Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

MID-CENTURY MODERN STYLE

Organically shaped, clean-lined and elegantly simple are three terms that well describe vintage mid-century modern furniture. The style, which emerged primarily in the years following World War II, is characterized by pieces that were conceived and made in an energetic, optimistic spirit by creators who believed that good design was an essential part of good living.

ORIGINS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN

Emerged during the mid-20th century
Informed by European modernism, Bauhaus, International style, Scandinavian modernism and Frank Lloyd Wright’s architecture
A heyday of innovation in postwar America
Experimentation with new ideas, new materials and new forms flourished in Scandinavia, Italy, the former Czechoslovakia and elsewhere in Europe

CHARACTERISTICS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN

Simplicity, organic forms, clean lines
A blend of neutral and bold Pop art colors
Use of natural and man-made materials — alluring woods such as teak, rosewood and oak; steel, fiberglass and molded plywood
Light-filled spaces with colorful upholstery
Glass walls and an emphasis on the outdoors
Promotion of functionality

MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW

Charles and Ray Eames
Eero Saarinen
Milo Baughman
Florence Knoll
Harry Bertoia
Isamu Noguchi
George Nelson
Danish modernists Hans Wegner and Arne Jacobsen, whose emphasis on natural materials and craftsmanship influenced American designers and vice versa

ICONIC MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNS

VINTAGE MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS

The mid-century modern era saw leagues of postwar American architects and designers animated by new ideas and new technology. The lean, functionalist International-style architecture of Le Corbusier and Bauhaus eminences Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Walter Gropius had been promoted in the United States during the 1930s by Philip Johnson and others. New building techniques, such as “post-and-beam” construction, allowed the International-style schemes to be realized on a small scale in open-plan houses with long walls of glass.

Materials developed for wartime use became available for domestic goods and were incorporated into mid-century modern furniture designs. Charles and Ray Eames and Eero Saarinen, who had experimented extensively with molded plywood, eagerly embraced fiberglass for pieces such as the La Chaise and the Womb chair, respectively.

Architect, writer and designer George Nelson created with his team shades for the Bubble lamp using a new translucent polymer skin and, as design director at Herman Miller, recruited the Eameses, Alexander Girard and others for projects at the legendary Michigan furniture manufacturer.

Harry Bertoia and Isamu Noguchi devised chairs and tables built of wire mesh and wire struts. Materials were repurposed too: The Danish-born designer Jens Risom created a line of chairs using surplus parachute straps for webbed seats and backrests.

The Risom lounge chair was among the first pieces of furniture commissioned and produced by legendary manufacturer Knoll, a chief influencer in the rise of modern design in the United States, thanks to the work of Florence Knoll, the pioneering architect and designer who made the firm a leader in its field. The seating that Knoll created for office spaces — as well as pieces designed by Florence initially for commercial clients — soon became desirable for the home.

As the demand for casual, uncluttered furnishings grew, more mid-century furniture designers caught the spirit.

Classically oriented creators such as Edward Wormley, house designer for Dunbar Inc., offered such pieces as the sinuous Listen to Me chaise; the British expatriate T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings switched gears, creating items such as the tiered, biomorphic Mesa table. There were Young Turks such as Paul McCobb, who designed holistic groups of sleek, blond wood furniture, and Milo Baughman, who espoused a West Coast aesthetic in minimalist teak dining tables and lushly upholstered chairs and sofas with angular steel frames.

As the collection of vintage mid-century modern chairs, dressers, coffee tables and other furniture for the living room, dining room, bedroom and elsewhere on 1stDibs demonstrates, this period saw one of the most delightful and dramatic flowerings of creativity in design history.

Style: Mid-Century Modern

Number in Set: Set of 8

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Avocado Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Walnut

Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Avocado Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Walnut

2010s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Forsyth Bespoke Eero Saarinen Womb Chair in Zebra

2010s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Forsyth Bespoke Eero Saarinen Womb Chair and Ottoman in Zebra

1940s Danish Vintage Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Danish Early Midcentury Lounge Chair in Stained Mahogany

20th Century Polish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Set of Two Mid Century Dalmatian Velvet Armchairs, by Edmund Homa, Europe, 1960s

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Shell Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Walnut

20th Century Polish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Set of Mid Century Armchair and Stool, by Edmund Homa, Europe, 1960s

20th Century Polish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Set of Two Midcentury Blue Zebra Print Velvet Dante Armchairs, H. Lis, 1960s

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Avocado Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Brown Solid Oak

Mid-20th Century Polish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Mid Century Baby Blue Vintage Armchair, Europe, 1960s

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Marmelade Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Brown Solid Oak

21st Century and Contemporary Danish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

'Studio' Sofa by Norr11, Modular Sofa, Corner Module, White

2010s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Forsyth Bespoke Womb Chair and Ottoman in New Zealand Sheepskin, Ivory

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Taupe Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Brown Solid Oak

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Milo Armchair, Shell / Chesterfield Velvet

21st Century and Contemporary Mexican Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Handwoven Midcentury Inspired Cali Lounge Chair, Copper Plating and Leather

2010s Slovenian Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Rex Lounge Chair in Natural Oak, Solid Frame + Plywood, Mid-Century Modern Style

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Milo Armchair, Ming/Umber Velvet

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Milo Armchair, Marmelade/Creme Brulee Velvet

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Violet Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Walnut

20th Century Polish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Mid Century Pattern Velvet Mustard Armchair, by Edmund Homa, Europe, 1960s.

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Terra Cotta Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Walnut

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Cameo Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Brown Solid Oak

21st Century and Contemporary Danish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Copacabana Lounge Chair

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Shell Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Brown Solid Oak

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Ocean Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Brown Solid Oak

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Ming Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Brown Solid Oak

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Milo Armchair, Cranberry/Umber Velvet

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Bittersweet Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Walnut

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Milo Armchair, Shell/Umber Velvet

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Milo Armchair, Taupe/Umber Velvet

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Milo Armchair, Marmelade/Chesterfield Velvet

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Ocean Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Walnut

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Evergreen Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Walnut

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Cayenne Lounge Chair, Cameo Velvet/High Gloss Varnish Walnut

2010s Italian Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Jean Marie Massaud 'Auckland' Lounge Chair and Footrest by Cassina

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Milo Armchair, Violet/Creme Brulee Velvet

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Milo Armchair, Marmelade/Umber Velvet

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs

Milo Armchair, Terra Cotta/Chesterfield Velvet

21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs