The design of brutalist furniture encompasses that which is crafted, hewn and worked by hand — an aesthetic rebuke (or, at least, a counterpoint) to furniture that is created using 21st-century materials and technology. Lately, the word “brutalist” has been adopted by the realms of furniture design and the decorative arts to refer to chairs, cabinets, tables and accessory pieces such as mirror frames and lighting that are made of rougher, deeply textured metals and other materials that are the visual and palpable antithesis of the sleek, smooth and suave.
ORIGINS OF BRUTALIST FURNITURE DESIGN
CHARACTERISTICS OF BRUTALIST FURNITURE DESIGN
BRUTALIST FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW
VINTAGE BRUTALIST FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS
The term brutalism — which derives from the French word brut, meaning “raw” — was coined by architecture critic Reyner Banham to describe an architectural style that emerged in the 1950s featuring monumental buildings, usually made of unornamented concrete, whose design was meant to project an air of strength and solidity.
Le Corbusier essentially created the brutalist style; its best-known iterations in the United States are the Whitney Museum of American Art, which was designed by Marcel Breuer, and Paul Rudolph's Yale Art and Architecture Building. The severe style might have been the most criticized architectural movement of the 20th century, even if it was an honest attempt to celebrate the beauty of raw material. But while the brutalist government buildings in Washington, D.C., seemingly bask in their un-beauty, brutalist interior design and decor is much more lyrical, at times taking on a whimsical, romantic quality that its exterior counterparts lack.
Paul Evans is Exhibit A for brutalist furniture design. His Sculpture Front cabinets laced with high-relief patinated steel mounts have become collector's items nonpareil, while the chairs, coffee table and dining table in his later Cityscape series and Sculpted Bronze series for Directional Furniture are perhaps the most expressive, attention-grabbing pieces in American modern design. Other exemplary brutalist designers are Silas Seandel, the idiosyncratic New York furniture designer and sculptor whose works in metal — in particular his tables — have a kind of brawny lyricism, and Curtis Jere, a nom-de-trade for the California team of Curtis Freiler and Jerry Fels, the bold makers of expressive scorched and sheared copper and brass mirror frames and wall-mounted sculptures.
Brutalist furniture and sculptures remain popular with interior designers and can lend unique, eccentric, human notes to an art and design collection in any home.
Find authentic vintage brutalist chairs, coffee tables, decorative objects and other furniture on 1stDibs.
The Sleek Totem of Dark Elegance in Black Solid Wood, Still Stand No90
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
The Sleek Totem of Dark Elegance in Black Solid Wood, Still Stand No90 —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is a testam...
Hardwood
$14,320Sale Price / item|20% Off
Abstract Elegance, Dark, Sleek Black Solid Wood by Escalona, Still Stand No98
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Abstract Elegance, Dark, Sleek Black Solid Wood by Escalona, Still Stand No98 —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is a...
Hardwood
$14,320Sale Price / item|20% Off
Joel Escalona's Sleek Dark Totem in Black Solid Wood, Still Stand No92
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Joel Escalona's Sleek Dark Totem in Black Solid Wood, Still Stand No92 —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is a testam...
Hardwood
Dark Modern Totem, Black Solid Wood, Vision by Escalona, Still Stand No81
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Dark Modern Totem, Black Solid Wood, Vision by Escalona, Still Stand No81—— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is a tes...
Hardwood
Modern Art Carved in Sleek Dark Black Solid Wood, NONO's Still Stand No99
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Modern Art Carved in Sleek Dark Black Solid Wood, NONO's Still Stand No99 —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is a te...
Hardwood
$14,320Sale Price / item|20% Off
Elegance in Black Solid Wood by NONO, Still Stand No78 Redefined
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Elegance in Black Solid Wood by NONO, Still Stand No78 Redefined —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is a testament ...
Hardwood
Joel Escalona Defines Sleek, Dark Burned Oak in Abstract Design, Still Stand 96
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Joel Escalona Defines Sleek, Dark Burned Oak in Abstract Design, Still Stand No96 _ Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one i...
Hardwood
A Dark, Elegant Design Materializes in Burned Oak, Still Stand No91, by NONO
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
A Dark, Elegant Design Materializes in Burned Oak, Still Stand No91, by NONO —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is a...
Hardwood
$14,320Sale Price / item|20% Off
Sleek and Dark, Joel Escalona's Burned Oak Totem Emerges, Still Stand No92
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Sleek and Dark, Joel Escalona's Burned Oak Totem Emerges, Still Stand No92 —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is a t...
Hardwood
In Burned Oak, a Dark Biomorphic Sculpture of Elegance Emerges, Still Stand No97
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
In Burned Oak, a Dark Biomorphic Sculpture of Elegance Emerges, Still Stand No97 _ Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is ...
Hardwood
$14,320Sale Price / item|20% Off
A Sleek, Dark Burned Oak Totem, Carved into Modern Art, NONO's Still Stand No99
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
A Sleek, Dark Burned Oak Totem, Carved into Modern Art, NONO's Still Stand No99 _ Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is ...
Hardwood
$14,320Sale Price / item|20% Off
Biomorphic Burned Oak Elegance, Still Stand No83, Crafted by NONO
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Biomorphic Burned Oak Elegance, Still Stand No83, Crafted by NONO —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. ...
Hardwood
Abstract Beauty in Black Solid Wood, Escalona's Work, Still Stand No79
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Abstract Beauty in Black Solid Wood, Escalona's Work, Still Stand No79 —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is a testa...
Hardwood
$14,320Sale Price / item|20% Off
Carved Elegance, Black Solid Wood Still Stand No80 by NONO
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Carved Elegance, Black Solid Wood Still Stand No80 by NONO —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is a testament to the ...
Hardwood
Brutalist Abstract Wall Sculpture in the Style of Curtis Jere
Located in Mexico City, CDMX
We offer this large diameter wall sculpture in the style of C. Jere, circa 1960.
Metal
Brutalist wall sculpture, 1970s
Located in Leuven, Vlaams Gewest
Architectural brutalist wall mounted sculpture made from cast metal. Imposing wall sculpture 1970s - Belgium Height: 75cm Width: 170cm Ref.: 25090305 *All images are always part...
Metal
Unique Wall Art/Wall Object from the 1970s in Brutalist Style
By Henrik Horst
Located in Copenhagen, DK
Brutalist wall sculpture designed and manufactured by the Danish artist Henrik Horst, circa 1970s as a wave in danish mid-century modern design. Patinated metal construction mounted on a frame of wood. unique wall art...
Metal
Large burtalist wal sculpture, 1970s
Located in Leuven, Vlaams Gewest
Architectural brutalist wall mounted sculpture made from cast metal. Imposing wall sculpture 1970s - Belgium Height: 85cm Width: 185cm Ref.: 2508120401 *All images are always pa...
Metal
Zinc agave plant sculpture on pedestal stand by Domani modern Sutherland
Located in Bridgehampton, NY
Produced by Domani Design/ Belgium ZInc agave plant in urn atop rectangular pedestal approx 23 x 23 inches diameter x 76 inches high
Zinc
NONO Crafts Dark Elegance, Biomorphic Burned Oak, Still Stand No93
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
NONO Crafts Dark Elegance, Biomorphic Burned Oak, Still Stand No93—— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. ...
Hardwood
$14,320Sale Price / item|20% Off
Still Stand No86 Reveals Dark Elegance in a Carved Burned Oak Totem
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Still Stand No86 Reveals Dark Elegance in a Carved Burned Oak Totem —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is a testame...
Hardwood
Dark, Modern Totem in Burned Oak, Escalona's Vision, Still Stand No81
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Dark, Modern Totem in Burned Oak, Escalona's Vision, Still Stand No81 —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is a testa...
Hardwood
$14,320Sale Price / item|20% Off
Carved from Elegance, Still Stand No80 in Burned Oak by NONO
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Carved from Elegance, Still Stand No80 in Burned Oak by NONO —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and serene grace. Each one is a testament to th...
Hardwood
Dark Elegance, Biomorphic Black Solid Wood Crafted by NONO, Still Stand No93
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Dark Elegance, Biomorphic Black Solid Wood Crafted by NONO, Still Stand No93 —— Joel Escalona's wooden standing sculptures are objects of raw beauty and ...
Hardwood
Large burtalist wal sculpture, 1970s
Located in Leuven, Vlaams Gewest
Architectural brutalist wall mounted sculpture made from cast metal. - Cat tail shaped. Imposing wall sculpture 1970s - Belgium Height: 200cm Width: 95cm Ref.: 2508120402 *All i...
Metal