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Vintage Postmodern DIA Cantilever Brass / Chrome Side End Table / Karl Springer
Vintage Postmodern DIA Cantilever Brass / Chrome Side End Table / Karl Springer

Vintage Postmodern DIA Cantilever Brass / Chrome Side End Table / Karl Springer

By Design Institute America

Located in Chicago, IL

Vintage Postmodern DIA Cantilever brass and a dark chrome and glass Side End Table An interesting architectural side table with a mirror border glass insert top that can be replaced...

Category

Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Brass

Postmodern Coffee or Side Table, Metal & Smoked Glass, USA, c.1980s
Postmodern Coffee or Side Table, Metal & Smoked Glass, USA, c.1980s

Postmodern Coffee or Side Table, Metal & Smoked Glass, USA, c.1980s

Located in Rancho Cucamonga, CA

A distinctive postmodern coffee or side table in the 1980s design tradition, crafted from smoked glass and metal, showcasing bold cylindrical legs and a geometric sculptural frame.

Category

Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Metal

Kioko side table De Pas, D'urbino, Lomazzi postmodern 80s style
Kioko side table De Pas, D'urbino, Lomazzi postmodern 80s style

Kioko side table De Pas, D'urbino, Lomazzi postmodern 80s style

By Gionathan de Pas & Donato D’Urbino & Paolo Lomazzi, Zanotta

Located in Shibuya-ku, Tokyo

Kioko side table designed by De Pas, D'urbino, Lomazzi. This table was published in the early 90s. Legs are probably aluminum. Table top is painted wood. To Europe and Asia buyers....

Category

Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Steel

Midcentury Postmodern Clear Glass Block End Table or Side Table after Sottsass
Midcentury Postmodern Clear Glass Block End Table or Side Table after Sottsass

Midcentury Postmodern Clear Glass Block End Table or Side Table after Sottsass

By Ettore Sottsass

Located in Philadelphia, PA

A very cool architectural design from the 1980s. It features heavy solid glass block construction with thick clear glass top.

Category

Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Glass

Postmodern 'Loto' Cast Iron Side Table by Hans von Klier
Postmodern 'Loto' Cast Iron Side Table by Hans von Klier

Postmodern 'Loto' Cast Iron Side Table by Hans von Klier

By Hans Von Klier, Zanotta

Located in London, GB

Produced by Zanotta, Milan, 1990s. Cast iron base, anti-scratch embossed paint, anthracite color; conical element in replex, anthracite-colored recycled plastic with support rod ...

Category

1990s Italian Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Aluminum, Iron

Postmodern Plaster Stacked Table
Postmodern Plaster Stacked Table

Postmodern Plaster Stacked Table

$840Sale Price|30% Off

Postmodern Plaster Stacked Table

Located in San Diego, CA

Excellent example of 1980s Postmodern design, beautiful geometric stacked occasional table that can function as side table, end table or coffee table.

Category

Mid-20th Century American Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Plaster

Postmodern Glass, Brass and Wood Side Table, Germany, 1980s
Postmodern Glass, Brass and Wood Side Table, Germany, 1980s

Postmodern Glass, Brass and Wood Side Table, Germany, 1980s

Located in Oud Beijerland, NL

Striking postmodern side table produced in Germany in the 1980s, combining architectural form with refined, luxurious materials.

Category

Vintage 1980s German Post-Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables

Materials

Brass

Postmodern End or Side Table with Mirror Top & Black Laquered Pedestal Base
Postmodern End or Side Table with Mirror Top & Black Laquered Pedestal Base

Postmodern End or Side Table with Mirror Top & Black Laquered Pedestal Base

Located in Topeka, KS

Marvelous vintage Postmodern end or side table comprised of a black lacquered pedestal base with beveled edges & gold base trim and a rounded square shaped top with gold trim edges a...

Category

Late 20th Century Unknown Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Composition

Postmodern Glass Top Side Table with Black Sphere Faux Marble Lacquer Base 1980s
Postmodern Glass Top Side Table with Black Sphere Faux Marble Lacquer Base 1980s

Postmodern Glass Top Side Table with Black Sphere Faux Marble Lacquer Base 1980s

Located in Toronto, CA

A sculptural Postmodern pedestal side table in the Memphis style, circa 1980s, featuring a high-gloss black lacquered base with stepped plinth detail and a floating tempered glass top.

