italy . The Scalo step stool . Stylish post modern Italian design step stool . Unfolds and drops down to provide three steps with a grab rail .
Steel
Black Oak Top Desk Console with White Finish Base by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique, Teseo Desk Console by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 172 x D 72 x H 75 cm Materials: Black oak wood, Handmade white finish. Writing desk in black oak wood and handmade white fin...
Oak
Curved Shape Top Gold Bronze Desk with Metal Frame by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique, Seneca Desk Console by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 170 x D 80 x H 75 cm Materials: Metal frame and legs in Cloudy Bronze finish. Desk with curved shape top, cylinder legs and...
Metal
Wood Walnut, Veneer Walnut Natural & Clear Glass Palodia Bookshelf by Madheke
Located in Geneve, CH
Wood Walnut Natural, Veneer Walnut & Clear Glass Centre Table by Madheke Dimensions: D 140 x W 30 x H 195 cm. Materials: Solid walnut construction with natural grain, Intricate hand-...
Wood
Slim Steel Shelving, Lattice, Stained Birch Wood by Mun Hau Production
Located in Geneve, CH
Slim Steel Shelving, Lattice, Stained Birch Wood by Mun Hau Production Dimensions: W 40 x D 20 x H 240 cm. Materials: Stained Birch Wood, Stainless Steel. About Mun Hau Production ...
Wood
White Pigmented Oak Stedge Shelf 80, 3 Shelf Configuration by Leonard Aldenhoff
Located in Geneve, CH
White Pigmented Oak Stedge Shelf 80, 3 Shelf Configuration by Leonard Aldenhoff. Materials: Brass, white pigmented lacquered oak. Dimensions: D 22 x W 80 x H 160 cm. This listing fe...
Metal, Brass
Flyer Sculptural Bookcase, designed and assembled in Italy by Dario Nasuti
Located in Parma, IT
The Flyer bookshelf, designed by Dario Nasuti, is a visionary tribute to the dawn of aviation. Inspired by the internal structures and fuselages of early aircraft, Flyer brings the '...
Iron
Jack Cartwright for Founders Walnut, Tubular Chrome and Glass Shelving Unit
By Directional, Jack Cartwright, Founders Furniture Company, Milo Baughman
Located in New Windsor, NY
Splendid walnut, tubular chrome and glass Founders shelving unit designed by Jack Cartwright. Circa 1970-80. The highest of the glass shelves can be adjusted and the drawers and cabi...
Chrome
Gray metal italian bookcase postmodern by Cappellini
By Cappellini
Located in Milano, IT
Pair of Cappellini Bookcases, Italy, 1980s A refined pair of bookcases produced by Cappellini in the 1980s, embodying an elegant industrial design that seamlessly combines formal ri...
Metal, Steel
Set Of 2 Icarus Legs Shelf Brackets in Aluminum by Panorammma
Located in Geneve, CH
Set Of 2 Icarus Legs Shelf Brackets in Aluminum by Panorammma Dimensions: D 7,5 x W 34,5 x H 24 cm. Materials: Aluminum. The inspiration for these pieces was taken from a historical...
Aluminum
$39,664 / item
Thai Oak Bookshelf by Baka Studio
Located in Geneve, CH
Thai Oak Bookshelf by Baka Studio Limited Edition Dimensions: D 212 x W 74 x H 300 CM Materials: Oak wood, lacquered wood, veneered finish. Thai is a sculptural screen-shelf: timber...
Oak
$16,249 / item
Temple Tilia Wood Table by Baka Studio
Located in Geneve, CH
Temple Tilia Wood Table by Baka Studio Limited Edition Dimensions: D 89 x W 79 x H 76 CM Materials: Tilia wood. Temple is a small table in linden (Tilia), inspired by the timber joi...
Oak
$24,566 / item
Riflesso Oak Bookshelf by Baka Studio
Located in Geneve, CH
Riflesso Oak Bookshelf by Baka Studio Limited Edition Dimensions: D 112 x W 45 x H 190 CM Materials: Oak wood, lacquered wood, veneered finish. A totemic étagère: soft-edged shelves...
Oak
Unique, Smoked Mina Int 2 Modular Bookcase Library Wall Units by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique, Smoked Eucalyptus Mina Int 2 Modular Bookcase Library Wall Units by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 240 x D 47.5 x H 194 cm Materials: Smoked Eucalyptus. Modular composition of b...
Wood
Postmodern Manhattan 5th Avenue CD Rack Tower from Koziol, Germany, 1990s
By Koziol
Located in Hamburg, DE
Postmodern Manhattan Series 5th Avenue CD Rack Tower from Koziol, Germany, 1990s
Plastic
Enclave Shelving Unit, Solid Oak and Stainless Steel by Cezar Moldovan x Arbore
Located in Geneve, CH
Enclave Shelving Unit, Solid Oak and Stainless Steel by Cezar Moldovan x Arbore Dimensions: W 170 x D 40 x H 150 cm. Material: Solid oak, stainless steel. Wood finishes: Arctic, Weng...
Stainless Steel
Postmodern Italian Travertine Desk with Three Drawers, 1980s
Located in Palm Desert, CA
This sculptural Italian travertine three drawer desk dates to the 1980s and exemplifies the bold architectural approach to stone furniture associated with late 20th-century Italian d...
Travertine
Textured Natural Wood Desk with Support Round Leg by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique, Norah Desk Console by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 160 x D 65 x H 75 cm Materials: Chestnut Burl with metal finish dividers and plinth. Norah desk made in Chestnut Burl with ...
Copper
Textured Natural Wood Desk with Metal Bronze Details by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique, Sarah Desk Console by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 180 x D 82 x H 76 cm Materials: Chestnut burl texture, metal bronze finish for under top divider. Wide legs as a storage un...
Metal
Contemporary Polished Steel and Black Oak Desk Console by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique, Black Oak Jean Desk Console by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 180 x D 80 x H 76 cm Materials: Polished Steel, Black Oak. Smooth lines of sculptural bases in polished stainless ...
Steel
Curved Shape Top Glossy Red Desk with Striped Edge by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique, Medea Desk Console by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 170 x D 80 x H 75 cm Materials: Copper glossy lacquer finish. Writing desk with curved shape top, two cylinder legs, cylinde...
Copper
Modular Bookcase "Skeleton" by Julius Esser
By Julius Esser
Located in Wien, AT
The Skeleton Shelf is a striking modular shelving system that merges art, design, and natural metaphor. Inspired by the image of an animal skeleton slowly returning to the earth, Jul...
Aluminum
Rubik Module 1 Vertical Structure in Stainless Steel by Metalmorphosis Studio
Located in Geneve, CH
Rubik Module 1 Vertical Structure in Stainless Steel by Metalmorphosis Studio Dimensions: D 35 x W 35 x H 135 cm. Materials: Stainless steel. Rubik_Module1_ is a vertical modular st...
Stainless Steel
Set Of 2 Rubik Complete Shelves in Stainless Steel by Metalmorphosis Studio
Located in Geneve, CH
Set Of 2 Rubik Complete Shelves in Stainless Steel by Metalmorphosis Studio Dimensions: Module 1: D 35 x W 35 x H 135 cm. Module 2: D 35 x W 50 x H 135 cm Materials: Stainless steel....
Stainless Steel
Rubik Module 2 Vertical Structure in Stainless Steel by Metalmorphosis Studio
Located in Geneve, CH
Rubik Module 2 Vertical Structure in Stainless Steel by Metalmorphosis Studio Dimensions: D 35 x W 50 x H 135 cm. Materials: Stainless steel. Rubik_Module2_ is a vertical modular st...
Stainless Steel
Antonio Citterio x B&B Italia "Domus 03" Wall Unit
By B&B Italia, Antonio Citterio
Located in Astoria, NY
Antonio Citterio for B&B Italia "Domus 03" Wall Unit, wood and steel frame with red acrylic sliding door opening to multi-level shelves above bottom drawer. 63.5" H x 94.5" W x 31"...
Steel
$15,353 / item
Ring Circular Shelf in Lacquered Wood by Panorammma
Located in Geneve, CH
Ring Circular Shelf in Lacquered Wood by Panorammma Dimensions: D 29 x W 163 x H 151 cm. Materials: Lacquered wood. Each edition’s patterns and tone will naturally vary. Please foll...
Wood
$1,093 / item
Dream/Reality Shelf by Six Dots Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Dream/Reality Shelf by Six Dots Design Unique Piece. Dimensions: D 23 x W 37 x H 33 cm Materials: Raw aluminum. Six Dots designs and makes bespoke furniture in North London. We want...
Aluminum
$9,096 / item
Palissandro Santos Bookcase by Petra Madalena
Located in Geneve, CH
Palissandro Santos Bookcase by Petra Madalena Dimensions: W 45 x D 45 x H 165 cm Materials: palissandro santos veneer. Weight: 70 kg (± 5 kg for packaging) Elevate your living space...
Wood
Vintage Postmodern White Illuminated Wall Unit Dry Bar Display Case
Located in Lutz, FL
1980’s Post Mod White Lacquered Wall Unit Dry Bar Display Cabinet. An incredible wall unit/dry bar to take you straight to Miami in the 80s! This came from the original owners, who b...
Metal
Cioccolata Bookshelf in Powder-Coated Aluminum by altreforme
Located in Geneve, CH
Cioccolata Bookshelf in Powder-Coated Aluminum by altreforme Dimensions: D 38,8 x W 100 x H 189 cm. Materials: Powder-coated aluminum. Available in different colors and finishes. P...
Aluminum, Other
Brera A Bookshelf in Powder-Coated Aluminum by altreforme
Located in Geneve, CH
Brera A Bookshelf in Powder-Coated Aluminum by altreforme Dimensions: D 34 x W 96 x H 105 cm. Materials: Powder-coated aluminum. Available in different sizes and finishes. Prices an...
Aluminum, Other
Wave Bookshelf in Powder Coated Aluminium by Julien Vidame
Located in Geneve, CH
Wave Bookshelf in Powder Coated Aluminium by Julien Vidame. Dimensions: W 50 x D 35 x H 135 cm. Materials: Powder-coated aluminium. Available in Dull Black, Shiny White, or Silver Va...
Aluminum
$7,688 / item
Coquillage Shelf in Aluminium by Julien Vidame
Located in Geneve, CH
Coquillage Shelf in Aluminium by Julien Vidame. Dimensions: W 108 x D 20 x H 35 cm. Materials: Aluminium. This shelf is also available in a larger 158 cm version. Additionally, the ...
Aluminum
$11,061 / item
Coquillage Shelf in Copper by Julien Vidame
Located in Geneve, CH
Coquillage Shelf in Copper by Julien Vidame. Dimensions: W 158 x D 20 x H 35 cm. Materials: Copper. This shelf is also available in a smaller 108 cm version. Additionally, the piece...
Copper
$11,061 / item
Coquillage Shelf in Brass by Julien Vidame
Located in Geneve, CH
Coquillage Shelf in Brass by Julien Vidame. Dimensions: W 158 x D 20 x H 35 cm. Materials: Brass. This shelf is also available in a smaller 108 cm version. Additionally, the piece i...
Brass
Simbolo Stripes Bookshelf in Powder-Coated Aluminum by altreforme
Located in Geneve, CH
Simbolo Stripes Bookshelf in Powder-Coated Aluminum by altreforme Dimensions: D 45 x W 50 x H 150 cm. Materials: Powder-coated aluminum. A shelving system characterized by classical...
Aluminum, Other
Ettore Sottsass Cantone Corner Shelves, Italy, 1981
By Ettore Sottsass, Zanotta
Located in Dronten, NL
Striking “Cantone” corner cabinet designed by Ettore Sottsass, an iconic example of the Italian postmodern master’s sculptural and architectural approach to furniture. This piece emb...
Silver
Giano Free Standing Or Wall Bookcase in Glossy Ebony & Horn by Arcahorn
Located in Geneve, CH
Giano Free Standing Or Wall Bookcase in Glossy Ebony & Horn by Arcahorn Dimensions: D 40 x W 250 x H 148 cm. Materials: Glossy ebony and horn. In 1958, Mario Guerra, a young artisan...
Other
Shakespeare & Company Bookshelf in Powder-Coated Aluminum by altreforme
Located in Geneve, CH
Shakespeare & Company Bookshelf in Powder-Coated Aluminum by altreforme Dimensions: D 36 x W 192 x H 192 cm. Materials: Powder-coated aluminum. Crossword-shaped bookcase to facilita...
Aluminum, Other
$1,232 / item
Pangea Open Furniture by Morica Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Pangea Open Furniture by Morica Design Dimensions: D 28 x W 150 x H 30 cm. Materials: Marsala red lacquered wood. Available in Canaletto Walnut, Laguna Oak, or natural oak wood. Ple...
Wood
$6,223 / item
Parentesi Oak Wood Bookshelf by Morica Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Parentesi Oak Wood Bookshelf by Morica Design Dimensions: D 40 x W 160 x H 180 cm. Materials: Oak wood, Marmorino Terracotta lacquered wood. Available in Canaletto Walnut, Laguna Oa...
