Pair of Dunbar Lounge Chairs by Edward Wormley
View Similar Items
Pair of Dunbar Lounge Chairs by Edward Wormley
About the Item
- Creator:Edward Wormley (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 33 in (83.82 cm)Width: 24 in (60.96 cm)Depth: 30 in (76.2 cm)Seat Height: 17 in (43.18 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 2
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:new upholstery, ebonized wood bases.
- Seller Location:Miami, FL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU92402593042
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.
- Paolo Buffa Style Tall Back Club Red Velvet Slipper ChairBy Paolo BuffaLocated in Miami, FLA stylish chair. Very tall dramatic back. Ebonized wood legs.Category
1990s American Lounge Chairs
MaterialsVelvet, Wood
- Pair of Cube Geometric Lounge Club ChairsLocated in Miami, FLA modern pair of lounge chairs. Geometric design with and angular exterior and a rounded seating area. Very clean design.Category
2010s American Lounge Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Wood
$6,100 / set - Pair of Sculptural 1970s Bamboo Lounge ChairsBy Budji LayugLocated in Miami, FLA pair of 1970s bamboo lounge chairs. Modern approach to a timeless and noble material. Sofa also available.Category
Vintage 1970s Philippine Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Bamboo
- Ward Bennett Pair of Scissor Lounge ChairsBy Ward BennettLocated in Miami, FLA pair iconic scissor chairs by Ward Bennet. Satin Steel frames with wool upholstery. 2 pairs available.Category
Vintage 1960s American Lounge Chairs
MaterialsSteel
$5,200 / set - McGuire Pair of Arm Lounge Dining Chairs, Custom FinishBy McGuireLocated in Miami, FLA pair of McGuire Rattan arm chairs. 3 pairs available. Note the beautiful custom finish and embroider upholstery.Category
Vintage 1980s American Armchairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Rattan
- Garouste Bonetti Pair of Lounge Club Chairs Jour et NuitBy Elizabeth Garouste and Mattia BonettiLocated in Miami, FLA pair of Garouste and Bonetti chairs and ottoman. Steel frames with hand applied enamel finish. A stylized representation of the sun and the moon at the end of the arms done in gold...Category
1990s French Lounge Chairs
MaterialsEnamel, Steel
Sold$22,000 / set
- Pair of Edward J. Wormley Janus Lounge Chairs for DunbarBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Wayne, NJA set of 2 Edward J. Wormley Janus lounge chairs for Dunbar. If you are in the New Jersey , New York City Metro Area , please contact us with your delivery zipcode, as we may be able...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery
$4,125 Sale Price / set25% Off - Pair Dunbar Lounge Slipper Chairs by Edward Wormley, 1960By Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Chicago, ILPair Dunbar Lounge Slipper Chairs by Edward Wormley, 1960. Walnut legs restored and newly reupholstered in blue boucle.Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Slipper Chairs
MaterialsBouclé, Walnut
- Low Lounge Chair by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Sagaponack, NYA low slipper chair with the original faux alligator texture yellow upholstery.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Slipper Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery
- 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
- 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
- Pair of Slipper Chairs by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Middlesex, NJPair of slipper chairs by Edward Wormley for Dunbar. Chairs are reupholstered in a Maharam Mohair.Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs