Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

MID-CENTURY MODERN STYLE

Organically shaped, clean-lined and elegantly simple are three terms that well describe vintage mid-century modern furniture. The style, which emerged primarily in the years following World War II, is characterized by pieces that were conceived and made in an energetic, optimistic spirit by creators who believed that good design was an essential part of good living.

ORIGINS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN

Emerged during the mid-20th century
Informed by European modernism, Bauhaus, International style, Scandinavian modernism and Frank Lloyd Wright’s architecture
A heyday of innovation in postwar America
Experimentation with new ideas, new materials and new forms flourished in Scandinavia, Italy, the former Czechoslovakia and elsewhere in Europe

CHARACTERISTICS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN

Simplicity, organic forms, clean lines
A blend of neutral and bold Pop art colors
Use of natural and man-made materials — alluring woods such as teak, rosewood and oak; steel, fiberglass and molded plywood
Light-filled spaces with colorful upholstery
Glass walls and an emphasis on the outdoors
Promotion of functionality

MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW

Charles and Ray Eames
Eero Saarinen
Milo Baughman
Florence Knoll
Harry Bertoia
Isamu Noguchi
George Nelson
Danish modernists Hans Wegner and Arne Jacobsen, whose emphasis on natural materials and craftsmanship influenced American designers and vice versa

ICONIC MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNS

VINTAGE MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS

The mid-century modern era saw leagues of postwar American architects and designers animated by new ideas and new technology. The lean, functionalist International-style architecture of Le Corbusier and Bauhaus eminences Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Walter Gropius had been promoted in the United States during the 1930s by Philip Johnson and others. New building techniques, such as “post-and-beam” construction, allowed the International-style schemes to be realized on a small scale in open-plan houses with long walls of glass.

Materials developed for wartime use became available for domestic goods and were incorporated into mid-century modern furniture designs. Charles and Ray Eames and Eero Saarinen, who had experimented extensively with molded plywood, eagerly embraced fiberglass for pieces such as the La Chaise and the Womb chair, respectively.

Architect, writer and designer George Nelson created with his team shades for the Bubble lamp using a new translucent polymer skin and, as design director at Herman Miller, recruited the Eameses, Alexander Girard and others for projects at the legendary Michigan furniture manufacturer.

Harry Bertoia and Isamu Noguchi devised chairs and tables built of wire mesh and wire struts. Materials were repurposed too: The Danish-born designer Jens Risom created a line of chairs using surplus parachute straps for webbed seats and backrests.

The Risom lounge chair was among the first pieces of furniture commissioned and produced by legendary manufacturer Knoll, a chief influencer in the rise of modern design in the United States, thanks to the work of Florence Knoll, the pioneering architect and designer who made the firm a leader in its field. The seating that Knoll created for office spaces — as well as pieces designed by Florence initially for commercial clients — soon became desirable for the home.

As the demand for casual, uncluttered furnishings grew, more mid-century furniture designers caught the spirit.

Classically oriented creators such as Edward Wormley, house designer for Dunbar Inc., offered such pieces as the sinuous Listen to Me chaise; the British expatriate T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings switched gears, creating items such as the tiered, biomorphic Mesa table. There were Young Turks such as Paul McCobb, who designed holistic groups of sleek, blond wood furniture, and Milo Baughman, who espoused a West Coast aesthetic in minimalist teak dining tables and lushly upholstered chairs and sofas with angular steel frames.

As the collection of vintage mid-century modern chairs, dressers, coffee tables and other furniture for the living room, dining room, bedroom and elsewhere on 1stDibs demonstrates, this period saw one of the most delightful and dramatic flowerings of creativity in design history.

Style: Mid-Century Modern

Creator: Gaetano Sciolari

1970s Pair of Chrome and Glass Wall Lights by G. Sciolary, Italy

Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

1970s Pair of Chrome and Glass Wall Lights by G. Sciolary, Italy

1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Large wall lamp model 2061 by Gaetano Scolari for Stilnovo 1954

1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Midcentury Wall Lamp designed by Gaetano

1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Set of Sciolari 1960 Space Age Italian Mid Century Wall Lamps

Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Pair of Modern Square Glass Rod Wall Sconces of Sciolari for Lightoliers

1970s European Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

1970s Chrome and Metal Sconces by Gaetano Sciolari

Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Large Geometric Sculptural Brass Wall Sconce by Sciolari, 1970s

1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Rare Gaetano Sciolari Brass and Glass Wall Sconces, 1970s

1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

1970s Chrome and Metal 3 Light Single Sconce by Gaetano Sciolari

1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

SCIOLARI Brass Pineapple Ceiling lamp / Wall Scone, Italy - circa 1960 - 1970

Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Pair of Modern Brass Sciolari Sconces 1970'

1960s Belgian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Wall lamp Gaetano Sciolari for Maison Boulanger. Belgium 1970

1950s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Gaetano Sciolari, Wall Light, Metal, Brass, Rattan, Italy, 1954

1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Pair of 1960s, Italian Sciolari Mid-Century Wall Lights

1950s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Gaetano Sciolari model 2061 Stilnovo wall lamps Italy 1954

Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Pair of Wall Lights Sconces Glass Metal Gaetano Sciolari Stilkronen Midcentury

20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Rare Pair of Waterfall Sconces by Sciolari

1970s German Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Sculptural Brass Wall Lights Flush Mounts by Leola, 1970s

Mid-20th Century German Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

One of the Three Pairs Modern Glass Rod Wall Sconces of Sciolari for Lightoliers

1970s German Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Lovely Sculptural Brass Wall Lights Flush Mounts by Leola, 1970s

1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

A pair of Sciolari 1970s chrome and glass shades sconces. New from old stock.

Late 20th Century German Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Beautiful 5-Light Sciolari Ceiling Light Sconces By LEOLA Leuchten Germany 1970s

1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Italian Gold Brass Sciolari Design Minimalist Sculpture

Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Pair of Midcentury Wall Lights with Cubist Design by Sciolari for Lightolier

1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Pair of Gaetano Sciolari Wall Lights, 1960

Late 20th Century German Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Beautiful 3-Light Sciolari Wall Light Sconces By LEOLA Leuchten Germany 1970s

1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Pair of 1960s Italian Sciolari Wall Lamps Mid Century

1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Set of 2 Gaetano Sciolari Wall Lamps , 1970s

1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Cubist Polished Brass Gaetano Sciolari Wall Sconce

1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Chrome and Glass Cube Four Light Wall Sconce by Gaetano Sciolari, C. 1970s

1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Pair of Italian Chrome Wall Sconces Sciolari Style, 1970s

1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Gaetano Sciolari Wall Lighting Glass Murano with Chrome, Italy, 1970

1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Pair of Sciolari Modernist Chromed Metal Wall Lamps 1970s Minimalist Design

1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Sciolari

Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Rare Vintage Spot Light by Sciolari

1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Italian Mid-Century Chrome and Glass Wall Sconces by Gaetano Sciolari, 1960s

1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Pair of Cubist Chromed Gaetano Sciolari Wall Sconce

Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Paire D’appliques En Métal Et Verre De Murano Par Gaetano Sciolari, Italie, 1970

Late 20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Gaetano Sciolari Sculptural Brass Wall Sconces with Opaline Glass Shades, Italy

Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces