- Want more images or videos?Request additional images or videos from the seller
Rare Pair of Harvey Probber Sling Chair, circa 1948

About
Details
- CreatorHarvey Probber (Designer)
- DimensionsHeight: 29.5 in. (74.93 cm)Width: 39.5 in. (100.33 cm)Depth: 27 in. (68.58 cm)Seat Height: 9 in. (22.86 cm)
- StyleMid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques
- Place of Origin
- Period
- Date of Manufacture1940s
- ConditionWear consistent with age and use. New upholstery , touch up to frame.
- Seller LocationSt. Louis, MO
- Reference Number
Shipping & Returns
- ShippingShips From: St. Louis, MO
- Return Policy
A return for this item may be initiated within 3 days of delivery.
About the Designer
Harvey Probber
A popular designer who had his heyday from the late 1940s into the 1970s, Harvey Probber is one of the post-war American creative spirits whose work has been recently rediscovered by collectors. His designs are by-and-large simple and elegant, but his signal achievement was to pioneer one of the key innovations of mid-20th century furniture: sectional, or modular, seating.
Even as a teenager, the Brooklyn-born Probber was making sketches of furniture designs — and selling them to Manhattan furniture companies. He began working as a designer for an upholsterer once he finished high school and, apart from a few evening classes he took as an adult at the Pratt Institute, he was self-taught about design and furniture making.
After wartime service — and a stint as a lounge singer — Probber founded his own company in the late 1940s. A lifelong familiarity with the needs of New York–apartment dwellers doubtless sparked his most noteworthy creation: a line of seating pieces in basic geometric shapes — wedges, squares, half-circles — that could be arranged and combined as needed. Modular furniture remained the core idea of Probber’s business throughout his career.
As a self-trained designer, Probber was never wed to any particular aesthetic. He preferred simple lines for their inherent practicality, but often used hardware to enliven the look of his pieces, or added elements — such as a ceramic insert in the center of a round dining table — that was visually interesting and could serve as a trivet. He gravitated toward bright fabrics with attractive, touchable textures that might be satin-like or nubbly. Above all, Probber insisted that the products that came out of his Fall River, Massachusetts, factory be built to last.
“The quality of aging gracefully,” Probber once told an interviewer, is “design's fourth dimension.” This quality he realized: Probber furniture is just as useful and alluring now as it was when made — and maybe even more stylish.
Find a collection of vintage Harvey Probber side tables, sectional sofas, chairs and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- By Erwin Lambeth, Tomlinson/Erwin-Lambeth Furniture CompanyLocated in St. Louis, MOTomlinson sophisticate slipper chair having a curved back on splayed back legs and sculpted front legs. Walnut f...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Slipper Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Walnut
- By Harvey ProbberLocated in St. Louis, MOPair of high arch back side chairs in dark mahogany with beige upholstery.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Mahogany
- By Harvey ProbberLocated in St. Louis, MOPair of Classic Mid-Century Modern Harvey Probber terrazzo top and brass insert tables. Perfect to use for side,...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Side Tables
MaterialsTerrazzo, Mahogany
- By Harvey ProbberLocated in St. Louis, MOHarvey Probber even arm sofa with dark mahogany base, t-shaped seat cushion with buttons and three-back cushions...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsUpholstery, Wood
- Located in St. Louis, MOPair of Jansen style slipper chairs with tall backs and modernized Louis X1V style legs, Ebony frames with gilt ...Category
Vintage 1940s American Slipper Chairs
MaterialsSilk, Wood
- By Lorin JacksonLocated in St. Louis, MOPair of glamorous Hollywood Regency slipper lounge chairs in the style of Lorin Jackson for Grosfeld House. Legs...Category
Vintage 1950s American Hollywood Regency Slipper Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery
You May Also Like
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Slipper Chairs
Chrome
Vintage 1950s American Modern Slipper Chairs
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Mahogany
Vintage 1950s American Slipper Chairs
Mahogany, Upholstery
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Slipper Chairs
Fabric, Hardwood
Vintage 1950s Mid-Century Modern Slipper Chairs
Oak, