Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

MID-CENTURY MODERN STYLE

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

Emerged during the mid-20th century
Informed by European modernism, Bauhaus, International style, Scandinavian modernism and Frank Lloyd Wright’s architecture
A heyday of innovation in postwar America
Experimentation with new ideas, new materials and new forms flourished in Scandinavia, Italy, the former Czechoslovakia and elsewhere in Europe

CHARACTERISTICS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN

Simplicity, organic forms, clean lines
A blend of neutral and bold Pop art colors
Use of natural and man-made materials — alluring woods such as teak, rosewood and oak; steel, fiberglass and molded plywood
Light-filled spaces with colorful upholstery
Glass walls and an emphasis on the outdoors
Promotion of functionality

MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW

Charles and Ray Eames
Eero Saarinen
Milo Baughman
Florence Knoll
Harry Bertoia
Isamu Noguchi
George Nelson
Danish modernists Hans Wegner and Arne Jacobsen, whose emphasis on natural materials and craftsmanship influenced American designers and vice versa

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 legendary 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.

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.

Style: Mid-Century Modern

Period: 21st Century and Contemporary

Unique bronze tabletop sculpture based on forms made by folding pleated paper

By Thomas Joynes (British)

Located in London, GB

'Coalesce' by British sculptor Thomas Joynes follows a range of works that the artist developed from exploring paper folding and pleating. After coming across the paper works of British artist, Richard Sweeney, Joynes fell in love with the fluid nature and organic forms that could be achieved by cutting, folding and pleating pieces of paper. After folding, the sheet of paper can be cut and then slowly bent and manipulated to create the desired form. The process is long and demands patience, but is very rewarding artistically. Once Joynes had achieved the desired folded paper form, he then spent weeks applying wax and building up a consistently thick layer all over the form. The most time-consuming part of the process was smoothing off the wax to achieve a satisfying finish and create a mould using the ancient technique of lost-wax casting, which in turn made it possible to create the form in bronze. While most suited for interior display, Coalesce can be displayed outside if care is taken to maintain the patina finish. It is presented on a polished, black granite pedestal. Thomas Joynes first discovered his love of making as a boy when he explored the woodlands of rural Essex in England, using his hands to craft bows and arrows - and tree houses. During his Foundation course, he was drawn to working with Plaster of Paris – casting, moulding and carving large solid blocks of it. His work is clearly influenced by 20th-century masters, such as Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth, Constantin Brancusi, Jean Arp and Naum Gabo, but to these he brings his own sense of movement and dynamism. Major projects include public art commissions, such as a three-metre high bronze sculpture for a Metro station in Hong Kong. Functional sculpture projects include a set of bespoke gates and a three-metre wide, wall-hung, contemporary sundial. Most usually his work is commissioned for outside locations, such as gardens, courtyards and landscapes but increasingly he has turned his attention towards work that sits happily within an interiors scheme, using finishes such as polished bronze and 24ct gold gilding. Helen Chislett Gallery...

Category

2010s British Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Granite, Bronze

Unique bronze tabletop sculpture based on forms made by folding pleated paper

Abstract Wooden Elegance Still Stand No65: Carved Totem by NONO, Escalona

Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

2010s British Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Unique bronze tabletop sculpture based on forms made by folding pleated paper

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Abstract Wooden Elegance Still Stand No65: Carved Totem by NONO, Escalona

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Still Stand No71: Modern Organic Sculpture by NONO, Escalona Designed

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Still Stand No62: Organic Walnut Sculpture by NONO, Modern Escalona Design

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Biomorphic Carved Wood Sculpture in the style of Isamu Noguchi, Unseen Force 18

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Abstract Wooden Serenity Still Stand No75 by NONO, Modern Escalona Sculpture

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Still Stand No40: Serene Standing Walnut Sculpture, Exquisite Escalona Art

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Still Stand No36: Tall Serenity Totem, Walnut Sculpture by NONO

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Abstract Modernist Wooden Sculpture in the style of Jean Arp, Unseen Force 14

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Sculpted Serenity in Oak Still Stand No37: Tall Totem by NONO, Escalona Design

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Still Stand No32: Graceful Walnut Standing Sculpture, Escalona Crafted

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Serene Standing Wood Totem Still Stand No33 by NONO, A Joel Escalona Creation

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Still Stand No48: Biomorphic Carved Oak Totem by NONO, Escalona Crafted

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Organic Harmony: Modern Wood Totem Still Stand No49 by NONO, Escalona Design

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Exquisite Wooden Standing Totem Still Stand No35 by NONO, Joel Escalona Art

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Still Stand No34: Tranquil Oak Totem Sculpture by NONO, Escalona Designed

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Biomorphic Serenity: Carved Oak Totem Still Stand No42 by NONO

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Monumental Wooden Sculpture Inspired in Constantin Brancusi Style, 27

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Still Stand No45: Biomorphic Walnut Totem by NONO, Modern Escalona Artistry

2010s American Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Small Pierced Wide Teardrop Shaped Vessel/Candleholder- Burnt Sienna/Orange

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Abstract Modernist Wooden Sculpture in the style of Jean Arp, Unseen Force 12

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Still Stand No38: Elegant Wooden Standing Totem, A NONO Escalona Masterpiece

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Still Stand No43: Modern Organic Sculpture by NONO, Escalona Designed

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Laws of Motion Room Divider in Oak Wood, Space Divider Screen by Joel Escalona

2010s French Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Yona Friedman Iconostases Series Wire Sculpture

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Handcrafted Wooden Elegance Still Stand No31: Standing Totem by NONO

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Modern Carved Tranquility Totem Still Stand No46, Joel Escalona Design

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Abstract Wooden Serenity Still Stand No47 by NONO, Modern Escalona Sculpture

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Graceful Curved Wood Totem Still Stand No39 by NONO, Joel Escalona Crafted

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Monumental Wooden Sculpture Inspired in Constantin Brancusi Style, 28

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Carved Wooden Elegance Still Stand No44: Abstract Totem by Joel Escalona

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Monumental Wooden Sculpture Inspired in Constantin Brancusi, Unseen Force 26

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Biomorphic Carved Wood Sculpture in the style of Isamu Noguchi, Unseen Force 22

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Biomorphic Carved Wood Sculpture in the style of Isamu Noguchi, Unseen Force 19

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Monumental Wooden Sculpture Inspired in Constantin Brancusi Style, 30

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Biomorphic Carved Wood Sculpture in the style of Isamu Noguchi, Unseen Force 23

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Monumental Wooden Sculpture Inspired in Constantin Brancusi, Unseen Force 25

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Curved Elegance Still Stand No19: Standing Walnut Totem by Joel Escalona

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures

Standing Serene Totem Still Stand No22: Crafted by Joel Escalona

2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures