Emerson Woelffer More Furniture and Collectibles

American, 1914-2003

Once dubbed “the Grandfather of L.A. Modernism,” the Chicago-born Emerson Seville Woelffer was active as an innovative painter, collagist, and educator throughout his long and prolific career. A pioneering Abstract Expressionist, Woelffer’s brightly colored work with jagged forms reveals Cubist and Surrealist influences. Coming of age in Chicago during the Great Depression, Woelffer appreciated the improvisational nature of jazz music, a sensibility he would later apply to painting through gestural variation, energetic strokes, and a rhythmic use of line. From 1935 to 1938, Woelffer, a high school dropout, studied at the Art Institute of Chicago while employed as a janitor, early evidence of his enduring work ethic. He joined the Works Progress Administration arts program in 1938 as an easel painter, followed by a two-year stint as a topographical draftsman for the United States Air Force. The director of the Chicago Institute of Design, László Moholy-Nagy, invited Woelffer to join the faculty in 1942. His experiences there brought him into contact with the modernist idiom of the day, and his interactions with students caused him to re-examine his own practice. He also exhibited in group shows at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, participated in the Whitney Museum Annual (1949) and won the Pauline Palmer Prize for painting at the Art Institute of Chicago (1948). In 1949 Emerson Woelffer and his wife Dina, a fine art photographer, were invited by Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner to New York before they headed to Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula. Exposure to Pre-Columbian art led Woelffer to incorporate totemic figures and vibrant colors into his abstract paintings. In 1959 Woelffer joined the faculty at the Chouinard Art Institute (later the California Institute of the Arts) in Los Angeles, where he instructed notable emerging artists until 1973 and where he was instrumental in bringing Modernism to LA. Ed Ruscha was one of his students. In 1974, Woelffer was named chair of the art department at the Otis Art Institute (now the Otis School of Art and Design). His tenure lasted until his retirement in 1989, and he was widely admired for his interdisciplinary approach in the classroom. An endowed scholarship fund in his name provides support for promising young artists and designers. Suffering from macular degeneration, Woelffer switched to drawing with white crayon on black paper in his final years of artistic activity. Emerson won a prestigious Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship in 1967 and then went to wprk in Europe. Woelffer’s work is represented in the collections of such distinguished institutions as the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the National Gallery of Art, and the Museum of Modern Art, among others.

Creator: Emerson Woelffer

Vintage Emerson Fan, St. Louis

By Emerson Woelffer

Located in Napa, CA

Large vintage fan with with turquoise blades and manufacturer medallions on front and back reading "Emerson Electric Fan St. Louis."

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20th Century American Emerson Woelffer More Furniture and Collectibles

Materials

Metal

Vintage Emerson Fan, St. Louis

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Mid-19th Century Antique Emerson Woelffer More Furniture and Collectibles

Materials

Paper

Antique Map of St. Louis and Chicago

H 14.18 in W 17.21 in D 0.02 in

1939, New York Worlds Fair Fan “The Fan of Tomorrow” Trylone and Perisphe

Located in Newfoundland, PA

This is a very rare, extremely unusual original 1939 New York World’s Fair fan. There is a plaque mounted on the front cage that says New York Worlds Fai...

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1930s American Art Deco Vintage Emerson Woelffer More Furniture and Collectibles

Materials

Metal

1939, New York Worlds Fair Fan “The Fan of Tomorrow” Trylone and Perisphe

H 9 in W 9 in D 5 in

St. Louis Blues Movie Poster

Located in London, GB

Original US movie poster for the 1958 music biography staring Nat King Cole, Eartha Kit, Cab Calloway, Ella Fitzgerald, Ruby Dee.

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1950s American Vintage Emerson Woelffer More Furniture and Collectibles

St. Louis Blues Movie Poster

H 41 in W 27 in D 0.1 in

Schumacher Emerson 18" x 12" Pillow in Sky

By Schumacher

Located in New York, NY

This pillow features Emerson. Inspired by a quatrefoil, Emerson in sky is a fun small-scale print with a big personality. Imperfect by design, this casual cotton fabric has a lovely ...

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21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Emerson Woelffer More Furniture and Collectibles

Materials

Cotton

Schumacher Emerson 18" x 12" Pillow in Sky

H 12 in W 18 in D 5 in

Industrial Electric Black Fan Dutch Design, 1930s

Located in Antwerp, BE

Electric fan manufacture E.M.I. Utrecht Holland. Black and brass robust industrial fan from the 1930s.E.M.I. Utrecht Holland. The fan has a cast iron ...

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Mid-20th Century Dutch Art Deco Emerson Woelffer More Furniture and Collectibles

Materials

Brass, Iron

Industrial Electric Black Fan Dutch Design, 1930s

H 19.69 in Dm 13.78 in

Eames Office radio for Emerson

By Charles Eames

Located in Toronto, Ontario

A nice radio design by the Eames office. Model 578A. Mahogany veneer case with plastic face and dials.

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1940s American Vintage Emerson Woelffer More Furniture and Collectibles

Materials

Metal

Eames Office radio for Emerson

H 6.5 in W 9.5 in D 5.5 in

Mobilier Louis XVI by Monica Burckhardt, 1st Edition

Located in valatie, NY

Mobilier Louis XVI by Monica Burckhardt. Editions Charles Massin, Paris, 1976. 1st Ed hardcover with dust jacket. 80p of interior full color photos of period antique furniture of the...

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1970s French Vintage Emerson Woelffer More Furniture and Collectibles

Materials

Paper

H 12 in W 9 in D 0.625 in

Emerson Woelffer more furniture and collectibles for sale on 1stDibs.

Emerson Woelffer more furniture and collectibles are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of metal and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Emerson Woelffer more furniture and collectibles, although black editions of this piece are particularly popular. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider more furniture and collectibles by Kenneth Jay Lane, Gordon & Jane Martz, and Bruce Weber. Prices for Emerson Woelffer more furniture and collectibles can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $315 and can go as high as $315, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $315.