Edward J Wormley for Dunbar Red Upholstered Swivel Lounge Chair and Footstool
About the Item
- Creator:Edward Wormley (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 42 in (106.68 cm)Width: 30 in (76.2 cm)Depth: 40 in (101.6 cm)Seat Height: 18 in (45.72 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:Mid-20th Century
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Footstool dimensions: 24.5"w x 19"d x 16"h.
- Seller Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:
Edward Wormley
As the longtime director of design for the Dunbar furniture company, Edward Wormley was, along with such peers as George Nelson at Herman Miller Inc., and Florence Knoll of Knoll Inc., one of the leading forces in bringing modern design into American homes in the mid-20th century. Not an axiomatic modernist, Wormley deeply appreciated traditional design, and consequently his work has an understated warmth and a timeless quality that sets it apart from other furnishings of the era.
Wormley was born in rural Illinois and as a teenager took correspondence courses from the New York School of Interior Design. He later attended the Art Institute of Chicago but ran out of money for tuition before he could graduate. Marshall Field hired Wormley in 1930 to design a line of reproduction 18th-century English furniture; the following year he was hired by the Indiana-based Dunbar, where he quickly distinguished himself. It was a good match.
Dunbar was an unusual firm: it did not use automated production systems; its pieces were mostly hand-constructed. For his part, Wormley did not use metal as a major component of furniture; he liked craft elements such as caned seatbacks, tambour drawers, or the woven-wood cabinet fronts seen on his Model 5666 sideboard of 1956. He designed two lines for Dunbar each year — one traditional, one modern — until 1944, by which time the contemporary pieces had become the clear best sellers.
Many of Wormley’s signature pieces — chairs, sofas, tables and more — are modern interpretations of traditional forms. His 1946 Riemerschmid Chair — an example is in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art — recapitulates a late 19th-century German design. The long, slender finials of his Model 5580 dining chairs are based on those of Louis XVI chairs; his Listen-to-Me Chaise (1948) has a gentle Rococo curve; the “Precedent” line that Wormley designed for Drexel Furniture in 1947 is a simplified, pared-down take on muscular Georgian furniture. But he could invent new forms, as his Magazine table of 1953, with its bent wood pockets, and his tiered Magazine Tree (1947), both show. And Wormley kept his eye on design currents, creating a series of tables with tops that incorporate tiles and roundels by the great modern ceramicists Otto and Gertrud Natzler.
As the vintage items on 1stDibs demonstrate, Edward Wormley conceived of a subdued sort of modernism, designing furniture that fits into any decorating scheme and does not shout for attention.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Long Island City, NY
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 2 days of delivery.
- Edward J Wormley for Dunbar Beige Upholstered Fluted Leg Lounge ArmchairBy Edward WormleyLocated in New York, NYAmerican Mid-Century lounge armchair with plush upholstery in a textured taupe and beige with a small skirt concealing four fluted legs. (EDWARD J WORMLEY ...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Wood, Fabric
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar 'Big Texan' Brown Leaf Pattern Upholstered LoungeBy Edward WormleyLocated in New York, NYAmerican Mid-Century 'Big Texan' form oversized lounge / armchair with brown leaf patterned fabric upholstery with removable back and seat cushions. (EDWARD WORMLEY FOR DUNBAR FURNIT...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Upholstery
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar Blue Striped Upholstered Walnut Frame 'Janus'By Edward WormleyLocated in New York, NYAmerican Mid-Century 'Janus' lounge / armchair with a walnut frame and blue, beige, and brown geometric stripe patterned fabric upholstery with a button tufted back, resting on four ...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsWood, Walnut, Fabric, Upholstery
- Edward J Wormley for Dunbar Crushed Gold Velour and Walnut Lounge ArmchairBy Edward WormleyLocated in New York, NYAmerican mid-century lounge armchair with square arms and a slightly tapered short back, with crushed gold velour upholstery with button tufted detail on the back cushion, resting on...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Wood, Walnut
- Edward J Wormley for Dunbar Blue Diamond Patterned Lounge Armchair and OttomanBy Edward WormleyLocated in New York, NYAmerican Mid-Century rolling boudoir / lounge armchair and matching ottoman, upholstered in a light blue and white diamond patterned fabric with button tufted back detail, both resti...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsMetal, Brass
- Edward J Wormley for Dunbar High Back Taupe Lounge Armchair and OttomanBy Edward WormleyLocated in New York, NYAmerican Mid-Century high back lounge armchair and matching ottoman set, with textured brown / taupe fabric upholstery with button tufting on the back cushion, matching antimacassars...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsBrass, Metal
- Edward Wormley Lounge Chairs for DunbarBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Brooklyn, NYThis pair of 1950s high back lounge chairs by Edward Wormley for Dunbar features iconic Mid-Century design and comfortably sculpted seat backs. Spacious seats with plush vintage fabr...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Walnut
- Edward Wormley Lounge Chair for DunbarBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Chicago, ILA nice simple and dramatic armchair lounge chair form by Edward Wormley. Should be purchased with the intent to reupholster. Needs to be softer on inside back.Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsUpholstery
- Edward Wormley Lounge Chair #4796 for DunbarBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in New York, NYEdward Wormely lounge chair model #4796 produced by Dunbar Furniture Company "Dunbar For Modern" Line, production date of 8/2/1950 - 10/23/1950. The perfect reading chair, very com...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsVelvet, Wood
- Edward Wormley For Dunbar "Morris" Lounge ChairBy Edward WormleyLocated in St.Petersburg, FLA rare Edward Wormley for Dunbar multi position recliner known as the "Morris" chair. Classic reinterpretation the lounge chair has three positions. Mahogany in dark, original finish...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsMahogany
- Pair Edward Wormley for Dunbar "Y" Modernist Lounge ChairsBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Buffalo, NYStunning Pair Dunbar Lounge Chairs designed by Edward Wormley,,Retains early 'D' metal badge label,, minor damage to caning ( see photo),, E...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Cane, Wood
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar Swivel Lounge ChairsBy Edward WormleyLocated in West Palm Beach, FLEdward Wormley design swivel lounge chairs for Dunbar, model #5609 Refinished and reupholstered in a cotton velvet fabric.Category
Vintage 1960s American Chairs