Wonderful Witco Tiki Hand Carved Stool , c. 1960s
By William Westenhaver / Witco
Located in Pemberton, NJ
Wonderful hand carved Witco Tiki stool made of Pacific Northwest cedar. Retains its original faux
Faux Leather, Cedar
$2,000 / set
H 17.38 in W 22 in D 22 in
Pair Witco Carved Wood & Glass Tiki Side Cube Tables Stools Rustic Modern 1960s
By William Westenhaver / Witco, Witco
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Designed and made by William Westenhaver, this pair of side or end tables was sold under the Witco
Glass, Cedar
Set of 1960s Witco Carved Tiki Bar Stools with Leather Seats
By William Westenhaver / Witco
Located in San Diego, CA
Set of 2 solid wood Tiki bar stools. Each stool has 4 paneled legs that have been carved in a
Leather, Wood
Sold
H 37.5 in W 68 in D 23.5 in
Avant Garde Tiki Bar with Four Stools by William Westenhaver for Witco
By William Westenhaver / Witco
Located in Las Vegas, NV
Hand-sculpted swamp cedar dry bar with four polychrome stools by William Westenhaver or Witco
Mid-Century Modern Carved Tiki Bar Stools by Witco
By Witco
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Stylish pair of vintage modern tiki bar stools feature teakwood bases with unique detailed south
Teak
Sold
H 17 in W 39 in D 17 in
Witco Decor Tropical Tiki Glam Alligator Bench, Stool, Polychrome Sculpture 1958
By Witco, William Westenhaver / Witco
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Witco Decor Tropical Tiki Glam Alligator Bench, Stool, Polychrome Sculpture c. 1958- early 1960’s
Wood
Sold
H 29 in W 12.5 in D 12 in
Mid Century Modern Witco Tiki Bar Carved Faced Barstool with Faux Leopard Seat
By Witco, William Westenhaver / Witco
Located in St. Louis, MO
Single Mid-Century Witco Tiki barstool - tribal sitting figure with carved face and original faux
Upholstery, Wood
Three 1970s Witco Carved Tiki Bar Stools with Leather Seats
By William Westenhaver / Witco, Witco
Located in San Francisco, CA
Set of three substantial, solid wood construction bar stools. Each stool is one piece of solid wood
Leather, Wood
Witco Mid Century Tiki God Bar Stool / Table by William Westenhaven
By William Westenhaver / Witco, Witco
Located in Atlanta, GA
Exceptional Mid Century Tiki Bar Stool/ Table designed by William Westenhaven for Witco. Comprised
Wood
Witco Hand-Carved Dragon Themed Tiki Bar with Two Stools
By William Westenhaver / Witco, Witco
Located in Media, PA
A beautiful and classic tiki bar set by the legendary manufacturer Witco. This bar comes from a
Faux Fur, Wood
Mid Century Modern Witco Tiki Style Pulaski Oceanic Mad Men Hutch
Located in Sayreville, NJ
Highly desirable Witco contour70 oceanic series display curio cabinet hutch. Mad men/Witco inspired piece that’s in fantastic condition. Dim: 56.5” H 55 1/4” W 17” D
Glass, Walnut
Witco Kitty Cat Magazine Holder
By William Westenhaver / Witco, Witco
Located in Highland, IN
This kitty cat is Classic Witco– the company founded by William Westenhaver and known most famously as the furniture that adorns Elvis' "jungle room." Made of deeply carved swap ceda...
Faux Fur, Cedar
$4,250Sale Price|31% Off
H 61.5 in W 44.25 in D 19 in
Oceanic Sculpted Walnut Highboy Dresser by Pulaski Furniture Co., circa 1969
By Pulaski Furniture Corporation
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This fantastic lacquered sculpted walnut 'Oceanic' highboy dresser cabinet by Pulaski Furniture Corporation, circa 1969 which perfectly encapsulates the California surf mentality of ...
Formica, Walnut
Witco Hacienda Bar and Three Stools
By William Westenhaver / Witco
Located in Hanover, MA
25% Discount Sale Price - includes bar and three stools Original Witco Hacienda bar (model X265) and THREE stools (model K-55B) by William Westenhaver. Hand and chainsaw carved. No ...
Wood
$2,595
H 62 in W 45 in D 19 in
Witco Style Pulaski Oceanic Brutalist MCM 6 Drawer Gentlemans Chest Highboy
By Witco
Located in Franklin Park, IL
Witco Style Pulaski Mid Century Oceanic Brutalist Pedestal Base 6 Drawer Gentlemans Chest Highboy This highboy measures: 45 wide x 19 deep x 62 inches high All pieces of furniture ...
Wood
$4,200Sale Price|34% Off
H 19.5 in W 61 in D 15.5 in
Tête e Tête Gaming Set by William Westenhaver for Witco, c 1950, Signed
By Witco, William Westenhaver / Witco
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This circa 1950s ornately crafted tête e tête with carved exotic details and soft furry sheepskin are a testament to William Westenhaver's modern rustic creations. Influenced by Poly...
Wood, Fur, Sheepskin
Restored Witco Frog Ottoman by William Westenhaver, 1960s
By William Westenhaver / Witco, Witco
Located in Chattanooga, TN
Jump at the opportunity to own this adorable Witco frog ottoman. This frog foot stool is one of the most rare Witco pieces. Call it what you will, a footstool, or a toad stool. He’s ...
Cedar, Paint, Faux Fur
$3,900
H 62 in W 44 in D 19 in
Oceanic Sculpted Walnut Highboy Dresser by Pulaski Furniture Co., Brutalist
By Pulaski Furniture Corporation, Witco
Located in Buffalo, NY
This lovely rare oceanic contour highboy gentlemen’s dresser is by Pulaski Furniture Co is often attributed to Witco. The credenza of this line by Pulaski Furniture Corporation was f...
Walnut
Witco Style Pulaski Oceanic Mid Century Highboy Armoire
By Witco, Pulaski Furniture Corporation
Located in Franklin Park, IL
Witco Style Pulaski Oceanic Mid Century Highboy Armoire This armoire measures: 48 wide x 19 deep x 52.5 inches high All pieces of furniture can be had in what we call restored vint...
Wood
$450 / set
H 7 in Dm 2.5 in
Vintage Tiki / Zombie Glasses Giraffes Painted by Gay Fad on Libbey Glass Blanks
Located in Nantucket, MA
Eight vintage Tiki / Zombie cocktail glasses hand painted by Gay Fad with an adult giraffe and a young giraffe on either side of a stalk of bamboo inscribed "For Long Drinks and Shor...
Glass
$4,196Sale Price / set|30% Off
H 59.5 in W 28.25 in D 23.75 in
Hand Carved High Back Witco Tiki Throne King Chairs in Faux Leopard Fur
By William Westenhaver / Witco, Witco
Located in Chattanooga, TN
A pair of Witco hand-carved “Conquistador” throne chairs like these are rare finds—synthesis of exotica fantasy, craftsmanship, and bold decorative presence. Hand-carved from dark ...
Metal
Tiki Ceramic Table Lamp 1950s
By Tilgmans Keramik
Located in Munich, DE
Very beautiful Tiki ceramic table lamp executed in Hawaiian South Sea Style and an original raffia shade, made in the 1950s by Tilgmans Sweden, excellent vintage condition.
Ceramic, Raffia
Witco Style Pulaski Oceanic Mid Century Highboy Dresser
By Pulaski Furniture Corporation, Witco
Located in Franklin Park, IL
Witco Style Pulaski Oceanic Mid Century Highboy Dresser This highboy measures: 44.25 wide x 19 deep x 61.5 inches high All pieces of furniture can be had in what we call restored v...
Wood
Witco Style Pulaski Oceanic Mid Century Highboy Dresser Armoire
By Pulaski Furniture Corporation, Witco
Located in Franklin Park, IL
Witco Style Pulaski Oceanic Mid Century Highboy Dresser Armoire This highboy measures: 48.25 wide x 19 deep x 52 inches high All pieces of furniture can be had in what we call rest...
Wood
Witco Style Dining Table William Westenhaver
By Witco, William Westenhaver / Witco
Located in W Allenhurst, NJ
Brutalist carved wood Elvis Jungle Room style dining table. In the manner of William Westenhaver/Witco. Item features shield and lion carved pedestal base, solid wood construction, d...
Wood
$5,200
H 27.5 in W 95 in D 37 in
Jungle Room Style Mid-Century Modern Carved Wood Upholstered Sofa by Witco
By Witco
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Designed and made in the United States in the 1960s, this sofa seems to have an almost architectural twist and a more modern shape compared to its more gothic siblings. While these p...
Upholstery, Wood
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
CHARACTERISTICS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW
ICONIC MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNS
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 celebrated 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.
Generations turn over, and mid-century modern remains arguably the most popular style going. 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.