Postmodern design was a short-lived movement that manifested itself chiefly in Italy and the United States in the early 1980s. The characteristics of vintage postmodern furniture and other postmodern objects and decor for the home included loud-patterned, usually plastic surfaces; strange proportions, vibrant colors and weird angles; and a vague-at-best relationship between form and function.
ORIGINS OF POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
CHARACTERISTICS OF POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW
VINTAGE POSTMODERN FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS
Critics derided postmodern design as a grandstanding bid for attention and nothing of consequence. Decades later, the fact that postmodernism still has the power to provoke thoughts, along with other reactions, proves they were not entirely correct.
Postmodern design began as an architectural critique. Starting in the 1960s, a small cadre of mainly American architects began to argue that modernism, once high-minded and even noble in its goals, had become stale, stagnant and blandly corporate. Later, in Milan, a cohort of creators led by Ettore Sottsass and Alessandro Mendini — a onetime mentor to Sottsass and a key figure in the Italian Radical movement — brought the discussion to bear on design.
Sottsass, an industrial designer, philosopher and provocateur, gathered a core group of young designers into a collective in 1980 they called Memphis. Members of the Memphis Group, which would come to include Martine Bedin, Michael Graves, Marco Zanini, Shiro Kuramata, Michele de Lucchi and Matteo Thun, saw design as a means of communication, and they wanted it to shout. That it did: The first Memphis collection appeared in 1981 in Milan and broke all the modernist taboos, embracing irony, kitsch, wild ornamentation and bad taste.
Memphis works remain icons of postmodernism: the Sottsass Casablanca bookcase, with its leopard-print plastic veneer; de Lucchi’s First chair, which has been described as having the look of an electronics component; Martine Bedin’s Super lamp: a pull-toy puppy on a power-cord leash. Even though it preceded the Memphis Group’s formal launch, Sottsass’s iconic Ultrafragola mirror — in its conspicuously curved plastic shell with radical pops of pink neon — proves striking in any space and embodies many of the collective’s postmodern ideals.
After the initial Memphis show caused an uproar, the postmodern movement within furniture and interior design quickly took off in America. (Memphis fell out of fashion when the Reagan era gave way to cool 1990’s minimalism.) The architect Robert Venturi had by then already begun a series of plywood chairs for Knoll Inc., with beefy, exaggerated silhouettes of traditional styles such as Queen Anne and Chippendale. In 1982, the new firm Swid Powell enlisted a group of top American architects, including Frank Gehry, Richard Meier, Stanley Tigerman and Venturi to create postmodern tableware in silver, ceramic and glass.
On 1stDibs, the vintage postmodern furniture collection includes chairs, coffee tables, sofas, decorative objects, table lamps and more.
1980 Italy Post-Modern Abstract Sculpture Alessandro Guerriero Portabuono Qua
Located in Brescia, IT
This artwork was created by the Italian artist Alessandro Guierriero, it is a multiple of a serie of specimens made in limited edition not numbered. The set is forged in aluminum and...
Aluminum
1980 Italy Post-Modern Alessandro Guerriero Abstract Sculpture Portabuono Quo
Located in Brescia, IT
This artwork was created by the Italian artist Alessandro Guierriero, it is a multiple of a serie of specimens made in limited edition not numbered. The set is forged in aluminum and...
Aluminum
Stoneware Clay, Ceramic Whispered Air Sculpture by Aleksandra Krasnopolska
Located in Geneve, CH
Stoneware Clay, Ceramic Whispered Air Sculpture by Aleksandra Krasnopolska Dimensions: W 30.5 x D 17.2 x H 21.5 cm Materials: Stoneware clay. Unglazed ceramic sulface. Weight: 3,9 k...
Ceramic, Clay, Stoneware
Yellow Conic Vase, Postmodern Memphis Milan Style, Italy 1980s
Located in Firenze, IT
Postmodern Yellow Conic vase Italy 1980s ceramic in Memphis Milan style. 27 cm diam x 20 cm H Conditions: excellent, two barely visible small chips.
Ceramic
$20,791 / item
Chair with Tubes and Brass by Gentner Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Chair with tubes and brass by Gentner Design Dimensions: D 42.5 x W 50 x H 63.5 cm. Materials: brass, silicone tubes A chair? made of brass and silicone tubes. Gentner Design...
Brass
Italy 1980 Annamaria Gelmi Metal Painted Red Sculpture Piccolo Eden
Located in Brescia, IT
This sculpture is a multiple 1 piece of 50 realized in 1980 by the Italian artist Annamaria Gelmi. All the pieces are numbered and signed by the artist and completed by the Certific...
Metal
Italy 1980 Riccardo Dalisi Black Metal Painted Sculpture Caffellatte
Located in Brescia, IT
This sculpture is a multiple 1 piece of 50 realized in 1980 by the well known international artist Riccardo Dalisi. All the pieces are numbered and signed by the artist and completed...
Metal
Italy 1980 Bruno Chersicla Black Painted Metal Sculpture Egitto
Located in Brescia, IT
This sculpture is a multiple 1 piece of 50 realized in 1980 by the well known artist Bruno Chersicla. All the pieces are numbered and signed by the artist and completed by the Certif...
Metal
Italy 1980 Riccardo Dalisi Black Painted Metal Sculpture Amanti Lovers
Located in Brescia, IT
This sculpture is a multiple 1 piece of 50 realized in 1980 by the well known international artist Riccardo Dalisi. All the pieces are numbered and signed by the artist and complete...
Metal
Italy 1980 Riccardo Dalisi White Painted Metal Sculpture Muccacaffè
Located in Brescia, IT
This sculpture is a multiple 1 piece of 50 realized in 1980 by the well known international artist Riccardo Dalisi. All the pieces are numbered and signed by the artist and completed by the Certificate of the artist and the Editor who made the artworks. The white painted metal sculpture...
Metal
Italy 1980 Bruno Chersicla Black Painted Metal Sculpture Upupa
Located in Brescia, IT
This sculpture is a multiple 1 piece of 50 realized in 1980 by the well known artist Bruno Chersicla. All the pieces are numbered and signed by the artist and completed by the Certif...
Metal
Italy 1980 Riccardo Dalisi White Metal Painted Sculpture Nuvolella
Located in Brescia, IT
This sculpture is a multiple 1 piece of 50 realized in 1980 by the well known international artist Riccardo Dalisi. All the pieces are numbered and signed by the artist and complete...
Metal
Italy 1980 Bruno Chersicla White Painted Metal Sculpture Upupa
Located in Brescia, IT
This sculpture is a multiple 1 piece of 50 realized in 1980 by the well known artist Bruno Chersicla. All the pieces are numbered and signed by the artist and completed by the Certif...
Metal
$597
Vide-Poche
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Vide-poche in the format of a can cap, blue enameled porcelain, 20th century. Measures: D 27 cm, H 7 cm. Contact us before ordering to confirm product availability.
Porcelain
$1,672 / item
Pendulum Pendant Sculpture by Vaust
By VAUST
Located in Geneve, CH
Pendulum pendant sculpture by Vaust Open edition Dimensions: D 25 x H 18 cm Materials: artificial stone hand carved Also available: Custom material selection can be offered upon request and after approval by designer. Hand moulded concrete pendant sculpture. A pebble referencing the exposed...
Stone
$525 / item
Rustyvase 3 Stoneware Vase by Odatempo
Located in Geneve, CH
Rustyvase 3 Stoneware vase by Odatempo Dimensions: W24.5 x D22.5 x H0.007 cm Materials: Enameled white stoneware Audrey Langlet is a Paris-based ceramist. Trained in fashion and...
Stoneware
Italian Postmodern Wall Perpetual Calendar by Della Beffa for Ring a Date, 2000s
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian post modern wall perpetual yellow calendar by Giorgio Della Beffa for Ring A Date, 2000-2010s Wall perpetual calendar in yellow plastic. The cale...
Plastic
Italy 1980 Late 20th Century Pop Art Multiple Bronze Dippers
Located in Brescia, IT
This is a multiple bronze with wood base create by the Italian artist Tino Stefanoni in 1980 circa. This artwork is following Pop Art and its philosoph...
Bronze
Italy 1980 Late 20th Century Pop Art Multiple Bronze Bottles
Located in Brescia, IT
This is a multiple bronze with wood base create by the Italian artist Tino Stefanoni in 1980 circa. This artwork is following Pop Art and its philosoph...
Bronze
Italy 1980 Late 20th Century Pop Art Multiple Bronze Pens
Located in Brescia, IT
This is a multiple bronze with wood base create by the Italian artist Tino Stefanoni in 1980 circa. This artwork is following Pop Art and its philosophy...
Bronze
Italy, 1980, Late 20th Century Pop Art Multiple Bronze Jackets
Located in Brescia, IT
This is a multiple bronze with wood base create by the Italian artist Tino Stefanoni in 1980 circa. This artwork is following Pop Art and its philosophy...
Bronze
1970s Howard Miller vintage modern minimalist wall clock
By Nathan Horwitt, Herman Miller
Located in Phoenix, AZ
1970s Howard Miller wall clock model 622-740. I am assuming that this was designed by Nathan George Horwitt due to it being the same dimensions, materials, build and similar style as...
Aluminum
$538 / item
Blush Petri Vase by Elyse Graham
Located in Geneve, CH
Blush Petri vase by Elyse Graham Dimensions: W 13 x H 14 cm Materials: Plaster, Resin Molded, dyed, and finished by hand in LA. Customization Available. All pieces are made to o...
Resin, Plaster
$210 / item
Cu Vessel by Studio Cúze
Located in Geneve, CH
Cu vessel by Studio Cúze Dimensions: D 8 x W 23 x H 19.5 cm Materials: ceramic, copper The Cu Vessel is a handmade piece for holding and collecting incense sticks. The piece owes it...
Copper
$180Sale Price|20% Off
Fuji Clos China Glazed Ceramic Pottery Japan Postmodern Vase
By Fuji Meibo
Located in San Diego, CA
Beautiful ceramic vase in gloss black finish with gold and coastal shell motif, circa 1980s made by Fuji Japan.
Porcelain
$19,976 / item
Fossilized Future_D by So Koizumi
Located in Geneve, CH
Fossilized Future_D by So Koizumi Dimensions: W 44 x D 35 x H 58 cm Materials: Oak Wood, Soil, charcoal, Waste from daily life (such as coffee grounds and vegetable peels) Weight: 49...
Oak
Stoneware Clay, Set Petals Candleholder by Aleksandra Krasnopolska
Located in Geneve, CH
Stoneware Clay, Petals Candleholder by Aleksandra Krasnopolska Dimensions: W 16 x D 11.5 x H 11.5 cm, W 15 x D 13.5 x H 14 cm Materials: Stoneware clay. Light glazewash appliedwith ...
Clay, Stoneware
$2,927 / item
Light 50 Stoneware Sculpture by Laura Pasquino
Located in Geneve, CH
Light 50 Stoneware Sculpture by Laura Pasquino One of a kind Dimensions: D 25 x H 25 cm Material: White and beige stoneware, glaze. Laura Pasquino Incorporating references from anci...
Stoneware
Stoneware Clay, Body I Sculpture by Aleksandra Krasnopolska
Located in Geneve, CH
Stoneware Clay, Body I Sculpture by Aleksandra Krasnopolska Dimensions: W 21 x D 14 x H 16 cm Materials: Stoneware clay. Unglazed ceramicsulface. Weight: 2.9 kg. Collection: Body ...
Clay, Stoneware, Ceramic
$310 / item
2 Part Incense Holder by Edie Xu
Located in Geneve, CH
2 Part Incense Holder by Edie Xu Dimensions: W 12 x D 10 x H 8 cm. Materials: Stoneware. Edie Xu, b. in New York and graduated from the Art Institute of Chicago in 2023. Her work s...
Stoneware
Stoneware Clay, Ribbon Vase I by Aleksandra Krasnopolska
Located in Geneve, CH
Stoneware Clay, Ribbon Vase I by Aleksandra Krasnopolska Dimensions: W 36 x D 27 x H 15 cm Materials: Stoneware clay. Unglazed (notwatertight). Weight: 5,2 kg. Collection: The Wind...
Clay, Stoneware
$2,951 / item
Anatolian 3 Vase by Güler Elçi
Located in Geneve, CH
Anatolian 3 Vase by Güler Elçi Dimensions: W 15.2 x D 12.7 x H 24.1 cm. Materials: Stoneware Ceramic. Güler Elçi is a ceramic artist based in Istanbul. In the light of her engineeri...
Ceramic, Stoneware
1980 Italy Post Modern Figurative Bronze Sculpture
Located in Brescia, IT
This is an interesting multiple artwork signed by the author Andrea Picini, a talented artist of years 80' in Italy. This is a multiple of a numbered edition of 1.000 pieces; we c...
Bronze
1985 Italy Post Modern Abstract Bronze Sculpture the Moon
Located in Brescia, IT
This is an interesting multiple artwork signed by the author Maurizio Bonora, a talented artist of years 80' in Italy. The other side of the moon. This...
