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.
Pair of Swedish Brutalist stoneware vases with glazed collar, Curt Magnus-Addin.
Located in JOINVILLE-LE-PONT, FR
Pair of Scandinavian Vases with Green Decor. Curt Magnus Addin (1931–2007) was a Swedish ceramicist known for his modernist stoneware works, created in his studio in Glumslöv between...
Stoneware
$525Sale Price|30% Off
Huge Vintage Mid Century Modern Don Drumm Cast Aluminum Brutalist Menorah XL
Located in St.Petersburg, FL
CYBER WEEK SALE. Huge Vintage Mid Century Modern Don Drumm Cast Aluminum Brutalist Monumentally Long Tree of Life Hanukkah Menorah. Signed ...
Aluminum
$780Sale Price|20% Off
Large Brutalist Bronze Ballerina Sculpture on Marble Base
Located in San Diego, CA
A very large Brutalist midcentury bronze ballerina sculpture on an black marble base (6.75" x 8.5"), circa 1970s. The piece is 44.5" high and has a wo...
Marble, Bronze
BIJAN Metal Sculpture Dog with Birds Pursuit Copper and Brass on Stone Base
By Bijan
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Vintage BIJAN Metal Sculpture Dog with Birds Pursuit Copper and Brass on Stone Base. Mid Century Modern Bijan metal sculpture circa 1960 1970s. T...
Stone, Metal, Brass, Bronze, Copper
Emerald Green Faceted Murano Glass Vase
Located in North Miami, FL
This is a super-cool deep green faceted Murano glass oversized vase with lovely details throughout. The intentional rough finish to exterior adds ...
Murano Glass
Brutalist Owl on Bench Sculpture in Raw Metal on Quartz by Ken Rains
Located in San Diego, CA
Whimsical brutalist owl on bench sculpture in raw metal on quartz base by Ken Rains, circa 1970s. The sculpture is in very good vintage condition and measures 8"W x 4"D x 5.5"H; it...
Quartz, Metal
Sculptural Acer Candle Holder R:2 - Solid Walnut - by Mokko
Located in Amsterdam, NL
The Acer candle holder R:2 features architectural cubic volumes and semi arched voids. Made out of solid wood and steel, showing signs of handcraft. Designed by Aad Bos and crafted...
Steel
Eastern European Ceramic Vase, Textured Glaze with Green Motif, 1970s
Located in Alap, HU
Vintage Ceramic Vase with Grass Green Abstract Motif A vintage ceramic vase featuring a textured brown-grey glaze accented with a grass-green abstract motif. The balanced form and t...
Ceramic
Set of 5 Mid-Century Studio Pottery Vase, Carafe, Bowls and Candle Holder, 1960s
Located in Hamburg, DE
Mid-Century German Studio Pottery Vase, Carafe, Bowls and Candle Holder from Till Sudeck, 1960s, Set of 5, in Very Good conditions. Designed 1960 to 1969 This piece has an attributio...
Ceramic
Set of 4 Mid-Century Brutalist Wrought Iron Cascade Candleholder Pendant, 1960s
Located in Hamburg, DE
Mid-Century Brutalist Wrought Iron Cascade Candleholder Pendant, 1960s, Set of 4, in Very Good conditions. Designed 1960 to 1969. Additional information: Material: Metal Color: Blac...
Metal
Vintage Brutalist Metal Candleholder, Black Finish, 1960s Design
Located in Hamburg, DE
Vintage Brutalist Metal Candleholder, 1960s, in Very Good conditions. Designed 1960 to 1969 Additional information: Materials: Metal Color: Black Styles: Brutalist, Mid-Century Mode...
Metal
Mid-Century Brutalist Danish Candleholder in Wrought Iron and Glass, 1960s
Located in Hamburg, DE
Mid-Century Brutalist Danish Candleholder in Wrought Iron and Glass, 1960s, in Very Good conditions. Designed 1960 to 1969. Additional information: Materials: Glass, Metal Color: Bl...