Wood
Custom Modernist Steel and Wood Bookshelf
By Rehab Vintage Interiors
Located in Alhambra, CA
Inspired by futurist design of the 1960s, our two-tier bookshelf combines powder-coated steel and wood for an organic meets atomic aesthetic. Streamlined floating shelves, powder-coa...
Steel
$42,223 / item
L1 Shelf in Brushed Aluminium by Giotto Pagani
Located in Geneve, CH
L1 Shelf in Brushed Aluminium by Giotto Pagani. Dimensions: W 160 x D 32 x H 215 cm Materials: Non directional brushed finish aluminium. Part of the Lisboa collection, the L1 Shelf ...
Aluminum
Gaetano Pesce Nobody's Guard Red
By Gaetano Pesce
Located in Naples, FL
A rare totemic shelf with mirror from Gaetano Pesce's "Nobody's Perfect" series for Zerodisegno in 2003. With impressive scale, this functional work of art would be wonderful in an e...
Resin
Meritalia Cross Shelf, Black by Carlo Contin
By Carlo Contin, Meritalia
Located in Toronto, ON
Bookcase in ashwood, supported and structured by the primary design geometry of a diagonal cross. Current production. Includes Certificate of Authenticity.
Wood
$14,574 / item
Ebonized White Ash Wishbone Shelving by A. Jacob Marks
Located in Geneve, CH
Ebonized White Ash Wishbone Shelving by A. Jacob Marks Dimensions: W 142 x D 30 x H 183 cm. Materials: Ebonized White Ash. W57 Also available in different materials. Wyandotte gue...
Ash
Unique Wall Hanging Shelf in Ziricote Wood by Jörg Pietschmann
By Jörg Pietschmann
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique Wall Hanging Shelf in Ziricote Wood by Jörg Pietschmann. Dimensions: D 18,5 x W 112 x H 2,5 cm. Materials: Ziricote Wood. All wall shelves include steel pin holders for discr...
Wood
Unique Wall Hanging Shelf in Ziricote Wood by Jörg Pietschmann
By Jörg Pietschmann
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique Wall Hanging Shelf in Ziricote Wood by Jörg Pietschmann. Dimensions: D 13 x W 72 x H 2,5 cm. Materials: Ziricote Wood. All wall shelves include steel pin holders for discreet...
Wood
Ring Circular Shelf in Black Marble, Travertine & Aluminum by Panorammma
Located in Geneve, CH
Ring Circular Shelf in Black Marble, Travertine & Aluminum by Panorammma Dimensions: D 29 x W 163 x H 151 cm. Materials: Black marble, travertine, and aluminum. Each edition’s patte...
Travertine, Marble, Aluminum
Mina Int 1, Walnut Modular Bookcase Library Wall Units by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Mina Int 1, Walnut Modular Bookcase Library Wall Units by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 240 x D 47.5 x H 194 cm Materials: Walnut Canaletto. Modular composition of bookcase with integr...
Wood, Walnut
$2,861 / item
Kinko Shelf in Brass by Zincutec
Located in Geneve, CH
Kinko Shelf in Brass by Zincutec Dimensions: D 17 x W 25 x H 170 cm. Materials: Brass. Available in brass or stainless steel. Available with one, two, or three shelves. Prices may v...
Brass
Jay Spectre for Century Furniture Drop-Front Desk 1980c
By Century Furniture, Jay Spectre
Located in Chicago, IL
Jay Spectre for Century Furniture Drop-Front Desk 1980c Perceptive Drop-Front Desk Century Furniture, circa 1980 A rare and architecturally striking drop-front desk designed by Jay S...
Brass, Stainless Steel
Large "Peter" Shelving Unit by Niels Gammelgaard for Ikea, 1980s
By Niels Gammelgaard, IKEA
Located in Lyon, FR
Large freestanding chrome-plated metal shelving unit, “Peter” model, designed by Niels Gammelgaard for IKEA, 1980s. Practical and sturdy, the shelves are made of perforated metal wit...
Metal
Postmodern design was a short-lived movement that manifested itself chiefly in Italy and the United States in the early 1980s. The characteristics of vintage postmodern furniture and other postmodern objects and decor for the home included loud-patterned, usually plastic surfaces; strange proportions, vibrant colors and weird angles; and a vague-at-best relationship between form and function.
