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.
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
Pichet Sculptural en Forme de Couronne en Grès Vernis, France, 1970s
Located in London, England
Superbe et rare bouteille anneau (ou pichet couronne) en grès émaillé artisanal, datant des années 1960-1970. Inspiré des formes antiques des gourdes de pèlerin, ce vase pichet sédui...
Stoneware
Peter Voulkos Important Vase, 1957
Located in Chicago, IL
Peter Voulkos Important Vase, 1957 Glazed stoneware An exceptional early work by Peter Voulkos, this monumental 1957 vessel belongs to the crucial period in which the artist was radi...
Earthenware
Oxblood and Cream Glazed Stoneware Bottle by Alain Gaudebert, France, circa 1990
Located in Camblanes et Meynac, FR
Oxblood and Cream Glazed Stoneware Bottle by Alain Gaudebert, France, circa 1990 A superb ceramic bottle designed by Alain Gaudebert. The layers of glaze melt into each other, overl...
Enamel
Large 19th Century Stoneware Ceramic from La Borne Pottery French Handmade
Located in Neuilly-en- sancerre, FR
La Borne - 19th century Large stoneware pottery from center of France Realised circa 1880 Original good condition its peculiarity is to have a piece of another pot fixed...
Ceramic
French Stoneware Bottle by Alain Gaudebert, Black and Brown Glaze, Circa 1990
Located in Camblanes et Meynac, FR
French stoneware bottle by Alain Gaudebert, circa 1990. A tall, slender bottle, 43 cm high, thrown in stoneware and glazed in deep, shaded earth tones, from a dark brown-black to war...
Enamel
19th Century Decorated Bird Stoneware Jug
Located in Los Angeles, CA
19th century decorated stoneware jug with a bird on the face. This is a New York State jug. The condition is very good.
Pottery
$909Sale Price|20% Off
H 8.07 in W 8.27 in D 7.48 in
Sculptural Swirling Modernist Cream, Grey, Brown Ceramic Vase, 1970s
Located in Copenhagen, DK
Exceptional Mid-Century Modern ceramic vase with a big swirl on both sides. Manufactured in West Germany in the 1970s. Cream, grey and brown glaze accentuated the swirling shape and ...
Ceramic
Mid-20th Century Brown Stoneware Studio Ceramic Vase, Modern Design
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A distinctive studio ceramic vase has a tall narrow shape, brown, with an outer glossy glaze and speckled white detailing. The cylindrical form contains an unglazed area at the neck ...
Ceramic, Pottery, Stoneware
Peter Voulkos Studio Vase
Located in Phoenix, AZ
Peter Voulkos (1924-2002) - Black Studio pot, circa 1953-1955. Signed “Voulkos” on the base. Voulkos, an American artist of Greek descent, was known for his Abstract Expressionist ceramic...
Clay
Vase Designed by Tapio Wirkkala, Finland, 1957
Located in Stockholm, SE
Vase designed by Tapio Wirkkala, Sweden, 1957. Sterling silver. Dimensions: H: 24 cm/ 9 3/8" W: 9 cm/ 3 1/2" D: 4 cm/ 1 1/2" Tapio Wirkkala (1915-1985) can be described as one of the icons of Finnish design and a symbol of the international success of post-war Finnish design. Tapio Wirkkala studied sculpture at the Helsinki Central School of Industrial Design from 1933 until 1936, but he was also a self-studied artist in many areas, including glass design. His success as a glass artist began in 1946 when he designed one of his most famous works, the Kantarelli vase, for Iittala. Wirkkala gained worldwide success in 1951 at the Milan Triennial, where he received three Grand Prix awards: for the exhibition architecture, glass design and wooden sculptures. Tapio Wirkkala felt a deep relationship with nature and his absolute favourite spot was located in Finland's deepest forests. From the beautiful landscape, Tapio Wirkkala could find inspiration for his works, often characterised by organic shapes. Leaves, birds, ice and water are recurring themes in his design. Tapio Wirkkala was also a furniture designer and a sculptor. He started his career as a sculptor in the 1930s but abandoned the traditional sculpture in the post-war years – in the early 1950s, alongside with other works, he started to develop an entirely new relationship with sculpture and a new technique to be used. The result was a series of unique plywood sculptures which combined form and movement in the vibrant, densely lineated surface of plywood. Wirkkala’s sculptures represented exceptional abstractism and gave Finnish sculpture...
Sterling Silver
$3,850
H 3.5 in W 5 in D 4.75 in
Peter Voulkos Signed Early Mid-Century Modern Pottery Chawan Tea Bowl, 1950s
Located in Studio City, CA
A fantastic rare early footed stoneware Japanese style California studio pottery Chawan tea bowl (circa early 1950s) by Master Greek-American potter/artist Peter Voulkos featuring ha...
Pottery, Stoneware
Hand-built Raku-fired Wabi Sabi Ikebana Vase
By MONDAYS
Located in Brooklyn, NY
One-of-a-kind raku-fired vase. Wide and low with a small foot, and small opening. Made in our Brooklyn studio then fired in a New Jersey back yard, All dimensions are approximate...
Ceramic
Sculptural Clear and Black Iridescent Glass Vase, Italian, 1970s
By Angelo Rinaldi
Located in Glasgow, GB
A large sculptural Italian art glass vase in clear glass with black iridescent decoration, dating to the 1970s. With its irregular freeform silhouette and network of applied glass tr...
Art Glass
Paul Soldner Abstract Expressionist Studio Ceramic Vase
By Paul Soldner
Located in Phoenix, AZ
Paul Soldner (1921-2010) abstract expressionist pottery vase. Glaze in black and brown, partly unglazed. Excellent design, mint condition. Signed Soldner on the bottom. Measures: 10" H x 8 3/4" W. Paul Soldner (1921-2011) was an American ceramic artist, noted for his experimentation with the 16th...
Clay
Large Modernist Raku Fired Abstract Pottery Vase by Tony Evans
By Tony Evans
Located in Miami, FL
Large abstract form raku fired ceramic vase on lucite base by renowned master ceramicist Tony Evans (1942-2009). Evans developed a very distinctive style after studying ancient potte...
Ceramic, Pottery
1970s Sculptural Exotic Wood Studio Vessel Lidded Jar
Located in Chula Vista, CA
For your consideration, an exotic wood vessel lidded jar. Beautiful clean modern lines. Unsure of type of wood. Signed at the bottom. Unable to read the signature. Dimensions: 4.5" ...
Wood
Vase in Oxblood Glaze
By Carl Haller
Located in Milan, IT
Carl Hallier for Royal Copenhagen Danish mid-century vase in oxblood glaze 1940s. Please note : the "free shipping option" and/or "subsidised shipping ...
Ceramic, Stoneware
$1,250
H 17.72 in W 7.09 in D 4.73 in
Glazed stoneware tubular vase by Martine Rouillard, circa 1980-1990.
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Glazed stoneware tubular vase by Martine Rouillard. Artist signature under the base. Circa 1980-1990. Unique piece. H : 17.7 x 7.1 x 4.7 inches.
Ceramic
Unique Ceramic Vase by Peter Beard
By Peter Beard
Located in New York, NY
Peter Beard vase Impressed artist's signature to underside. Unique
Ceramic
$1,364
H 10.24 in W 11.03 in D 9.85 in
Abstract Stoneware Sculpture by La Borne Potters, circa 1970, Signed
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
An abstract stoneware sculpture, circa 1970 by La Borne Potters. Signed. Unique piece.
Ceramic