Metal
Mid-Century Brutalist Metal Tripod Candleholder, 1960s
Located in Hamburg, DE
Mid-Century Brutalist Metal Tripod Candleholder, in Very Good conditions. Designed 1960 to 1969 Additional information: Materials: Metal Style: Brutalist Period: 1960s Color: Black ...
Metal
Mid-Century German Brutalist Studio Pottery Vase by Lu and Gerd Grove, 1964
Located in Hamburg, DE
Mid-Century German Brutalist Studio Pottery Vase by Lu and Gerd Grove, 1964, in Very Good conditions. Designed 1960 to 1969 This piece has an attribution mark. Additional informatio...
Ceramic
Mid-Century Brutalist Candleholder, Metal, Gold Finish, 1960s Design
Located in Hamburg, DE
Mid-Century Brutalist Metal Candleholder, 1960s, in Very Good conditions. Designed 1960 to 1969. Additional information: Materials: Metal Style: Brutalist Color: Gold Item Type: Vin...
Metal
Mid-Century Brutalist Fat Lava Bowl from WGP West German Pottery, 1960s
Located in Hamburg, DE
Mid-Century Brutalist Fat Lava Bowl from WGP West German Pottery, 1960s, in Very Good conditions. Designed 1960 to 1969. Additional information: Materia...
Ceramic
Vintage 1970s Brutalist Metal Candleholder in Black Finish, Excellent
Located in Hamburg, DE
Vintage Brutalist Metal Candleholder, in Very Good conditions. Designed 1970 to 1979. Additional information: Materials: Metal Color: Black Styles: Brutalist Item Type: Vintage, Ant...
Metal
Aurelio Teno (1927/2013) Fish-shaped sculpture, natural stone and Bronze
By Aurelio Teno
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Aurelio Teno (1927/2013) Fish-shaped sculpture, natural stone and Bronze. Superb sculpture from the 70s by Aurelio Teno, of brutalist inspiration, made from a block of natural red qu...
Quartz, Bronze
Brutalist Candle Holder R:2 - Solid Dark Brown Oak - by Mokko
Located in Amsterdam, NL
The Acer candle holder R:2 features architectural cubic volumes and semi arched voids. Made out of solid wood and steel, showing signs of handcraft. Designed by Aad Bos and crafted...
Steel
Tall Brutalist Black / Gold Ceramic Candle Light Candelabra, Norway, 1960s
Located in Barcelona, ES
Painted black and gold ceramic candle light candelabra, made in Norway, 1960s.
Ceramic
FLUXsculpture > organic stainless-steel sculpture
By Jan Paul
Located in Maastricht, NL
FLUX rare beauty in everyday objects Numerous experiments with materials and shapes resulted in a new form and material language “Flux” Flexible steel tubes are shaped by hand ...
Stainless Steel
Brutalist wrought iron fruit bowl or candle holder, Netherlands 1950s
By Atelier Marolles, Jean Touret
Located in ECHT, NL
Brutalist style fruit bowl or candle holder. Hand crafted from wrought iron. The piece show quality craftsmanship in all its details. The curled legs are riveted to the bowl and the ...
Wrought Iron
Arik Amir Brutalist Sculpture of a Dancer
Located in Redding, CT
Arik Amir Brutalist Iron Sculpture of a Dancer, signed Arik on the base. Arik Amir (b 1922-2008) Tel Aviv, Israel. Biography from The Isreali Museum of Jerusalem refered to him as ''...
Iron
Bronze Brutalist Sculpture Stylized Bouquet of Flowers
Located in Kent, CT
A well-executed mid-century Brutalist bronze sculpture depicting a stylized bouquet of flowers. Dark patina. Raised on a shaped wood block stand. Artist unknown. Dimensions: 15″L x 6...
Bronze
$220Sale Price|20% Off
Brutalist Brass Welded Metal Owl Sculpture on Wood Base
By Curtis Jeré
Located in San Diego, CA
Whimsical Brutalist brass and metal welded owl sculpture on wood base in the style of C. Jere, circa 1970s. #1261.