Category

Mid-20th Century Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Glass, Wood, Lacquer

Postmodern Birdseye Maple Accent Table
Postmodern Birdseye Maple Accent Table

Postmodern Birdseye Maple Accent Table

By Michael Graves (b.1934)

Located in Richmond, VA

Fantastic postmodern neo classical accent table in the manner of Michael Graves. Table is handcrafted in birdseye maple veneer with ebony inlay. Italy, circa 1980

Category

Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Birdseye Maple, Ebony

Lord Yi Marble Side Table Philippe Starck Chair Postmodern Minimal in Stock
Lord Yi Marble Side Table Philippe Starck Chair Postmodern Minimal in Stock

Lord Yi Marble Side Table Philippe Starck Chair Postmodern Minimal in Stock

By Driade, Philippe Starck

Located in Shibuya-ku, Tokyo

Lord Yi table designed by Philippe Starck for Driade. White marble top and aluminum leg.  

Category

1990s Italian Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Carrara Marble, Aluminum

Cast Plaster Monkey Table - Postmodern 1980s
Cast Plaster Monkey Table - Postmodern 1980s

Cast Plaster Monkey Table - Postmodern 1980s

Located in Raleigh, NC

Postmodern table from the 1980s featuring a cast plaster monkey figure as the base.

Category

Vintage 1980s Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Glass, Plaster

Dutch Postmodern Red Side Drinks Table w/Shelf by Erik van Buijtenen for Nebu
Dutch Postmodern Red Side Drinks Table w/Shelf by Erik van Buijtenen for Nebu

Dutch Postmodern Red Side Drinks Table w/Shelf by Erik van Buijtenen for Nebu

By Erik van Buijtenen, Nebu

Located in New York, NY

A Dutch Postmodern red lacquered side drinks table with shelf by designer Erik van Buijtenen for Nebu, circa 1970s, Holland.

Category

Late 20th Century Dutch Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Composition

Postmodern Brass and Glass End Table
Postmodern Brass and Glass End Table

Postmodern Brass and Glass End Table

$1,120Sale Price|20% Off

Postmodern Brass and Glass End Table

Located in Chicago, IL

Excellent Postmodern design with the four three-sided column legs securely attached through the 3/8" glass top by solid brass discs. Patinated brass finish and X-form support.

Category

Vintage 1970s American Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Brass

Pair of Postmodern Lacquer & Walnut Martini Tables, Nesting Drink Tables
Pair of Postmodern Lacquer & Walnut Martini Tables, Nesting Drink Tables

Pair of Postmodern Lacquer & Walnut Martini Tables, Nesting Drink Tables

By Jhon Ortiz, The Tailored Home

Located in Greenwich, CT

Designed and handcrafted in Norwalk, CT, this pair of square martini tables features a sleek, hourglass silhouette with contrasting walnut wood tops. The vibrant lacquered bases are ...

Category

2010s American Modern Side Tables

Materials

Lacquer, Walnut

Postmodern Maitland Smith Style Sculpted Circular Polished Tessellated Table
Postmodern Maitland Smith Style Sculpted Circular Polished Tessellated Table

Postmodern Maitland Smith Style Sculpted Circular Polished Tessellated Table

Located in Delray Beach, FL

Sculpted Circular Tessellated Stone Side Table in hand-cut stone mosaic with a curved silhouette—ideal for interiors seeking luxury with artistry. Some chips around the feet as s...

Category

1990s Philippine Side Tables

Materials

Stone

Red Side Drinks Table
Red Side Drinks Table

Red Side Drinks Table

Located in New York, NY

A red geometric side/drinks table, Postmodern period, circa late-20th century.

Category

Late 20th Century Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Plastic, Resin

Pair of Postmodern Bedside Tables "Maletik Series" by Borek Šípek
Pair of Postmodern Bedside Tables "Maletik Series" by Borek Šípek

Pair of Postmodern Bedside Tables "Maletik Series" by Borek Šípek

By B. Sipek

Located in Brooklyn, NY

This Postmodern pair of wall-mounted nightstands was designed by Borek Šípek in1995. Crafted from lacquered wood, the floating cabinets feature glass tops supported by chromed tubula...

