Vladimir Kagan Furniture
The pioneers of modern furniture design in America in the mid-20th century all had their moments of flamboyance: Charles and Ray Eames produced the startling, biomorphic La Chaise; George Nelson’s firm created the Marshmallow sofa; Edward Wormley had his decadent Listen to Me chaise. But no designer of the day steadily offered works with more verve and dynamism than Vladimir Kagan. While others, it seems, designed with suburban households in mind, Kagan aimed to suit the tastes of young, sophisticated city-dwellers. With signature designs that feature sleekly curved frames and others that have dramatic out-thrust legs, Kagan made furniture sexy.
Kagan’s father was a Russian master cabinetmaker who took his family first to Germany (where Vladimir was born) and then to New York in 1938. After studying architecture at Columbia University, Kagan opened a design firm at age 22 and immediately made a splash with his long, low and sinuous Serpentine sofa. Furniture lines such as the Tri-symmetric group of glass-topped, three-legged tables and the vivacious Contours chairs soon followed.
Kagan’s choices of form and materials evolved through subsequent decades, embracing lucite, aluminum and burl-wood veneers. By the late 1960s, Kagan was designing austere, asymmetrical cabinets and his Omnibus group of modular sofas and chairs. For all his aesthetic élan, Kagan said that throughout his career, his touchstone was comfort. “A lot of modern furniture was not comfortable. And so comfort is: form follows function. The function was to make it comfortable,” he once commented. “I created what I called vessels for the human body.”
A diverse group of bodies have made themselves at home with Kagan designs. Among the famous names who commissioned and collected his designs are Marilyn Monroe, Gary Cooper, Andy Warhol, David Lynch, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, and firms such as Gucci and Giorgio Armani. His work is in numerous museum collections, including those of the Victoria & Albert and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Because of its idiosyncrasy, Kagan’s work did not lend itself to mass-production. Kagan never signed on with any of the major furniture-making corporations, and examples of his designs are relatively rare. As you will see from the offerings on 1stDibs, even decades after their conception, Kagan pieces still command the eye, with their freshness, energy, sensuality and wit.
Late 20th Century Post-Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Fabric
Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery, Velvet, Wood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Bronze
1980s American Post-Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Wool
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery
1940s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Brass
1990s Post-Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Fabric
20th Century American Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery
1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Stainless Steel
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Velvet
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery, Wicker
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery
1970s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Glass, Lucite, Burl
1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Aluminum
Late 20th Century American Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Bouclé, Upholstery
1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Brass
1980s American Post-Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery
1970s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Lucite, Walnut
1980s American Post-Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Bouclé, Upholstery
1990s American Post-Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery
Early 2000s American Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Leather
1950s American Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Brass
1980s American Post-Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Bouclé, Upholstery
2010s Italian Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Stainless Steel, Chrome
1990s American Post-Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Velvet
1990s American Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Velvet
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery
1950s Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Steel, Iron
1970s American Post-Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery
Late 20th Century Post-Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Fabric
Late 20th Century American Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Bouclé
1990s American Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Velvet
Early 2000s North American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery, Walnut
1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Fabric, Wood
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Brass
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Fabric
1990s American Post-Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery
1970s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery, Lucite
Early 2000s American Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Chenille
1980s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery
1990s American Post-Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Bouclé, Upholstery
1980s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery, Wood
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery
1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Ceramic, Walnut
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Mohair
1970s Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
1980s American Post-Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Bouclé, Upholstery
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Glass, Rosewood
1990s American Post-Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Fabric, Upholstery
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Teak
1940s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Glass, Mirror, Formica, Oak
1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Ceramic, Oak
Early 2000s French Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Wool, Alpaca, Cotton
1970s Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Chrome
1990s American Post-Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Fabric, Upholstery
1970s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Glass, Wood
Mid-20th Century North American Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery, Lucite
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Fabric
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery, Wood
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery
1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Stainless Steel
Late 20th Century Post-Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Fabric
1970s Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Chrome
Late 20th Century American Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Bouclé, Upholstery
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Fabric, Bouclé, Upholstery, Wood
1990s American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery, Hardwood
1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Steel, Chrome
Late 20th Century Post-Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Fabric
1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Metal
Late 20th Century Unknown Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Aluminum
Early 2000s American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Stainless Steel
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery, Wood
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vladimir Kagan Furniture
Upholstery, Lucite