Italian Postmodern Sculptural Wall Shelf by Ettore Sottsass for Zanotta 1980
By Ettore Sottsass, Zanotta
Located in Byron Bay, NSW
Alfiere étagère by Ettore Sottsass for Zanotta, 1980 This rare Italian postmodern sculptural wall shelf was designed by Ettore Sottsass in 1980 for Zanotta. Known as the Alfiere éta...
Marble, Chrome
$4,972 / item
Red Bookcase by Rejo Studio
Located in Geneve, CH
Red Bookcase by Rejo Studio Dimensions: D 180 x W 45 x H 145 cm Materials: Wood Also Available in different colour. REJO is a design studio based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and Ista...
Wood
$4,972 / item
Yellow Bookcase by Rejo Studio
Located in Geneve, CH
Yellow Bookcase by Rejo Studio. Dimensions: D 200 x W 50 x H 168 cm. Materials: wood. Also available in different colour. REJO is a design studio based in Riyadh, Saudi Arab...
Wood
Vintage Postmodern Black Laminate Hi-Fi Stereo Receiver W Cd Storage System
Located in Chicago, IL
Vintage Postmodern Black Laminate Wood & Metal Hi-Fi Stereo Receiver Rack with CD Storing System This Vintage Postmodern Black Laminate Wood and Metal Hi-Fi Stereo Receiver Rack com...
Laminate
Oak Console Height Bookcases Custom Designed (Two Available)
Located in North Miami, FL
This is a wonderful pair of low console height bookcases in solid oak and porcelain top in natural stone finish. These are sold separately but make a great pair if you need. ONLY t...
Porcelain, Oak
Black Tree Console Shelf by Elisabeth Hertzfeld
Located in Geneve, CH
Beige tree console shelf by Elisabeth Hertzfeld Materials: Fenix Laminate Dimensions: D 35 x W 53 x H 6.5 cm The founders, Mia and Torben Koed, decided to put their 30 years of...
Laminate
$1,451 / item
Object 010 Hanger by NG Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Object 010 Hanger by NG Design Dimensions: D120 x W50 x H180 cm Materials: Powder coated steel. Also Available: All of objects available in different materials and colors on dem...
Steel
$666 / item
Object 011 Hanger by NG Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Object 011 Hanger by NG Design. Dimensions: D130 x W40 x H190 cm. Materials: powder coated steel. Also available: All of objects available in different materials and colors on d...
Steel
$2,438 / item
Object 009 Shelves by NG Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Object 009 shelves by NG Design Dimensions: D160 x W40 x H190 cm Materials: Powder coated steel. Also Available: All of objects available in different materials and colors on de...
Steel
$7,328 / item
Endless Garden Shelf by Haus Otto
Located in Geneve, CH
Endless Garden Shelf by Haus Otto Dimensions: D30 x W90 x H66 cm Materials: Brushed Red Oak Endless Garden is a modular shelving system which conceptually addresses the meaning ...
Oak
$14,656 / set
Set of 2 Endless Garden Shelves by Haus Otto
Located in Geneve, CH
Set of 2 Endless garden shelves by Haus Otto Dimensions: D 30 x W 90 x H 66 cm Each Materials: Brushed red oak Endless Garden is a modular shelving system which conceptually add...
Oak
$21,984 / set
Set of 3 Endless Garden Shelves by Haus Otto
Located in Geneve, CH
Set of 3 Endless Garden shelves by Haus Otto Dimensions: D30 x W90 x H66 cm Each Materials: brushed red oak Endless Garden is a modular shelving system which conceptually addres...
Oak
$2,260 / item
Innocent Bookshelf Three Modules by Mingardo
Located in Geneve, CH
Innocent bookshelf three modules by Mingardo Dimensions: D90 x W39 x H110 cm Materials: RAL 9005 black varnished iron structure, shelf in black stained oak Weight: 60 kg Also ...
Iron
$1,130 / item
Innocent Bookshelf Single Module by Mingardo
Located in Geneve, CH
Innocent bookshelf single module by Mingardo Dimensions: D90 x W39 x H43 cm Materials: RAL 9005 black varnished iron structure, shelf in black stained oak Weight: 30 kg Also a...
Iron
Piazzetta Shelf, Light Grey by Atelier Ferraro
Located in Geneve, CH
Piazzetta shelf, light grey by Atelier Ferraro Dimensions: L33 x W10 x H14 cm Materials: Recycled Aluminium Also Available: Cement Greyand Pebble Grey colors „THE FORM FOLLOW...
Aluminum
Piazzetta Shelf, Pebble Grey by Atelier Ferraro
Located in Geneve, CH
Piazzetta shelf, pebble grey by Atelier Ferraro Dimensions: L35 x W13 x H12 cm Materials: recycled aluminium Also available: cement grey and light grey colors. „The Form Follows Th...
Aluminum
Set of 3, Piazzetta Shelves, Light, Cement and Pebble Grey by Atelier Ferraro
Located in Geneve, CH
Set of 3, piazzetta shelves, light - cement and pebble grey by Atelier Ferraro Dimensions: L 33 x W 10 x H 14 cm Materials: recycled aluminium „THE FORM FOLLOWS THE REST“: In a ...
Aluminum
Piazzetta Shelf, Cement Grey by Atelier Ferraro
Located in Geneve, CH
Piazzetta shelf, cement grey by Atelier Ferraro Dimensions: L 33 x W 10 x H 14 cm Materials: recycled aluminium Also available: light grey and pebble grey colors. "The form f...
Aluminum
Set of 4, Blue Valet Coat Hanger & Grey Piazzetta Shelves by Atelier Ferraro
Located in Geneve, CH
Set of 4, pastel turquoise valet coat hanger & grey ( cement, light, pebble) Piazzetta shelves by Atelier Ferraro Dimensions: L 33 x W 10 x H 14 cm (Shelves), L 35 x W 65 x H 7 cm (...
Aluminum
Postmodern American Studio Craft Sculptural Wood Display Console Shelf 1990s
Located in Troy, MI
American studio craft sculptural shelf or console table circa 1990s Unique Memphis inspired step design executed in ash and walnut with dovetail joinery and lower wave stretcher So...
Wood
$7,851 / item
Leaf Wall Console by Pol Quadens
Located in Geneve, CH
Leaf Wall Console by Pol Quadens Limited Edition Of 8+4 Pieces. Dimensions: D 30 x W 200 x H 7 cm. Materials: Mirror-polished stainless steel. Pol Quadens was born in Brussels. His...
Stainless Steel
$1,249 / item
Forets Shelf by Mélissa Mariller
Located in Geneve, CH
Forets Shelf by Mélissa Mariller Dimensions: D 25 x W 35 x H 12 cm. Materials: Cast aluminum. All our lamps can be wired according to each country. If sold to the USA it will be wir...
Aluminum
$10,992 / item
Mezzo Shelving by Laylo Studio
Located in Geneve, CH
Mezzo Shelving by Laylo Studio Dimensions: D 45.7 x W 167.6 x H 73.6 cm. Materials: Blackened steel, walnut. LAYLO is the practice of Sam and Lydia Link. Founded with the intention...
Steel
Anacleto Spazzapan Sculptural Display
By Anacleto Spazzapan
Located in New York, NY
An Anacleto Spazzapan sculptural display. Impressive metal sculpture comprised of intricate metal connections to make weave-like pattern with two display shelves.
Metal
$512Sale Price|60% Off
Postmodern Sculpted White Stucco Etagere/Bookshelf
Located in Delray Beach, FL
The Postmodern Sculpted White Stucco Etagere/Bookshelf is a unique addition to any space, blending artistic design with functionality. Its sculpted form and white stucco finish add a...
Glass
Abracadabra by De Pas D'Urbino Lomazzi for Zerodisegno
By Zerodisegno, Gionathan de Pas & Donato D’Urbino & Paolo Lomazzi
Located in Milano, IT
Iconic Abracadabra bookshelf designed by the renowned Italian design trio De Pas, D'Urbino, Lomazzi. Produced by Zerodisegno, this stunning piece features a unique and playful design...
Aluminum, Iron
$14,275Sale Price|20% Off
Custom steel and glass bookcase by Johan Bruynseraede, Netherlands 1990s
By Ettore Sottsass, Gaetano Pesce, Memphis Group, Matteo Thun
Located in ECHT, NL
Large custom made bookcase. It was designed by architect Johan Bruynseraede issued by bureau Contrast. It was designed specifically for an interior design project by bureau Contrast...
Steel
“John Ild” grey shelf by Philippe Starck for Disform, 1977.
By Disform, Philippe Starck
Located in Barcelona, ES
“John Ild” shelf, model in 1977, designed by Philippe Starck, produced by Disform in 1982. The structure is composed of two black metal tube uprights that can be placed against a wal...
Steel
Paul Evans for Directional 'PE 68' Wall Unit in Bronzed Resin and Glass
By Paul Evans
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Paul Evans, Paul Evans Studio for Directional, wall shelves, model 'PE 68', epoxy bronzed resin over wood, glass, United States, 1970s Grand wall unit by Paul Evans, designed for Di...
Glass, Resin, Wood
$785 / item
SIMPLY Foggy Shelf by Mademoiselle Jo
Located in Geneve, CH
SIMPLY Foggy Shelf by Mademoiselle Jo Dimensions: L 76 x W 24 cm. Materials: Matte foggy steel. Available in two versions and two colors. Please contact us. Behind SIMPLY is actual...
Steel
$594 / item
Simply White Shelf by Mademoiselle Jo
Located in Geneve, CH
Simply White Shelf by Mademoiselle Jo Dimensions: L 76 x W 24 cm. Materials: Matte white steel. Available in two versions and two colors. Please contact us. Behind SIMPLY is actual...
Steel
$3,580 / item
Lop Bookshelf by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
Lop Bookshelf by Pastform Dimensions: D 40 x W 240 x H 100 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes: Whiskey, Rum, BPA, Nobel, Brandy, S...
Wood
$5,935 / item
Mid-Century inspired Bookshelf by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
Mid-Century Bookshelf by Pastform Dimensions: D 45 x W 150 x H 200 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes: Whiskey, Rum, BPA, Nobel, B...
Wood
$3,640 / item
Rato Bookshelf by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
Rato Bookshelf by Pastform Dimensions: D 25 x W 130 x H 165 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes: Whiskey, Rum, BPA, Nobel, Brandy, ...
Wood
$3,640 / item
Rato Bookshelf by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
Rato Bookshelf by Pastform Dimensions: D 25 x W 130 x H 165 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes: Whiskey, Rum, BPA, Nobel, Brandy, ...
Wood
Metal shelf Verspanntes Regal design Wolfgang Laubersheimer, Pentagon Group 1984
By Pentagon Group, Wolfgang Laubersheimer
Located in Offenburg, Baden Wurthemberg
One Postmodern shelf „Verspanntes Regal“ designed by Wolfgang Laubersheimer for Pentagon Group in 1984. early edition of the 'Verspanntes Regal', therefore without makers bedge or ...
Steel
Contemporary Art Writing Desk Amanuense Nero Black by Adolfo Natalini
By Mirabili, Adolfo Natalini
Located in Pistoia, IT
Limited edition of 99 numbered and signed copies. Amanuense, decoded in his characterizing elements (the functional nature of the writing desk-Sécretaire; the symbolic hand and the ...
Bronze
Contemporary Art Writing Desk Amanuense Dark Cherry Wood by Adolfo Natalini
By Mirabili, Adolfo Natalini
Located in Pistoia, IT
Limited edition of 99 numbered and signed copies. Amanuense, decoded in his characterizing elements (the functional nature of the writing desk-Sécretaire, the symbolic hand and the ...
Bronze
Monument Shelves In Black Marquina by Mathieu Girard & Gauthier Pouillart
By La Chance
Located in Geneve, CH
Monument Shelves In Black Marquina by Mathieu Girard & Gauthier Pouillart Dimensions: L 130 x H 117 Materials: White travertine shelves - black marble (marquina) columns Material ava...
Marble
Monument Shelves In Black Marquina by Mathieu Girard & Gauthier Pouillart
By La Chance
Located in Geneve, CH
Monument shelves by Mathieu Girard & Gauthier Pouillart. Dimensions: L 195 x H 117. Materials: White travertine shelves - black marble (marquina) columns. Material available: Birchwo...
Marble
$3,342 / item
Erro Shelf by Regina Merino and Rodrigo Ordóñez
By Regina Merino
Located in Geneve, CH
Erro shelf by Regina Merino and Rodrigo Ordóñez Dimensions: D 80 x W 27 x H 52 cm Materials: steel, walnut wood. Shelf made of carbon steel plate with mirror finish, cylindrical...
Steel
$29,049 / item
Nami Bookcase by De Castelli
Located in Geneve, CH
Nami Bookcase by De Castelli Dimensions: W 140 x D 37 x H 200 cm Materials: Striped DeLabré Brass Other versions are available. Please contact us for any request. Modular bookcase c...
Brass, Stainless Steel
$12,692 / item
Talea Bookcase by De Castelli
Located in Geneve, CH
Talea Bookcase by De Castelli Dimensions: W 185 x D 32 x H 198 cm Materials: Orbitale DeLabré Copper, Other Stainless Steel and Brass versions are available. Other variations of this...