Category

Late 20th Century Italian Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Brass, Chrome

Postmodern Model OTI Metal Table by Niels Gammelgaard for Ikea, 1980s
Postmodern Model OTI Metal Table by Niels Gammelgaard for Ikea, 1980s

Postmodern Model OTI Metal Table by Niels Gammelgaard for Ikea, 1980s

By IKEA, Niels Gammelgaard

Located in Hamburg, DE

The table for the OTI chair, a design classic from the 1980s by Danish architect Niels Gammelgaard. The table adopts the basic geometric shape of the triangle that characterizes the...

Category

20th Century Swedish Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Metal

Side Drinks Table Hourglass Shape
Side Drinks Table Hourglass Shape

Side Drinks Table Hourglass Shape

Located in New York, NY

A substantial silver and copper hued metal hourglass side drinks table, Postmodernism, circa late-20th century.

Category

Late 20th Century Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Metal, Enamel

Pair of Postmodern Two Tones Italian Marble End Tables. Circa 1980s
Pair of Postmodern Two Tones Italian Marble End Tables. Circa 1980s

Pair of Postmodern Two Tones Italian Marble End Tables. Circa 1980s

By Stone International

Located in Miami, FL

Vintage Pair of Postmodern Two Tones Italian Marble End Tables. Circa 1980s Features a nicely curved border at edges and a gorgeous natural veins and two different tones stones. The ...

Category

Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Marble

Set of Two Faceted Postmodern Low Tables in Hand-Lacquered Custom RAL Colors
Set of Two Faceted Postmodern Low Tables in Hand-Lacquered Custom RAL Colors

Set of Two Faceted Postmodern Low Tables in Hand-Lacquered Custom RAL Colors

By JLC

Located in New York, NY

This collection of lithic low tables explores the tension between primitive, rock-like formations and refined, architectural silhouettes. This set features a low-profile coffee table...

Category

2010s Portuguese Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Wood, Lacquer

Papilio Side Table by Alessandro Mendini 1985
Papilio Side Table by Alessandro Mendini 1985

Papilio Side Table by Alessandro Mendini 1985

By Alessandro Mendini

Located in Weesp, NL

Elevate your space with these exquisite postmodern two-tier glass side tables, a rare and iconic design by Alessandro Mendini, one of the most influential figures in modern design.

Category

1990s Italian Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Steel

Chrome and Glass Side Drinks Table Tord Björklund
Chrome and Glass Side Drinks Table Tord Björklund

Chrome and Glass Side Drinks Table Tord Björklund

By Tord Bjorklund

Located in New York, NY

A tubular chrome and glass side drinks table, Postmodern design period, by/attributed to Swedish designer Tord Björklund, for IKEA, circa late-20th century, late 1970s to early 1980s...

Category

Late 20th Century Swedish Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Chrome

Pr. Hollywood Regency Postmodern Glass and Brass Tables Made in Italy  1970/80's
Pr. Hollywood Regency Postmodern Glass and Brass Tables Made in Italy  1970/80's

Pr. Hollywood Regency Postmodern Glass and Brass Tables Made in Italy 1970/80's

By Milo Baughman, Design Institute America

Located in New York, NY

Voguish chic matched pair of side tables having squared stock brass frames, with thick tempered glass tops. Design reminiscent of Milo Baughman, Design Institute America, etc - we b...

Category

Late 20th Century Italian Hollywood Regency Side Tables

Materials

Brass

A RADICAL & POSTMODERN Lucite CONSOLE, France 1970
A RADICAL & POSTMODERN Lucite CONSOLE, France 1970

A RADICAL & POSTMODERN Lucite CONSOLE, France 1970

Located in PARIS, FR

A rigorous rectangular console, Post-Modernist, Space-Age, Seventies, Shabby-Chic, geometric structure solidified by a low shelf both aesthetic and constructive, in very thick strips...

Category

Vintage 1970s French Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Lucite

1980s Natural Mactan Stone Square End/Side Tables
1980s Natural Mactan Stone Square End/Side Tables

1980s Natural Mactan Stone Square End/Side Tables

Located in Dallas, TX

Unique Postmodern 1980s design, freeform end/side tables. Each table base in rough edged brick motif Mactan stone.

Category

Vintage 1980s Modern Side Tables

Materials

Stone

Pair of Vintage Leather Parsons Side Tables, Vintage Design, USA
Pair of Vintage Leather Parsons Side Tables, Vintage Design, USA

Pair of Vintage Leather Parsons Side Tables, Vintage Design, USA

By Maitland Smith, Karl Springer, Pierre Cardin, (after) Jean Michel Frank, Harrison Van Horn

Located in Round Top, TX

Postmodern Leather Parsons Side Tables A pair of genuine leather wrapped side tables with protective glass tops.

Category

Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Leather, Glass, Wood

Karl Springer Style Black Lacquer Pedestal Side Table with Glass Top
Karl Springer Style Black Lacquer Pedestal Side Table with Glass Top

Karl Springer Style Black Lacquer Pedestal Side Table with Glass Top

By Milo Baughman, Karl Springer

Located in W Allenhurst, NJ

A striking Postmodern sculptural side table dating from the late 1980s to early 1990s, featuring a dramatic architectural pedestal base finished in high-gloss black lacquer and suppo...

Category

Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Glass, Lacquer, Composite stone

Scandinavian Post Modern Side Table Square Marble Top Bendixen Designs Denmark
Scandinavian Post Modern Side Table Square Marble Top Bendixen Designs Denmark

Scandinavian Post Modern Side Table Square Marble Top Bendixen Designs Denmark

By Bendixen Design

Located in Topeka, KS

This exquisite end or side table bears a spectacular Scandinavian Modern to Postmodern style and is ready to grace your home, apartment, or industrial loft with its absolute MARVELOU...

Category

Late 20th Century Danish Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Marble

Postmodern Swedish Model OTI Lounge Chair by Niels Gammelgaard for Ikea, 1980s
Postmodern Swedish Model OTI Lounge Chair by Niels Gammelgaard for Ikea, 1980s

Postmodern Swedish Model OTI Lounge Chair by Niels Gammelgaard for Ikea, 1980s

By IKEA, Niels Gammelgaard

Located in Hamburg, DE

A design classic from the 1980s by Danish architect Niels Gammelgaard. At first glance, the OTI Chair is somewhat reminiscent of the classic Diamond Chair, but it has entirely diffe...

Category

20th Century Swedish Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Metal

Italian 1970's Postmodern Swiveling Bar Cart in Chrome and Smoked Glass
Italian 1970's Postmodern Swiveling Bar Cart in Chrome and Smoked Glass

Italian 1970's Postmodern Swiveling Bar Cart in Chrome and Smoked Glass

By Milo Baughman

Located in Bedford Hills, NY

A sophisticated and versatile example of Italian 1970s design, this swiveling bar cart (or drinks trolley) features a sleek, minimalist chrome frame with the distinctive ability to p...

Category

Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Side Tables

Materials

Chrome

Pucci De Rossi for H Dolin Stuart Signed Battista Occasional Table, 1987
Pucci De Rossi for H Dolin Stuart Signed Battista Occasional Table, 1987

Pucci De Rossi for H Dolin Stuart Signed Battista Occasional Table, 1987

By Pucci De Rossi

Located in Cathedral City, CA

Pucci De Rossi for H Dolin Stuart Signed Battista Occasional Table, 1987 A delightful postmodern sculptural side table with an interlocking charcoal color metal base with glass top ...

Category

Vintage 1980s American Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Metal

Tessellated Stone Nightstand in the Style of Marquis of Beverly Hills
Tessellated Stone Nightstand in the Style of Marquis of Beverly Hills

Tessellated Stone Nightstand in the Style of Marquis of Beverly Hills

By Marquis Collection of Beverly Hills 1

Located in San Diego, CA

A very nice tessellated stone Postmodern single drawer side table or nightstand in the style of Marquis of Beverly Hills, circa 1990s.

Category

Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Side Tables

Materials

Stone

Postmodern Side Coffe Table 1980s
Postmodern Side Coffe Table 1980s

Postmodern Side Coffe Table 1980s

Located in Čelinac, BA

Postmodern Side Coffe table Italy 1980s

Category

Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables

Materials

Metal

Vintage Postmodern Natural Mactan Stone Side / Coffee Table
Vintage Postmodern Natural Mactan Stone Side / Coffee Table

Vintage Postmodern Natural Mactan Stone Side / Coffee Table

By Maitland Smith

Located in Denton, TX

Beautiful Tessellated Macan stone set on a diagonal design and capped with a square glass top. Can be used with or with out the glass top. The measurements of the base is 19 x 19 x ...

Category

Late 20th Century Philippine Post-Modern End Tables

Materials

Stone

Postmodern Memphis 1980s Pair of End Tables, Side Tables -- 2 Pcs
Postmodern Memphis 1980s Pair of End Tables, Side Tables -- 2 Pcs

Postmodern Memphis 1980s Pair of End Tables, Side Tables -- 2 Pcs

By Ettore Sottsass

Located in Basel, BS

Gorgeous, RARE pair of stylish Postmodern 1980s end tables. Very versatile, excellent as bedside tables, or in a living room next to a couch or lounge chair. Brand unknown, no labels...

Category

Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern End Tables

Materials

Wood

1980s Postmodern Glass and Chrome Side / End Table 21x27x21 Inches
1980s Postmodern Glass and Chrome Side / End Table 21x27x21 Inches

1980s Postmodern Glass and Chrome Side / End Table 21x27x21 Inches

Located in Philadelphia, PA

This is a postmodern end table that dates back to the 1980s. The exact designer and manufacturer of the table are unknown. This piece is comprised of a chrome frame with a glass tabl...

Category

Vintage 1980s Unknown Modern End Tables

Materials

Chrome

Postmodern Sculptural Green Figured Marble Side Tables, Pair, c. 1980s
Postmodern Sculptural Green Figured Marble Side Tables, Pair, c. 1980s

Postmodern Sculptural Green Figured Marble Side Tables, Pair, c. 1980s

Located in Rancho Cucamonga, CA

This pair of side tables represents the bold materiality of postmodern design, utilizing solid, highly figured marble to create a functional yet sculptural statement.

Category

Late 20th Century Italian Post-Modern End Tables

Materials

Marble

Postmodern Travertine Nesting Side Tables, a Set of 3
Postmodern Travertine Nesting Side Tables, a Set of 3

Postmodern Travertine Nesting Side Tables, a Set of 3

By Karl Springer

Located in Brooklyn, NY

A set of three nesting side tables in solid travertine, designed in a stepped form typical of postmodern furniture.

Category

Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Nesting Tables and Stacking Tables

Materials

Travertine

Postmodern Lucite Cubic Table or Side Lamp, Italy, 1970s
Postmodern Lucite Cubic Table or Side Lamp, Italy, 1970s

Postmodern Lucite Cubic Table or Side Lamp, Italy, 1970s

Located in Vienna, AT

A beautiful cube table or side lamp made of perspex from the 1970s. Made in Italy, in very good condition. Makes a wonderful light.

Category

Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Lucite

Postmodern Perforated Metal Nesting Side Table from Ikea, 1980s
Postmodern Perforated Metal Nesting Side Table from Ikea, 1980s

Postmodern Perforated Metal Nesting Side Table from Ikea, 1980s

By IKEA

Located in Hamburg, DE

Postmodern metal side table from Ikea from the 1980s.

Category

20th Century Swedish Post-Modern Nesting Tables and Stacking Tables

Materials

Metal

Pair of Italian Postmodern Neo-Classical side tables, in pink breccia marble.
Pair of Italian Postmodern Neo-Classical side tables, in pink breccia marble.

Pair of Italian Postmodern Neo-Classical side tables, in pink breccia marble.

By Mario Bellini, Karl Springer, Ettore Sottsass

Located in København K, 84

This elegant pair of side tables exemplifies the renewed fascination with architectural form and luxurious natural materials that characterized Italian design in the late 1970s.

Category

Vintage 1970s Italian Hollywood Regency End Tables

Materials

Breccia Marble

Vintage Marble End Table Side Table Postmodern MCM 70s 80
Vintage Marble End Table Side Table Postmodern MCM 70s 80

Vintage Marble End Table Side Table Postmodern MCM 70s 80

By Mario Bellini, Angelo Mangiarotti, Milo Baughman, Massimo and Lella Vignelli, Stone International

Located in Palm Desert, CA

Vintage Cream Marble End Table. Made out of solid marble stone. It's in two parts. The tabletop rests on the base. Can be a great coffee table for a small area. Color: Cream and...

Category

Vintage 1970s Unknown Post-Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables

Materials

Marble

Postmodern Pedestal End Table
Postmodern Pedestal End Table

Postmodern Pedestal End Table

Located in Franklin Park, IL

Postmodern Pedestal End Table This side table measures: 26 wide x 26 deep x 21.25 inches high About Photos: We take our photos in a controlled lighting studio to show as much detai...

