Important Pair of Edmond Spence Walnut and Leather Benches
View Similar Items
Important Pair of Edmond Spence Walnut and Leather Benches
About the Item
- Creator:Edmond J. Spence (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 17 in (43.18 cm)Width: 24.5 in (62.23 cm)Depth: 14 in (35.56 cm)Seat Height: 17 in (43.18 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 2
- Style:Scandinavian Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1960
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Costa Mesa, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU138422575552
Edmond J. Spence
Edmond J. Spence played an important role in promoting the tenets of Scandinavian modernism in the United States but his name remains conspicuously omitted from the history books. He was an American furniture designer who is known for having introduced the West to unfamiliar cultural tastes and translating their subtleties to appeal to mid-century-era consumers.
Spence honed his eye for good craftsmanship as a young man. His family owned a furniture manufacturing company based in Batavia, New York. While not much has been reported about his schooling, it was not long before he started designing his own nightstands, end tables, chairs and more — all of which exhibited the appealing traits associated with mid-century modern furniture. Spence experimented with form and ornament owing to inspiration he gathered from international influences.
During the 1950s, Spence drew on Asian and Swedish influences in developing ideas for his own style of modern furniture. He incorporated aspects of Mexican design to create the Continental-American collection. Manufactured in 1953 by Industria Mueblera, this collection of sculptural wooden furnishings with brass details epitomizes Spence’s ability to draw attention to the most integral parts of global design while adding his own modern spin. The designer’s Coronation Group — a series of dressers, cabinets and more in blonde woods that featured decorative birch veneers — was built by artisans in Sweden and imported for sale to postwar homeowners in the United States by Massachusetts furniture company Walpole.
Spence’s “Peineta” chair — a work of mahogany, plywood and woven palm that is demonstrative of Spanish Colonial influences and is part of the Continental-American line — has long been on display in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art while other works are held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art. And if Spence hadn’t captured the hearts of Americans by way of Industria Mueblera showrooms and alluring ads in Interiors magazine, some of his furniture was used as set decoration for the widely loved sitcom I Love Lucy.
Find vintage Edmond J. Spence seating, storage and case pieces, tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- Pair of Kipp Stewart and Stewart McDougall Walnut Nighstands, ca. 1960Located in Costa Mesa, CAPair of Kipp Stewart and Stewart McDougall Walnut Nighstands, ca. 1960. Beautiful matched pair of walnut nightstands or side tables by Kipp Stewart and Stewart McDougall for Drexel....Category
Vintage 1960s Night Stands
MaterialsWalnut
$2,396 Sale Price20% Off - Pair of Ico Parisi Italian Walnut and Marble Side Tables, ca. 1960By Ico ParisiLocated in Costa Mesa, CAPair of Ico Parisi Italian Walnut and Marble Side Tables, ca. 1960. Walnut star bases float on top of the tripod star base with sculpted legs and feet. Base has been professionall...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Side Tables
MaterialsCarrara Marble
$3,196 Sale Price / set20% Off - Pair of Neils Moller Model 77 Armchairs, ca. 1960By Neils O. MöllerLocated in Costa Mesa, CAPair of Neils Moller Model 77 Armchairs, ca. 1960. Beautiful original pair of Neils Moller armchairs in sculpted teak with paperboard woven seats. Ex...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsPapercord, Teak
$2,956 Sale Price / set20% Off - Leather Hippo Pair by Deru Germany, circa 1960By DeruLocated in Costa Mesa, CALeather Hippo Pair by Deru Germany, circa 1960. Wonderful examples with perfect warm patina to the leather. Both marked on feet and in overall good condition. Rivets are on underside. Large hippo...Category
Vintage 1960s German Mid-Century Modern Animal Sculptures
MaterialsLeather
$1,200 Sale Price / set20% Off - Pair of Nanna Ditzel Model 83 Lounge Chairs in Pierre Frey Wool Bouclé, 1952By Nanna and Jørgen Ditzel, SeligLocated in Costa Mesa, CAPair of Nanna Ditzel Model 83 Lounge chairs in Pierre Frey Wool Bouclé, 1952. Original pair, professionally restored walnut finish with top of the line soft Pierre Frey Wool Boucle. ...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsBouclé, Beech
$8,400 Sale Price / set20% Off - Pair of Vintage Brass Cathedral Mirrors, ca. 1960Located in Costa Mesa, CAPair of Vintage Brass Cathedral Mirrors, ca. 1960. Beautiful pair of brass framed cathedral mirrors in very good original condition. The beveled glass...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Wall Mirrors
MaterialsBrass
$2,800 Sale Price / set20% Off
- Pair of Edmond Spence Mahogany Mayan ChairsBy Edmond J. SpenceLocated in Brooklyn, NYGenerously proportioned occasional chairs, handmade in Mexico employing traditional woodworking techniques. Wonderful details including reverse tapered legs and intricately carved ...Category
Vintage 1950s Mexican Armchairs
MaterialsMahogany
$3,920 Sale Price20% Off - Pair of Edmond Spence Mexican 'Yucatan" ChairsBy Edmond J. SpenceLocated in Brooklyn, NYSolid mahogany frame with original hand-rolled grass rushing. American designed, Mexican made chairs incorporated a lavish, exotic south-American Fantasia for the American market.Category
Vintage 1950s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsRush, Mahogany
$3,500 / item - Pair of Modern Walnut Leather BenchesLocated in North York, ONPair of modern walnut leather benches. Simplistic modern styling in rich walnut woods and upholstered seat cushion. Contrasting center panel adds ...Category
2010s American Modern Benches
MaterialsLeather, Walnut
$5,450 / set - Wonderful Set 6 Edmond J. Spence Walnut Dining Chairs Swedish ModernBy Edmond J. SpenceLocated in Pemberton, NJMid century Swedish modern set of six walnut dining room chairs by Edmund Spence. We love the stylish cross backs along with the faceted legs and arms. The armchairs measure 39.5"t x...Category
Vintage 1960s Swedish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsWalnut, Upholstery
- Edmond Spence "Yucatan" ChairsBy Edmond J. SpenceLocated in Dallas, TXBeautiful set of 2 Mexican modernist 'Yucatan' dining chairs designed by Edmond J. Spence made of mahogany and woven seagrass, Mexico, the 1950s. The seagrass is in great condition and the chairs have been refinished. "Edmond J Spence made a career out of translating international modern styles for the U.S. market–he designed a successful blonde wood line made in Sweden and imported by Walpole Furniture of Massachusetts. Spence’s Mexican venture dubbed the “Continental-American Collection,” was launched by Industria Meublera in 1953. A contemporary ad boasts “superb raw materials [and] fine Mexican handcraftsmanship,” and shows an Aztec stone...Category
20th Century Mexican Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsSeagrass, Mahogany
$5,000 / set - Pair of English Walnut Finished Leather BenchesLocated in Los Angeles, CAPair of English Chippendale style walnut benches with brown leather upholstery.Category
Vintage 1920s English Regency Benches
MaterialsLeather, Walnut
$2,880 Sale Price / set40% Off