Copper, Other
$12,539 / item
Talea Bookcase by De Castelli
Located in Geneve, CH
Talea Bookcase by De Castelli Dimensions: W 115 x D 32 x H 234 cm Materials: Orbitale DeLabré Copper, Other Stainless Steel and Brass versions are available. Other variations of this...
Copper, Other
$29,049 / item
Nami Bookcase by De Castelli
Located in Geneve, CH
Nami Bookcase by De Castelli Dimensions: W 140 x D 37 x H 200 cm Materials: Striped DeLabré Brass Other versions are available. Please contact us for any request. Modular bookcase c...
Brass, Stainless Steel
$23,555 / item
Source Tall Shelf No.2 by A Space
Located in Geneve, CH
The Source Tall Shelf No.2 by A Space Dimensions: D60 x W25 x H170cm Materials: Red tuff. Weight: 230 kg Inspired by antiquity, material, craftsmanship and architecture of Arme...
Other
$23,555 / item
The Source Tall Shelf No.1 by a Space
Located in Geneve, CH
The Source Tall Shelf No.1 by A Space Dimensions: D60 x W25 x H170cm Materials: Red tuff. Weight: 230 kg Inspired by antiquity, material, craftsmanship and architecture of Arme...
Other
Oversized Custom Designed Black Metal Wall-Mounted Etagere/ Shelves (ONE Avail)
Located in North Miami, FL
WE have only ONE available of these phenomenal etagere/ shelving system that mounts to your wall and provides 5 deep and wide shelves. VERY solid and industrial style. NOTE: there ...
Metal
$202 / item
Wally Small Grey Shelf by +kouple
Located in Geneve, CH
Wally Small Grey Shelf by +kouple Dimensions: D 2,3 x W 2,5 x H 1,7 cm. Materials: Powder-coated steel. Available in different color options. Available in two different sizes. Plea...
Steel
$202 / item
Wally Small Almond Shelf by +kouple
Located in Geneve, CH
Wally Small Almond Shelf by +kouple Dimensions: D 2,3 x W 2,5 x H 1,7 cm. Materials: Powder-coated steel. Available in different color options. Available in two different sizes. Pl...
Steel
$5,793 / item
LXV Wall Shelf by Aaron Scott
By Aaron Scott Design
Located in Geneve, CH
LXV wall shelf by Aaron Scott Dimensions: D 22 x W 56 x H 41 cm Materials: Walnut. Also available in other woods: bleached cherry, ebonized cherry, ebonized walnut. Brooklyn-...
Walnut
$261 / item
Wally Big Ultra Blue Shelf by +kouple
Located in Geneve, CH
Wally Big Ultra Blue Shelf by +kouple Dimensions: D 5,3 x W 2,5 x H 1,7 cm. Materials: Powder-coated steel. Available in different color options. Available in two different sizes. ...
Steel
$20,022 / item
Copacabana Bookcase by DUISTT
Located in Geneve, CH
Copacabana Bookcase by DUISTT Dimensions: W 130 x D 40 x H 216 cm Materials: Natural Oak, Brushed brass, Travertino / High Gloss Black Lacquer wood Part of Copacabana collection, th...
Brass
$28,789 / item
Shelving Design by Alexey Drozhdin
Located in Geneve, CH
Shelving design by Alexey Drozhdin Dimensions: D 220 x W 220 x H 55 cm. Materials: glass, oak shape. A young designer and artist Alexey Drozhdin creates extraordinary decorativ...
Glass, Oak
$9,422 / item
Hug Bookcase by Rejo Studio
Located in Geneve, CH
Hug Bookcase by Rejo Studio Dimensions: D 165 x W 35 x H 180 cm Materials: Olivewood burl with Silver Metal This bookcase was designed to resemble, to some extent, what stormed ...
Metal
$14,394 / item
BIS Bookshelf by MOB
Located in Geneve, CH
BIS bookshelf by MOB Limited editions of 15 + 1 prototype Designer: Benjamin Ossa (Chile) Dimensions: H 210 x D 50 x W 210 cm Material: Cherry tree veneer 18mm, steel chrome uni...
Steel
$13,348 / item
Steel and Brass Bookshelves by Lukasz Friedrich
By Lukas Friedrich
Located in Geneve, CH
Steel and Brass Bookshelves by Lukasz Friedrich. Signed and dated. Measures: D 33 x W 43 x H 191 cm. Finish: Patinated solid brass, blackened steel shelves.
Brass, Steel
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.