Bronze
$5,914 / item
Bustor Flowers Vase by Tellurico
Located in Geneve, CH
Bustor Flowers Vase by Tellurico Unique Piece. Signed And Numbered. Dimensions: D 25 x W 36 x H 30 cm. Materials: Stoneware and epoxy resin. After graduating with a Master of Contex...
Stoneware, Epoxy Resin
Ulf Rollof, Sculpture "Heated Chair", 1993
By Ulf Rollof
Located in Stockholm, SE
Sculpture "Heated chair" 1993, mixed media. By Ulf Rollof b. 1961, Sweden. Chair with heating function.
Metal
Postmodern Glass Swan Decorative Candy Dishes - a Pair
Located in Delray Beach, FL
Amazing pair of hand blown glass seams. Each feature a green, pink and blue interior.
Glass
Black Leather and Black Steel Maggiz Magazine Rack by OxDenmarq
Located in Geneve, CH
Black leather and black steel maggiz magazine rack by OxDenmarq Dimensions: D 24 x W 47 x H 43 cm Materials: Steel, Leather Also Available: Different leather and frame colors avai...
Steel
Winzacht Post-Modern Vase by Franco V, Handmade Steel & Glass, USA
By Franco V
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Expertly crafted from steel and glass, the Winzacht Vase is an elegant and colorful post-modern addition to any space. The steel frame creates a stunning silhouette while the glass v...
Steel
Nancy Dwyer "S" Sculpture or Table
Located in Greensboro, NC
"S" Sculpture or table on casters by noted NYC artist Nancy Dwyer. This piece is unsigned, but was purchased from an estate where Nancy lived at some point in her career. It was found in a barn, along with other signed works by her and a sketchbook of some of her pieces. This could be part of a larger work, but is being sold as-found. Nancy Dwyer is an American contemporary artist who uses language as an image in her large-scale, multimedia works. A key figure in the "Pictures Generation," alongside artists like Cindy Sherman, she co-founded the influential Hallwalls in Buffalo, NY, in 1974. Dwyer's work critiques consumer culture and media using single, loaded words ("ego," "envy," "food") transformed into sculptures and paintings. She uses commercial sign...
Wood
$2,891 / item
Abyss No 13 Sculpture by Ceren Gurkan
By Ceren Gurkan
Located in Geneve, CH
Abyss No 13 sculpture by Ceren Gurkan Dimensions: D14 x W18 x H35 cm Materials: Stoneware. All our lamps can be wired according to each country. If sold to the USA it will be wi...
Stoneware
$4,731 / item
Cored Vessel by Cal Summers
By Cal Summers
Located in Geneve, CH
Cored Vessel by Cal Summers Dimension: D 15.24 x H 11.43 cm Materials: Resin and Sawdust Composite with Steel Inset. Cal Summers is a British designer who makes bespoke handmade fu...
Resin
Italy 1980 Abstract Sculpture Sphere in Brass Natural Wood and Metal Chrome
Located in Brescia, IT
This is a unique piece and prototype of this interesting artwork of Filippo Panseca, an Italian artist that it is considered, together with Laurence Gartel, the father of the Computer Art. Friend of Renato Guttuso, later he created the Biodegradable Art. His artworks were shown at Art Basel and the Biennale of Art in Venice. In this piece we can see the investigation of the artist of the Cosmic world and Cinetic art...
Metal, Brass
Italy 1998 the Skyscrapers Brass Abstract Sculpture
Located in Brescia, IT
This is an artwork of Roberto Vecchione, an Italian artist friend of Giovanni Campus and Bruno Munari. Its work is a form of ‘mind architecture’ and this two pieces are representativ...
Brass
Vintage Modernist Thomas Roy Markusen Nickeled Copper Vases - Set of 2
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Spectacular pair of vintage nickeled copper vases. Hand crafted by the Modernist master Thomas Roy Markusen. Beautiful folded detail at the top and marked on the bottom. Acquired fro...
Copper, Nickel
$931 / item
Mool Vase by DAaZ
Located in Geneve, CH
Mool Vase by DAaZ Dimensions: D 18 x W 34 x H 40.9 cm. Materials: Crystal. DAaZ Furniture honors the spirit of adventure. We embrace the escape of the ordinary and revel in the mag...
Crystal
Homage to Newton Figurative Sculptures by Salvador Dalí 1981
Located in Madrid, ES
This sculpture, Homage to Newton, was cast by the Perseo Foundry in Mendrisio, Switzerland, using the lost-wax casting method from a mold made from Salvador Dalí's original work, cre...
Bronze
$1,887 / item
Structured By Nature Large Vase by David Valner
Located in Geneve, CH
Structured By Nature Large Vase by David Valner Dimensions: D 22 x W 22 x H 72 cm. Materials: Glass. Weight: 9 kg. Finish: Large-size “bark” production style, green color. “Authenti...
Glass
Stoneware, Silicone Medium Wrinkled by Daniel Elkayam
Located in Geneve, CH
Stoneware, Silicone Medium Wrinkled by Daniel Elkayam Dimensions: D 14 x W 14 x H 20 cm Materials: Stoneware, Silicone. Jerusalem-born Art-designer and Photographer based in Tel-A...
Stoneware, Silicone
Stoneware Clay, Ribbon Vase II by Aleksandra Krasnopolska
Located in Geneve, CH
Stoneware Clay, Ribbon Vase II by Aleksandra Krasnopolska Dimensions: W 36 x D 30 x H 18 cm Materials: Stoneware clay. Unglazed (notwatertight). Weight: 5,4 kg. Collection: The Win...
Clay, Stoneware
$2,998 / item
Medium Le Sud Vase by Olivia Cognet
Located in Geneve, CH
Medium Le Sud vase by Olivia Cognet Dimensions: D 30 x H 40 cm Materials: Ceramic. Each of Olivia’s handmade creations is a unique work of art, the snapshot of a precious moment ca...
Ceramic
Rib 16X Sturdy Tall Ivory White Cornice Vessel by Lenny Stopp
Located in Geneve, CH
Rib 16X Sturdy Tall Ivory White Cornice Vessel by Lenny Stopp Dimensions: D 22 x H 60 cm Materials: Alpha crystalline gypsum (Hard plaster) Cornice is an evolving collection of vess...
Other
Rib 16X Sturdy Tall Gray Mint Cornice Vessel by Lenny Stopp
Located in Geneve, CH
Rib 16X Sturdy Tall Gray Mint Cornice Vessel by Lenny Stopp Dimensions: D 18 x H 40 cm Materials: Alpha crystalline gypsum (Hard plaster) Cornice is an evolving collection of vessel...
Other
Rib 12X Sturdy Tall Gray Mint Cornice Vessel by Lenny Stopp
Located in Geneve, CH
Rib 12X Sturdy Tall Gray Mint Cornice Vessel by Lenny Stopp Dimensions: D 18 x H 40 cm Materials: Alpha crystalline gypsum (Hard plaster) Cornice is an evolving collection of vessel...
Other
$8,841 / item
Recreational Verb Floor Sculpture by WANAS
Located in Geneve, CH
Recreational Verb Floor Sculpture by WANAS Dimensions: D 92 x W 92 x H 194 cm. Materials: Metal, teak wood, and wood. The size and finish are customisable on request. Please contac...
Metal
$2,100 / set
Hedwig Bollhagen Biscuit Box Group of Three
Located in Litchfield, CT
By Hedwig Bollhagen, Germany, circa 1960-1970s. These canisters are brilliantly Deco and fabulously Post Modern. Their colorful geometry is perfect fo...
Ceramic
Jaca Vase No. 17 in Offwhite Organic Textured Ceramic by Hanna Englund
Located in Geneve, CH
Jaca Vase No. 17 in Offwhite Organic Textured Ceramic by Hanna Englund Dimensions: D 27 x W 28 x H 47,5 cm. Materials: Ceramic. Large vase with an organic textured exterior. This p...
Ceramic
Hazelnut Leather and Black Steel Maggiz Magazine Rack by OxDenmarq
Located in Geneve, CH
Hazelnut leather and black steel Maggiz magazine rack by OxDenmarq Dimensions: D 24 x W 47 x H 43 cm Materials: Steel, leather Also available: Different leather and frame colors a...
Steel
$7,957 / item
Ramé Sage Green Wall Sculpture by NITUSH AROOSH
Located in Geneve, CH
Ramé Sage Green Wall Sculpture by NITUSH AROOSH Dimensions: Ø 100 cm. Materials: Stainless steel. Available in different finishes. All our lamps...
Stainless Steel
$585 / set
Set of 2 Turquoise Bowl by Güler Elçi
Located in Geneve, CH
Set of 2 Turquoise Bowl by Güler Elçi Dimensions: Small: D 15 x H 5 cm Large: D 21 x H 5 cm Materials: Stoneware Ceramic, Food Safe Glaze. Güler Elçi is a ceramic artist based in Is...
Stoneware