Category

Early 2000s American Post-Modern End Tables

Materials

Wood

Postmodern Rnd Tessellated Mactan Stone Side Table 4 Sphere Style Maitland Smith
Postmodern Rnd Tessellated Mactan Stone Side Table 4 Sphere Style Maitland Smith

Postmodern Rnd Tessellated Mactan Stone Side Table 4 Sphere Style Maitland Smith

By Maitland Smith

Located in Topeka, KS

Fabulous postmodern tessellated Mactan rough edge stone round pedestal base side table with 4 polished spheres and a round beveled glass top in the style of Maitland Smith.

Category

Late 20th Century Philippine Post-Modern End Tables

Materials

Stone

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Postmodern Side Table For Sale on 1stDibs

With a vast inventory of beautiful furniture at 1stDibs, we’ve got just the postmodern side table you’re looking for. A postmodern side table — often made from metal, wood and glass — can elevate any home. There are 68 variations of the antique or vintage postmodern side table you’re looking for, while we also have 2 modern editions of this piece to choose from as well. Whether you’re looking for an older or newer postmodern side table, there are earlier versions available from the 20th Century and newer variations made as recently as the 21st Century. A postmodern side table, designed in the Mid-Century Modern style, is generally a popular piece of furniture. Ettore Sottsass, Directional and Memphis Group each produced at least one beautiful postmodern side table that is worth considering.

How Much is a Postmodern Side Table?

A postmodern side table can differ in price owing to various characteristics — the average selling price 1stDibs is $2,000, while the lowest priced sells for $350 and the highest can go for as much as $7,450.

A Close Look at Post-modern Furniture

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

  • Emerges during the 1960s; popularity explodes during the ’80s
  • A reaction to prevailing conventions of modernism by mainly American architects
  • Architect Robert Venturi critiques modern architecture in his Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture (1966)
  • Theorist Charles Jencks, who championed architecture filled with allusions and cultural references, writes The Language of Post-Modern Architecture (1977)
  • Italian design collective the Memphis Group, also known as Memphis Milano, meets for the first time (1980) 
  • Memphis collective debuts more than 50 objects and furnishings at Salone del Milano (1981)
  • Interest in style declines, minimalism gains steam

CHARACTERISTICS OF POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGN

  • Dizzying graphic patterns and an emphasis on loud, off-the-wall colors
  • Use of plastic and laminates, glass, metal and marble; lacquered and painted wood 
  • Unconventional proportions and abundant ornamentation
  • Playful nods to Art Deco and Pop art

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 Mendinia 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.

Finding the Right Side-tables for You

While the range of styles and variety of materials have broadened over time, the priceless functionality of side tables has held true.

Antique and vintage side tables are an integral accent to our seating and provide additional, necessary storage in our homes. They can be a great foundation for that perfect focal piece of art that you want all your guests to see as you congregate for cocktails in the living room. Side tables are indeed ideal as a stage for your decorative objects or plants in your library or your study, and they are a practical space for the novel or stack of design magazines you keep close to your sofa.

Sure, owning a pair of side tables isn’t as imperative as having a coffee table in the common area, though most of us would struggle without them. Those made of metal, stone or wood are frequently featured in stylish interiors, and if you’re shopping for side tables, there are a couple of things to keep in mind.

With respect to the height of your side tables, a table that is as high as your lounge chair or the arm of your couch is best.

Some folks are understandably fussy about coherence in a living room area, but coherence doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t mix and match. Feel free to introduce minimalist mid-century modern wooden side tables designed by Paul McCobb alongside your contemporary metal coffee table. If you think it isn’t possible to pair a Hollywood Regency–style side table with a contemporary sofa, we’re here to tell you that it is. Even a leggy side table can balance a chunky sofa well. Try to keep a limited color palette in mind if you’re planning on mixing furniture styles and materials, and don’t be afraid to add a piece of abstract art to shake things up.

As far as the objects you’re planning to place on your side tables, if you have heavy items such as stone or sculptures to display, a fragile glass-top table would not be an ideal choice. Think about what material would best support your collectibles and go with that. If it’s a particularly small side table, along with a tall, sleek floor lamp, it can make for a great way to fill a corner of the room you wouldn’t otherwise easily be able to populate.

Whether you are looking for an antique 19th-century carved oak side table or a vintage rattan side table (because rattan never went away!), the collection on 1stDibs has you covered —  find Art Deco side tables, bamboo side tables, travertine side tables and more today.