More often than not, vintage mid-century Brazilian furniture designs, with their gleaming wood, soft leathers and inviting shapes, share a sensuous, unique quality that distinguishes them from the more rectilinear output of American and Scandinavian makers of the same era.
Commencing in the 1940s and '50s, a group of architects and designers transformed the local cultural landscape in Brazil, merging the modernist vernacular popular in Europe and the United States with the South American country's traditional techniques and indigenous materials.
Key mid-century influencers on Brazilian furniture design include natives Oscar Niemeyer, Sergio Rodrigues and José Zanine Caldas as well as such European immigrants as Joaquim Tenreiro, Jean Gillon and Jorge Zalszupin. These creators frequently collaborated; for instance, Niemeyer, an internationally acclaimed architect, commissioned many of them to furnish his residential and institutional buildings.
The popularity of Brazilian modern furniture has made household names of these designers and other greats. Their particular brand of modernism is characterized by an émigré point of view (some were Lithuanian, German, Polish, Ukrainian, Portuguese, and Italian), a preference for highly figured indigenous Brazilian woods, a reverence for nature as an inspiration and an atelier or small-production mentality.
Hallmarks of Brazilian mid-century design include smooth, sculptural forms and the use of native woods like rosewood, jacaranda and pequi. The work of designers today exhibits many of the same qualities, though with a marked interest in exploring new materials (witness the Campana Brothers' stuffed-animal chairs) and an emphasis on looking inward rather than to other countries for inspiration.
Find a collection of vintage Brazilian furniture on 1stDibs that includes chairs, sofas, tables and more.
Brazilian Modern Ice Bucket in Imbuia and Brazilian Hardwood, Unknown, 1960s
Located in New York, NY
Crafted in richly figured imbuia and Brazilian rosewood (jacarandá), this sculptural ice bucket highlights the expressive beauty of contrasting hardwoods. Vertical bands of warm, hon...
Plastic, Hardwood
$1,257Sale Price|20% Off
H 9.26 in Dm 8.47 in
Mid-Century Modern Apple Ice Bucket in Faux Carey and Metal, Mauro Manetti Style
By Mauro Manetti
Located in Barcelona, ES
Apple Ice bucket, brass, Lucite, Spain, 1960s A highly decorative faux tortoiseshell, metal plated and aluminum ice bucket or wine cooler in the manner of Mauro Manetti. Use it in a ...
Metal, Brass
Mid-Century Italian Modern Aluminum "Pear" Ice Bucket
By Ettore Sottsass
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Mid-Century Italian Modern aluminum 'pear-form' ice bucket with white plastic insulated bucket (ca. late 1960s/early 1970s, Italy). Features a textured, sculptural stem decoration ...
Aluminum
Glass and silver ice bucket, France, 1970
Located in Auribeau sur Siagne, FR
An elegant ice bucket made of clear molded glass, enhanced by a silver-plated metal rim. Dating from the 1970s, this piece combines the purity of glass with the refined simplicity of...
Silver
$250 / set
H 5 in W 4.75 in D 5.5 in
Vintage Hoya Glacier Ice Bucket With Textured Ice Glass, Japan, Circa 1960s
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Vintage Mid-Century Modern Hoya Glacier Ice Bucket With Textured Ice Glass, Japan, Circa 1960s. Produced in the 1960s by the Japanese brand, Hoya, the vintage Mid-Century Modern Japanese ice bucket...
Art Glass
Midcentury Ice Bucket in Faux Bois and Silvered Metal
Located in Barcelona, ES
Beautiful Mid-Century Modern ice bucket made in brown faux wood, acrylic and metal, Spain, 1950s-1960s. Handsome ice bucket in brown faux bois with silvered metal accents and handle....
Metal
$1,200
H 8.07 in W 12.4 in D 6.3 in
Stunning eye-catching ice bucket barware, Swan, Mauro Manetti, 1960s/70s Italy
By Mauro Manetti
Located in Wien, AT
A wonderful ice bucket for your special table, bar, or cocktail party. This ice bucket is a real eye-catcher – in the shape of a swan! This swan boasts a unique design and exceptio...
Metal
Italian Ice Bucket Wine Cooler in Burl Wood and Chrome
Located in Barcelona, ES
Midcentury Open / Close Ice Bucket in Burl Wood and Chrome Handsome Mid-Century Modern burl wood and chromed metal ice bucket with handle. Italy, 1960s This wine chiller features a c...
Metal, Chrome, Steel
Brass and Steel Pineapple Ice Bucket
Located in Marcq-en-Barœul, Hauts-de-France
This nice pineapple ice bucket is made of brass and steel. This is a French work. Circa 1970
Brass, Steel
Mid Century Brown and Brass Ice Bucket
By Kraftware
Located in Oklahoma City, OK
Elevate your bar game, with this mid-century brown and brass ice bucket. With a brass lid, and handle, this piece exudes both form and function. Measures: 8" diameter 7.5" tall.
Brass
Mid-Century Modern Teak Italian Arni Form Ice Bucket
Located in London, GB
A midcentury teak ice bucket in the style of Jens Quistgaard. This piece is one of a collection we have collected and restored by the Italian Maker Arni Form...
Metal
Ice Bucket Culver Ltd., circa 1960s
By Culver Ltd.
Located in New York, NY
A vintage canary yellow and 22-karat gold ice bucket with gold-tone loop handles and a Fleur-de-lis design, in the Hollywood Regency style, by Culver,...
Gold, Foil
Lucite Ice Bucket
Located in New York, NY
1980's Lucite Ice Bucket with matching lid in Wonderful condition.
Lucite
1970's St James Silver-Plate Wine Bucket with Stand from Brazil
Located in New York, NY
Stunning 1970's silver-plate wine bucket with bottle divider and stand, in vintage condition with minor wear and patina due to age and use, newly hand polished.
Silver Plate
50's Champagne Cooler
Located in Los Angeles, CA
50's one-leg champagne cooler
Stainless Steel