Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Organically shaped, clean-lined and elegantly simple are three terms that well describe mid-century modern American 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.
Postwar American architects and designers were animated by new ideas and new technology. The lean, functionalist “International Style” architecture of Le Corbusier and Bauhaus eminences such as Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Walter Gropius had been promoted in the United States during the ’30s 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, respectively, pieces such as the La Chaise and the Womb chair. George Nelson and his design team created Bubble lamp shades using a new translucent polymer skin. Harry Bertoia and Isamu Noguchi devised chairs and tables built of wire mesh and wire struts. Materials were re-purposed: the Danish-born designer Jens Risom created a line of chairs that used surplus parachute straps for webbed seats and backrests.
As the demand for casual, uncluttered furnishings grew, more mid-century 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, blonde-wood furniture — and Milo Baughman, who espoused a West Coast aesthetic in lushly upholstered chairs and sofas with angular steel frames.
As the collection of vintage mid-century modern American furniture on 1stDibs demonstrates, this period saw one of the most delightful and dramatic flowerings of creativity in design history.
1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Mirror, Wood
1950s Dutch Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Chrome
1950s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary German Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Mirror, Glass
1960s Spanish Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Rattan
1950s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
1940s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
2010s Indian Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Bone
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Rattan, Mirror
20th Century French Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Bamboo, Wicker, Rattan, Mirror
1970s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Walnut
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
1960s Spanish Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Rattan
1960s French Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary German Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Glass, Mirror
1970s Belgian Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Metal
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Mirror, Giltwood
20th Century Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Glass, Wood
1980s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Gold
1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Mirror, Wood
1950s Dutch Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Chrome
1950s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Mirror, Walnut
20th Century French Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Lead, Metal
Late 20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Rattan
1970s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Maple
1960s German Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Metal
1960s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Walnut, Mirror
1980s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary French Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Rattan, Mirror
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
1960s Swedish Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Pine, Mirror
1950s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Mirror
1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Mirror, Teak, Glass, Wood
1950s Dutch Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Chrome
Mid-20th Century Austrian Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
1960s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Metal, Brass
1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
1950s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
1950s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Metal
1960s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Mirror, Plastic, Wood
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Mirror, Giltwood
21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Rattan, Mirror, Oak
1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Mirror, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
1970s Unknown Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
1970s French Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Ceramic
1960s Spanish Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Rattan
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Mirror, Walnut
1970s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Mirror, Giltwood
Late 20th Century Belgian Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Wood, Paint
20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass
1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Crystal
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern More Mirrors
Brass