Metal
Brutalist bronze harjes Menorah candle holder , 1960s
Located in Delft, NL
Brutalist bronze harjes Menorah candle holder , 1960s
Bronze
Tripod Candelabra G023 handmade cast in brass by David Marshall
Located in Benahavis, AN
The Tripod Candelabra was created by David Marshall, from sand cast brass. We use recycled materials all our pieces are handmade, mounted and finished in our foundry and workshop in...
Brass
$1,580Sale Price|20% Off
Silas Seandel Bronze Sculpture Brutalist Signed
Located in Lake Worth, FL
Offering One Of Our Recent Palm Beach Estate Fine Art Acquisitions Of A Silas Seandel Bronze Sculpture Brutalist Signed Approximate Measurements in Inches 15 1/2" high (including ba...
Bronze
Brutalist Bronze Sculpture, Marble Base, Signed Gerber Style Of Oppenheim 1973
Located in North Miami, FL
This heavy molten bronze question mark, bird or chicken sculpture has the traccia feet that is reminiscent on the coveted Meret Oppeneheim table. It sits in the original variegated green and black marble base with a bronze pole...
Marble, Bronze
Carlo Nason Cenedese Fanciful Vetri Figure
By Carlo Nason
Located in Sharon, CT
A black Scavo over clear glass Murano figure. Incised signature/date to underside.
Glass
Poul Soldner Raku-Fired Crazed Pedestal Piece Vessel
By Paul Soldner
Located in Chicago, IL
Poul Soldner Raku-Fired Crazed Pedestal Piece Vessel 1983 marked underside 83-28-6283 Sodner attended the Los Angeles County Art Institute, and became Peter Voulkos's first student i...
Ceramic
Decorative Brass Leaf Sculpture and Nut Cracker By David Marshall 1970’s
Located in Hastings, GB
A superbly executed large sculpture of a brutalist brass leaf with accompanying nut crackers in brass and cast aluminium by the Spanish based Scottish artist and sculptor David Marsh...
Brass
Rare Handmade Brutalist Ceramic Jugs from Early 1900s Italy
Located in Brescia, Brescia
Add a touch of history and artistry to your home decor with this exceptional set of handmade Brutalist ceramic jugs from early 1900s Italy. Crafted with care and attention to detail,...
Ceramic
Brutalist totem sculpture - 1970s France
Located in Haaltert, BE
Brutalist wooden 'totem' sculpture. Carved with a lot of elements in the shape of an eye. At each part of the sculpture you see several elements such as strong lines, holes, eyes and...
Wood
$251Sale Price|20% Off
Sculptural Solid Oak Wooden Candle Holder R:2
Located in Amsterdam, NL
The surrealism inspired Acer candle holder R:2 features architectural cubic volumes and semi arched voids. Designed by Aad Bos and hand crafted in Amsterdam from solid oak wood and s...
Steel
$600Sale Price|20% Off
Brutalist Raw Metal Torch Cut Flower Sculpture by Dan Jordan
Located in San Diego, CA
Brutalist raw metal torch cut flower sculpture by Dan Jordan, circa 1983. The sculpture is in very good vintage condition and measures 12.5"W x 11"D x 17"H; it is signed and dated 19...
Quartz, Metal
1970s Jaime Artigas Brutalist Iron Console Table Base
By Jaime Artigas
Located in Chula Vista, CA
For your consideration, a 1970s Mexican Brutalism rare custom console table desk. Work of art. Base features solid Iron metal sculpture by Jaime Arti...
Bronze, Steel, Iron
Bengt Berggren Brutalist Scandinavian Modern Pewter Vase w. Female Faces, 1990s
Located in Frederiksberg C, DK
Bengt Berggren Brutalist Scandinavian Modern Pewter Vase w. Female Faces, 1990s Handcrafted pewter vase by Swedish artist Bengt Berggren, created in the 1990s. The sculptural form f...
Pewter
$3,591Sale Price / set|20% Off
Brutalist hammered metal buffaloes sculptures, Spain, 1950s
Located in SANT ADRIÀ DE BESÒS, ES
Pair of large Spanish sculptures depicting two buffaloes in brutalist style, circa 1955. Made of patinated and aged wrought iron metal, with polychromed horns and eyes in gold leaf. ...
Iron, Gold Leaf
Richard Faure 'Chestnut' Gold Wine Bottle Cradle
Located in Hastings, GB
An exceptional signed sculptured wine bottle cradle by the renowned French Artist and Sculptor Richard Faure. Hand crafted in brass, and intricately detailed in the form of a ches...
Brass
Large Scale Brutalist Gilt Metal Pelican Sculpture Ashtray Stand
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Large scale, brutalist gilt metal pelican bird sculpture. American Mid century handcrafted metal Pelican Ashtray Stand. This stylish sculpture of a pel...
Metal
$9,500Sale Price|32% Off
Meticulously formed and welded brutalist style skater sculpture
Located in Ferndale, MI
Nicely formed and constructed sculpture in a cubist brutalist style . The exceptional welding becomes part of the form and lends to the idea of a muscular torso . Stylized idea of a...
Steel
Travertine candle holder by Fratelli Mannelli, Italy 1970s
By Enzo Mari, Fratelli Mannelli
Located in ECHT, NL
Solid travertine candle holder. Designed by Enzo Mari for Fratelli Mannelli in the 1970s. Its can hold three standard diameter candles. The piece is still in very good condition. N...
Travertine
$2,400Sale Price / set|63% Off
4 Bronze Brutalist Figurative Head Art Sculptures, Circa 1920
Located in Hamilton, Ontario
Four striking brutalist bronze sculptures of heads, incredibly well executed by a talented and likely well trained hand but are unsigned by the artis...
Bronze
Large Ceramic and Chamotte Earthenware Vase, 1970, Karen Boel
Located in Paris, FR
Large sculptural ceramic and terracotta vase made by Karen Boel - Denmark. Brutalist spirit. Dimensions: Height 37cm Width 27cm Depth 10cm Wall th...
Ceramic
Large Italian Aluminum brutalist 1970s candlestick
Located in Varese, Lombardia
Large candle holder made of cast aluminum and handcrafted. Made in Italy in the 1960s and 1970s. Very good vintage condition: normal oxidation patina.
Aluminum
Extra Large Studio Pottery Floor Ball Vase
Located in Lutz, FL
Large impressive studio pottery ball vase in brown, orange and yellowish tan glaze. A substantial piece measuring 17”H x 17”W/D. Great vintage condition, no chips or cracks. Signed o...
Ceramic, Clay, Pottery
$400Sale Price|20% Off
Brutalist Copper Vase with Blue & Brown Enamel Overlays by Rita Brierton
Located in San Diego, CA
Brutalist copper vase with blue and brown enamel overlays by Rita Brierton, circa 1991. The vase is very heavy and finely crafted; the piece measures: 3.5" W x 2.5" D x 9" H. #1091.
Enamel, Copper
Brutalist Bud Vases by Thomas Ray Markusen in Copper
Located in North Miami, FL
Pair of large 1970s Brutalist copper candleholders by master sculptor Thomas Roy Markusen. Tall, tortured form of hammered and shaped copper has an organic aesthetic. Pinched and ind...
Copper
Vintage Original Studio Pottery Ribbed Vase
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
This original studio pottery vase is a masterclass in tactile minimalism and organic texture. Hand-thrown with meticulous precision, the cylindrical form features a continuous series...
Pottery
Large wrought iron candelabra with an abstract design and three candle holders
Located in Linkebeek, BE
Vintage decoration - candle holders Brutalist decoration - Candle not included - This piece is probably unique. Measures : 43X36cm H:107cm This wrought iron chandelier features a t...
Iron
Late 20th Century Set of Three Sculptural Copper Vessels by Thomas Markusen – Si
Located in North Fort Myers, FL
A striking set of three hand-forged copper vessels by renowned metal artist Thomas Markusen, known for his sculptural and fire-formed metalwork. These pieces feature elegant, flared ...
Copper
Vintage Coastal Patinated Bronze Cattail Sculpture
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Capture the raw, organic beauty of nature with this striking vintage cattail sculpture. Expertly crafted from mixed metals, this artisan piece showcases a dynamic composition of slen...
Brass, Copper
Multi Metal Brass and Copper Brutalist Style Hand made Hinged Box with Bun Feet
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Muti-Metal Hinged box of Brass and Copper. The piece is of the Brutalist Style and its hand Crafted qualities of welded or soldered pieces of Metal t...
Brass, Copper
$200Sale Price|20% Off
Tall Torch Cut Brutalist Copper Candleholder by E.Schran
By E. Schran
Located in San Diego, CA
Tall torch cut brutalist copper candleholder by E.Schran, circa 1989. The piece is in very good vintage condition and measures 5.25"D x 7.5"H. #2451.
Copper
Stoneware Sculptural Object by Ole Bjørn Krüger Own Studio, Denmark, 1970s
Located in Odense, DK
Unique abstract sculptural object by Danish artist Ole Bjørn Krüger (1922-2007) made at his own studio in the 1970s. The object is made of chamotte stonew...
Stoneware
Brutalist Cosmic Iron Sculpture by Dusan Gakovic, Yugoslavia 1980s
Located in Beograd, RS
In this listing you will find a Modernist or rather Brutalist biomorphic or comic inspired iron sculpture by a Yugoslav sculptor and artist Dusan Gakovic. Dušan Gaković belongs to th...
Iron
Set of 3 Metal PLANTS Contemporary BRUTALIST SCULPTURES by ESOJ France 2020
Located in PARIS, FR
A set of 3 strong and spectacular plants in pots, contemporary brutalist sculptures, unique pieces by artist ESOJ, France 2020. These pieces allow to be presented independently, as well as together (recommended) allowing various esthetic compositions. They are made to be set up indoor as radical sculptures, as well as outdoor on a terrasse or in any garden or even wild nature to create a trouble illusion between wildness and modernity. We represent ESOJ and organized his exhibition "Metal Spirit", November 2022, in our gallery in Paris, and this unique piece was presented during this event. Esoj's work is rooted in a direct link to daily life, to the visual value of consumer objects. Whether they are elements of nature or products of pop culture, he fixes them in the metal to give them a definitive appearance, a form of immortality: a box of opened chocolates will be there forever, nothing will not erase Mickey's sluggish smile, nor his middle finger; a succulent plant frozen in iron will no longer need water... A parallel world under construction, a world of avatars springing from a metallic quintessence which confronts man with himself, with matter, with progress, to the flow of time. Beyond their symbolic force, Esoj's sculptures express as much the visceral gesture of the artist in a world losing meaning, as they catalog his universe in a subjective archive. For his first collaboration with us, Esoj looks away from his Barbie dolls, Playmobils and bags of M&Ms, to sketch a sort of return to Nature and vibrate an ancestral wisdom evident in his new series of cacti, succulents, vases and masks murals with shamanic connotations. A wisdom that he draws from his Portuguese origins, this saudade: “tension between opposites, on the one hand the feeling of a lack, on the other hand the hope and the desire to find what we lack”, embodied here by a particularly inhabited desert; where cacti are next to agaves, aloes, prickly pears, plants which are certainly ornamental but also hallucinogenic and healing, sometimes fatal; where the series of containers suggests an almost medicinal link between these inert objects, even more obvious in the wall piece inspired by Korean shaman...
Metal
Vintage Abstract Wire Spray Kinetic Sculpture
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
This striking vintage sculpture is a quintessential example of Mid-Century Modern artistry, echoing the rhythmic, industrial forms of the Brutalist movement. The piece features a dra...
Chrome
Figurative Brutalist Iron Sculpture by Dusan Gakovic, Yugoslavia 1980s
Located in Beograd, RS
In this listing you will find a Modernist or rather Brutalist sculpture by Yugoslav artist Dusan Gakovic. This sculptural composition exemplifies Dušan Gaković’s expressive approach ...
Iron