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Harvey Probber Furniture

American, 1922-2003

A popular designer who had his heyday from the late 1940s into the 1970s, Harvey Probber is one of the post-war American creative spirits whose work has been recently rediscovered by collectors. His designs are by-and-large simple and elegant, but his signal achievement was to pioneer one of the key innovations of mid-20th century furniture: sectional, or modular, seating.

Even as a teenager, the Brooklyn-born Probber was making sketches of furniture designs — and selling them to Manhattan furniture companies. He began working as a designer for an upholsterer once he finished high school and, apart from a few evening classes he took as an adult at Pratt Institute, he was self-taught about design and furniture making.

After wartime service — and a stint as a lounge singer — Probber founded his own company in the late 1940s. A lifelong familiarity with the needs of New York–apartment dwellers doubtless sparked his most noteworthy creation: a line of seating pieces in basic geometric shapes — wedges, squares, half-circles — that could be arranged and combined as needed. Modular furniture remained the core idea of Probber’s business throughout his career.

As a self-trained designer, Probber was never wed to any particular aesthetic. He preferred the simple lines now associated with mid-century modernism for their inherent practicality, but often used hardware to enliven the look of his pieces, or added elements — such as a ceramic insert in the center of a round dining table — that was visually interesting and could serve as a trivet. He gravitated toward bright fabrics with attractive, touchable textures that might be satin-like or nubbly. Above all, Probber insisted that the sofas, case goods and other products that came out of his Fall River, Massachusetts, factory be built to last.

“The quality of aging gracefully,” Probber once told an interviewer, is “design's fourth dimension.” This quality he realized: Probber furniture is just as useful and alluring now as it was when made — and maybe even more stylish.

Find a collection of vintage Harvey Probber side tables, sectional sofas, chairs and other furniture on 1stDibs.

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Creator: Harvey Probber
Dealer: Modest Designs
Harvey Probber Rosewood Coffee Table Bench
By Harvey Probber
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Beautifully figured rosewood top raised on tubular mahogany legs joined by x-strechers and brass cuffs. A rare and unusual design. Unsigned, but from a NYC Harvey Probber furnished...
Category

1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Brass

Pair Harvey Probber Model 915 Chair
By Harvey Probber
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Elegant pair of lounge chairs in bleached mahogany with caned sides. The tapered and tailored design easily works in both traditional and ultra-modern interiors.
Category

1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Cane, Mahogany

Harvey Probber Architectural Brass Serving Table
By Harvey Probber
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Chic and rare brass table with glass top. Raised on casters and with elegant curved handles, this would make a stirking bar or serving table, but can also double as a coffee table. T...
Category

1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Brass

Harvey Probber Teak and Mahogany Side Table
By Harvey Probber
Located in Brooklyn, NY
American, the rectangular teak top on dark stained mahogany curved slat X-base, with brass pin hardware, circa 1960. Model 1216 in the Harvey Probber catalog.
Category

1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Mahogany, Teak

Related Items
Harvey Probber Mid-Century Modern Biomorphic Surfboard Cocktail Coffee Table
By Harvey Probber
Located in St. Louis, MO
Mid-Century Modern Harvey Probber biomorphic coffee table with tapered legs in the style of George Nakashima for Widdicomb Sundra. Price includes ref...
Category

1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

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Mahogany

Set of Four Harvey Probber "X" Dining Chairs
By Harvey Probber
Located in Palm Springs, CA
A good set of four "X" dining chairs by Harvey Probber for Probber Inc. in original fabric.
Category

20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Brass

Huge Harvey Probber Walnut and Terrazzo Marble Table
By Harvey Probber
Located in Berlin, DE
Designed by Harvey Probber which could be used as a coffee table or gaming table. Walnut top with a terrazzo insert and an ebonized wooden base with brass feet.
Category

1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Brass

Harvey Probber Terrazzo Top End Tables
By Harvey Probber
Located in Chicago, IL
Harvey Probber terrazzo top end tables, solid mahogany spayed leg bases with terrazzo tops, inlaid brass details.
Category

1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Brass

Harvey Probber Pair of Chairs, Artisan Collection, 1970s
By Harvey Probber
Located in Miami, FL
These chairs are spectacular in their apparent simplicity. Both retain the original removable leather cushions. Seat height is 20" with the cushion.
Category

