Silas Seandel Volcano

Find many varieties of an authentic silas seandel volcano available at 1stDibs. A silas seandel volcano — often made from metal, glass and bronze — can elevate any home. You’ve searched high and low for the perfect silas seandel volcano — we have versions that date back to the 20th Century alongside those produced as recently as the 20th Century are available. A silas seandel volcano, designed in the Mid-Century Modern style, is generally a popular piece of furniture. Many designers have produced at least one well-made silas seandel volcano over the years, but those crafted by Silas Seandel are often thought to be among the most beautiful.

Prices for a silas seandel volcano can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — at 1stDibs, they begin at $3,200 and can go as high as $16,000, while the average can fetch as much as $8,150.

Silas Seandel creates captivating works in metal that range from sculptural tables in sumptuous living rooms to abstract sculptures that adorn the walls of hotel lobbies and museums. His brutalist and modernist pieces have a sensuous appeal. Working primarily with two methods — welded sheet metal and metal casting — his one-of-a-kind copper, bronze, brass and steel pieces evoke flowing movement.

Born in New York City in 1937, Seandel enjoyed working with his hands at a young age, often modeling with clay and creating kinetic mobiles. He was particularly drawn to the work of Alexander Calder. He graduated in 1959 from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in economics. He then enrolled in business school and studied law. 

While exploring the Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk, Virginia, he wandered into its “Sculptors of the 1950s” exhibit, which included works by Richard Stankiewicz, John Chamberlain and Jason Seley. Their metal art subsequently inspired a shift in his career. Seandel taught himself to weld from a how-to book and opened his first studio in 1963. 

To support his income, he worked in the furniture department at B. Altman & Co. He would talk about metal sculpting with the designers who frequented the floor. One who was refurbishing the dining room of a country club commissioned Seandel to create a wall sculpture that resulted in acclaim for the artist. Since that first commission, he has worked almost exclusively with engineers, interior designers and architects.

Seandel witnessed the September 11, 2001, attacks from his New York City studio; what he saw influenced many of his works. In 2012, the designer’s studio was damaged in the storm surge of Hurricane Sandy. Water is now a recurring theme in his pieces. 

On 1stDibs, find Silas Seandel’s tables, wall decorations, decorative objects and more.

As a practical focal point in your living area, antique and vintage coffee tables and cocktail tables are an invaluable addition to any interior.

Low tables that were initially used as tea tables or coffee tables have been around since at least the mid- to late-1800s. Early coffee tables surfaced in Victorian-era England, likely influenced by the use of tea tables in Japanese tea gardens. In the United States, furniture makers worked to introduce low, long tables into their offerings as the popularity of coffee and “coffee breaks” took hold during the late 19th century and early 20th century.

It didn’t take long for coffee tables and cocktail tables to become a design staple and for consumers to recognize their role in entertaining no matter what beverages were being served. Originally, these tables were as simple as they are practical — as high as your sofa and made primarily of wood. In recent years, however, metal, glass and plastics have become popular in coffee tables and cocktail tables, and design hasn’t been restricted to the conventional low profile, either.

Visionary craftspeople such as Paul Evans introduced bold, geometric designs that challenge the traditional idea of what a coffee table can be. The elongated rectangles and wide boxy forms of Evans’s desirable Cityscape coffee table, for example, will meet your needs but undoubtedly prove imposing in your living space.

If you’re shopping for an older coffee table to bring into your home — be it an antique Georgian-style coffee table made of mahogany or walnut with decorative inlays or a classic square mid-century modern piece comprised of rosewood designed by the likes of Ettore Sottsass — there are a few things you should keep in mind.

Both the table itself and what you put on it should align with the overall design of the room, not just by what you think looks fashionable in isolation. According to interior designer Tamara Eaton, the material of your vintage coffee table is something you need to consider. “With a glass coffee table, you also have to think about the surface underneath, like the rug or floor,” she says. “With wood and stone tables, you think about what’s on top.”

Find the perfect centerpiece for any room, no matter what your personal furniture style on 1stDibs — shop Art Deco coffee tables, travertine coffee tables and other antique and vintage coffee tables and cocktail tables today.