ORIGINS OF POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
CHARACTERISTICS OF POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW
VINTAGE POSTMODERN FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS
Critics derided postmodern design as a grandstanding bid for attention and nothing of consequence. Decades later, the fact that postmodernism still has the power to provoke thoughts, along with other reactions, proves they were not entirely correct.
Postmodern design began as an architectural critique. Starting in the 1960s, a small cadre of mainly American architects began to argue that modernism, once high-minded and even noble in its goals, had become stale, stagnant and blandly corporate. Later, in Milan, a cohort of creators led by Ettore Sottsass and Alessandro Mendini — a onetime mentor to Sottsass and a key figure in the Italian Radical movement — brought the discussion to bear on design.
Sottsass, an industrial designer, philosopher and provocateur, gathered a core group of young designers into a collective in 1980 they called Memphis. Members of the Memphis Group, which would come to include Martine Bedin, Michael Graves, Marco Zanini, Shiro Kuramata, Michele de Lucchi and Matteo Thun, saw design as a means of communication, and they wanted it to shout. That it did: The first Memphis collection appeared in 1981 in Milan and broke all the modernist taboos, embracing irony, kitsch, wild ornamentation and bad taste.
Memphis works remain icons of postmodernism: the Sottsass Casablanca bookcase, with its leopard-print plastic veneer; de Lucchi’s First chair, which has been described as having the look of an electronics component; Martine Bedin’s Super lamp: a pull-toy puppy on a power-cord leash. Even though it preceded the Memphis Group’s formal launch, Sottsass’s iconic Ultrafragola mirror — in its conspicuously curved plastic shell with radical pops of pink neon — proves striking in any space and embodies many of the collective’s postmodern ideals.
After the initial Memphis show caused an uproar, the postmodern movement within furniture and interior design quickly took off in America. (Memphis fell out of fashion when the Reagan era gave way to cool 1990’s minimalism.) The architect Robert Venturi had by then already begun a series of plywood chairs for Knoll Inc., with beefy, exaggerated silhouettes of traditional styles such as Queen Anne and Chippendale. In 1982, the new firm Swid Powell enlisted a group of top American architects, including Frank Gehry, Richard Meier, Stanley Tigerman and Venturi to create postmodern tableware in silver, ceramic and glass.
On 1stDibs, the vintage postmodern furniture collection includes chairs, coffee tables, sofas, decorative objects, table lamps and more.
Of all the vintage storage cabinets and antique case pieces that have become popular in modern interiors over the years, dressers, credenzas and cabinets have long been home staples, perfect for routine storage or protection of personal items.
In the mid-19th century, cabinetmakers would mimic styles originating in the Louis XIV, Louis XV and Louis XVI eras for their dressers, bookshelves and other structures, and, later, simpler, streamlined wood designs allowed these “case pieces” or “case goods” — any furnishing that is unupholstered and has some semblance of a storage component — to blend into the background of any interior.
Mid-century modern furniture enthusiasts will cite the tall modular wall units crafted in teak and other sought-after woods of the era by the likes of George Nelson, Poul Cadovius and Finn Juhl. For these highly customizable furnishings, designers of the day delivered an alternative to big, heavy bookcases by considering the use of space — and, in particular, walls — in new and innovative ways. Mid-century modern credenzas, which, long and low, evolved from tables that were built as early as the 14th century in Italy, typically have no legs or very short legs and have grown in popularity as an alluring storage option over time.
Although the name immediately invokes images of clothing, dressers were initially created in Europe for a much different purpose. This furnishing was initially a flat-surfaced, low-profile side table equipped with a few drawers — a common fixture used to dress and prepare meats in English kitchens throughout the Tudor period. The drawers served as perfect utensil storage. It wasn’t until the design made its way to North America that it became enlarged and equipped with enough space to hold clothing and cosmetics. The very history of case pieces is a testament to their versatility and well-earned place in any room.
In the spirit of positioning your case goods center stage, decluttering can now be design-minded.
A contemporary case piece with open shelving and painted wood details can prove functional as a storage unit as easily as it can a room divider. Alternatively, apothecary cabinets are charming case goods similar in size to early dressers or commodes but with uniquely sized shelving and (often numerous) drawers.
Whether you’re seeking a playful sideboard that features colored glass and metal details, an antique Italian hand-carved storage cabinet or a glass-door vitrine to store and show off your collectibles, there are options for you on 1stDibs.