1970s American Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Cane

Terrazzo and Walnut Surfboard-Form Coffee Table 'Manner of Harvey Probber'
By Harvey Probber
Located in New York, NY
American Mid-Century (circa 1950) sculptural cocktail / coffee table with a tapered oval terrazzo top reminiscent of a surfboard and walnut 'post' and 'fin' legs that support and pie...
Category

20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Marble

Harvey Probber Style Marble Top Coffee Table
By Harvey Probber
Located in Charleston, SC
I’m offering this excellent Harvey Probber long coffee table at this exceptional price because the original top seems to have been replaced with a marble top. I would even say that i...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Marble

Two-Tier Double Diamond Coffee Table by Harvey Probber with Brushed Brass Base
By Harvey Probber
Located in Dallas, TX
This custom-ordered angular "Double Diamond" coffee table by Harvey Probber was made in the 1960s. It was built to complement the coordinating Probber "Nuclear Sert" sofa that we hav...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Brass

Harvey Probber Round Coffee Table, USA, 1960s
By Harvey Probber
Located in Maastricht, NL
A round Harvey Probber coffee table. The walnut top rests on an ebonized wooden base with copper socks and a terrazzo stone circle in the centre.
Category

1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Travertine, Copper

Pair of Harvey Probber Side Chairs in Bouclé
By Harvey Probber
Located in New York, NY
Pair of Harvey Probber side or lounge chairs. The chairs have mahogany and caned frames, splayed legs with a cushioned seat done in Bouclé. Mid-Century Modern.
Category

1960s Mid-Century Modern Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Bouclé, Cane, Mahogany

Harvey Probber Blackened Walnut & Inlaid Travertine Coffee Table
By Harvey Probber
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Harvey Probber Blackened Walnut & Inlaid Travertine Coffee Table USA, !950s A rare find, designed by Harvey Probber in the 1950s, constructed in two parts, the octagonal top with...
Category

20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Travertine

Harvey Probber Asian Modern End Side Tables by Henredon
By Henredon, Harvey Probber
Located in Southampton, NJ
Scarcely seen Henredon Fine Furniture single drawer side end tables or nightstands in Mahogany wood USA circa 1950s. Features include oversized...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Brass

Previously Available Items
Harvey Probber Mahogany and Cane Cabinet
By Harvey Probber
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Small sideboard with two cane-fronted sliding doors hiding a bank of three lacquered drawers on one side, and an adjustable shelf on the other. Wonderful small dry bar...
Category

1960s American Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Harvey Probber Rosewood Bar Table
By Harvey Probber
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Chic compact bar cabinet, sized to function as a pedestal side table. Highly figured rosewood veneer on both the inside and all outer surfaces, with carved mahogany handles and pli...
Category

1960s American Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Harvey Probber Walnut and Marble Side Table
By Harvey Probber
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Great Moroccan-esque arched marble table with hexagonal marble top.
Category

1950s American Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Pair of Harvey Probber Club Chairs
By Harvey Probber
Located in Brooklyn, NY
One of Probber's most elegant and timeless designs. Wonderfully proportioned club chairs with dramatically curved arms on slim tapered mahogany legs. Retains original Jack Lenor Lars...
Category

1950s American Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Harvey Probber Flip-Top Console or Dining Table
By Harvey Probber
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Bookmatched rosewood top on mahogany base. Top opens to become a dining table that seats six.
Category

1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

Materials

Rosewood

Pair of Harvey Probber Cube Chairs
By Harvey Probber
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Great 1960s design. Mahogany frame with imbedded chromed brass legs and tufted mohair cushions. Tres chic!
Category

1960s American Vintage Harvey Probber Furniture

  • Pair of Harvey Probber Cube Chairs
  • Pair of Harvey Probber Cube Chairs
  • Pair of Harvey Probber Cube Chairs
  • Pair of Harvey Probber Cube Chairs
H 25.25 in W 26 in D 26.75 in

Harvey Probber furniture for sale on 1stDibs.

Harvey Probber furniture are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of wood and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Harvey Probber furniture, although brown editions of this piece are particularly popular. Many of the original furniture by Harvey Probber were created in the mid-century modern style in north america during the 20th century. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider furniture by Florence Knoll, Adrian Pearsall, and Eero Saarinen. Prices for Harvey Probber furniture can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at £645 and can go as high as £27,414, while a piece like these, on average, fetch £4,435.

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