Lounge Chair and Ottoman by Edward Wormley for Dunbar
View Similar Items
Lounge Chair and Ottoman by Edward Wormley for Dunbar
About the Item
- Creator:Edward Wormley (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 40.5 in (102.87 cm)Width: 28.5 in (72.39 cm)Depth: 33.5 in (85.09 cm)Seat Height: 18 in (45.72 cm)
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:Fully restored and upholstered in Maharam wool.
- Seller Location:Dallas, TX
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU85184666083
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.
- Pair of Large Lounge Chairs and Ottoman by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Edward WormleyLocated in Dallas, TXAn oversized pair of Edward Wormley for Dunbar lounge chairs with full down back cushions, sitting on four casters. Matching ottoman on casters as well. Fully restored and upholstere...Category
Vintage 1950s Lounge Chairs
MaterialsFabric
- Channel Back Lounge Chair by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Edward WormleyLocated in Dallas, TXAn unusual and early design by Edward Wormley for Dunbar. This channel back lounge chair has mahogany trim and aluminum legs. Fully restored and reupholstered in Designtex / Lambert ...Category
Vintage 1950s Lounge Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Swivel Chair by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Edward WormleyLocated in Dallas, TXAn early swivel chair designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar with oak base and plush mohair upholstery.Category
Vintage 1950s Swivel Chairs
MaterialsMohair, Oak
- Four Dunbar Janus Lounge Chairs by Edward WormleyBy Edward WormleyLocated in Dallas, TXA beautifully restored set of four matching Janus lounge chairs with walnut frames and green velvet upholstery. Designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar.Category
Vintage 1950s Lounge Chairs
MaterialsVelvet, Walnut
$24,000 / set - Pair of Lounge Chairs on Brass Legs by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Edward WormleyLocated in Dallas, TXA classic pair of Dunbar high back lounge chair on brass legs designed by Edward Wormley. Fully restored and upholstered in a deep blue chenille fabric.Category
Vintage 1950s Lounge Chairs
MaterialsBrass
- Pair of Slipper Chairs by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Edward WormleyLocated in Dallas, TXA pair of slipper chairs with mahogany bases. Designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar.Category
Vintage 1950s Slipper Chairs
MaterialsMahogany
- 1950's Lounge Chair and Ottoman by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in North Miami, FLPair of 1950s armchairs and ottomans designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar have painted walnut legs with all new foam and upholstery. Priced individually as two chair-and-ottoman sets.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Walnut
- 1950s Lounge Chair and Ottoman by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Sagaponack, NYA Mid-Century Modern high-back chair and ottoman set designed by Edward Wormley featuring mahogany bases and original orange upholstery. Made by Dunbar in the USA, circa 1950s.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Mahogany
- Edward J. Wormley Lounge Chair and Ottoman circa 1950s for DunbarBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in St. Louis, MOEdward J. Wormley lounge chair and ottoman for Dunbar circa 1950s on solid brass castors. The lounge chair has a trapezoid shape, wider in the front (27.5" W) and tapers to the back....Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery
- 1960s Leather Lounge Chair and Ottoman by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Sagaponack, NYWith a nod to the immense popularity of Charles Eames's swivel lounge chair and ottoman, Wormley capitalized on the popularity of his own stationary, winged lounge chair and ottoman ...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLeather
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar Brass Leg Lounge Chairs and OttomanBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in St.Petersburg, FLA wonderful pair of chairs with accompanying ottoman by Edward Wormley for Dunbar. Features a generous and comfortable seat, button back, and solid brass tapered legs. Rare to find s...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsBrass
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar Mid Century Lounge Chair and OttomanBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Countryside, ILEdward Wormley for Dunbar mid century lounge chair and ottoman The lounge chair measures: 27 wide x 30 deep x 39 high, with a seat height of 17 inches and arm height of 23 inches ...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Wood