Six Dining Chairs by Edward Wormley, Large Scale, Bleached Mahogany, Blue Fabric
View Similar Items
Six Dining Chairs by Edward Wormley, Large Scale, Bleached Mahogany, Blue Fabric
About the Item
- Creator:Edward Wormley (Designer),Dunbar Furniture (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 32.25 in (81.92 cm)Width: 21.5 in (54.61 cm)Length: 32.25 in (81.92 cm)Seat Height: 18.5 in (46.99 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 6
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:Minor signs of wear. Very good vintage condition.
- Seller Location:Kansas City, MO
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1057012607072
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.
Dunbar Furniture
Revered for its handcrafted and highly collectible mid-century modern sofas, coffee tables and other furnishings, Dunbar Furniture was founded in 1910 in Berne, Indiana, but it didn’t gain widespread recognition until the ’30s, following the introduction of its president to a designer who would leave an indelible mark on the company’s legacy: Edward Wormley.
After a stint at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Oswego, Illinois-born Wormley worked as an interior designer for Marshall Field’s before joining Dunbar in 1931. Initially focused on developing the company’s cheapest furniture line, which could be bought with soap coupons, he was soon leading Dunbar Furniture into a new era of residential furniture for modern American homes. He would serve as the company’s design director for over three decades, designing about 150 pieces each year.
During that time, he oversaw the production of designs in a wide range of materials, with influences ranging from Scandinavian modernism to Art Deco. There were modern upholstery pieces, like swiveling lounge chairs and low-slung sofas, and experiments with textural wood on bar carts and cabinets as well as minimal, sculptural tables and functional office furniture. A passionate collector of Tiffany Studios lamps, Wormley used their glass tiles in Dunbar tables in 1956. He also worked on the reproduction of pieces by designers such as Jean-Michel Frank and Richard Riemerschmid.
One standout Dunbar Furniture collection was Janus, introduced in the 1960s, with Austrian-born ceramicists Otto and Gertrud Natzler. These pieces see the Natzlers’ uniquely artful ceramic tiles set into several styles of wooden tables. They remain some of the most sought-after mid-century modern Dunbar pieces on the vintage market today. During the peak of his design career and, indeed, the height of Dunbar Furniture’s history, Wormley amassed a whopping 30 Good Design awards between 1950 and 1955 through the “Good Design” exhibition, hosted by the Chicago Merchandise Mart and the Museum of Modern Art. Dunbar today produces a limited selection of archival Wormley designs, but many sales of original Dunbar pieces are through the resale market.
Find a collection of authentic vintage Dunbar Furniture today on 1stDibs.
- Dining Table by Edward Wormley for Dunbar, Rectangular Bleached MahoganyBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Kansas City, MOMahogany dining table with one leaf designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar, 1950s. The table is in very good condition with only light signs of use under close examination. Beautiful ...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsMahogany
- Four Alexandria Chairs by Edward Wormley for Dunbar, Elegant Modern at Its BestBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Kansas City, MOSet of 4 Alexandria Chairs designed by Edward Wormley. One of Wormley's most coveted designs. These can be used as dining / kitchen chairs, game table chairs or side chairs in any ro...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Mahogany
- Ten Rosewood Danish Modern Dining Chairs, Blue Fabric, Labels on Several ChairsLocated in Kansas City, MOSet of 10 Danish modern dining chairs in Brazilian rosewood and new blue upholstery. Some slight wear in the form of small nicks and dents in the chair frames but no significant dist...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Rosewood
- Pair Armless Janus Chairs by Edward Wormley. Rare orangeJack Lenor Larsen FabricBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Kansas City, MORare, all original, pair of armless lounge / slipper chairs designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar. Both chairs retain the original orange mod swirling fabric in shades of orange des...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Mahogany
- Six Danish Modern Rosewood Ladder Back Dining Chairs by Arne Vodder, Black SeatsBy Vamo Sonderborg, Arne VodderLocated in Kansas City, MOSet of 6 stunning armless rosewood dining chairs designed by Arne Vodder and made by Vamo Sonderborg, Denmark, 1960s. Signed with branded mark on underside of chairs. Beautiful set.Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Rosewood
- Rare Pair Dunbar Dining Chairs in Original Black Leather, Mahogany Frames, SignedBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Kansas City, MOVery rare and desirable high back Dunbar dining chairs designed by Edward Wormley. Both chairs are completely original. The original black leather has no tears, scuffs, or repairs and show slight stretching on the seats. The mahogany frames show light signs of use in the form of light scratches and nicks, but no distractions. These are excellent examples of this important design, clearly well cared for over the years. Acquired from the original owner. Signed with the gold Dunbar metal...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBrass
- Set of Six Edward Wormley for Dunbar Caned Dining ChairsBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Rio Vista, CALabeled set of six mid-century modern caned dining chairs featuring new modern boucle upholstery redux. Iconic chairs designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar having walnut frames in an angular design with an ebonized finish. The rectangular back has a cane inset...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBouclé, Cane, Wood
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar Mid Century Mahogany Dining Chairs, Set of 8By Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Countryside, ILEdward Wormley for Dunbar mid century Mahogany dining chairs - set of 8 Each armless chair measures: 20 wide x 20 deep x 33 high, with a seat height of 17 inches Each captains ch...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Mahogany
- Set of Six Mid-Century Modern Dining Chairs in the Style of Edward WormleyBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Brooklyn, NYElegant set of six vintage modern dining chairs feature solid walnut frames with black vinyl upholstery. Stylish design with cane in the center of the angled backrest and tapered leg...Category
Vintage 1960s Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsFaux Leather, Cane, Walnut
$1,330 Sale Price / set26% Off - Set of Four Edward Wormley for Dunbar Horned Dining ChairsBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Rio Vista, CAIconic and rare set of four horned antler chairs designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar. Known as 5580 model dining chairs crafted from mahogany with a caned seat. Arguably these are ...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsCane, Mahogany
$19,200 Sale Price / set20% Off - Dining Chair by Edward WormleyBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Sagaponack, NYA sinuous upholstered dining chair on tapered legs.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Walnut
$4,800 / item - Set of Six #6337 Dining Chairs by Edward WormleyBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Sagaponack, NYA comfortable set of six dining chairs having gently curved solid wood panel backs and upholstered seats resting on ebonized walnut frames.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery
$32,000 / set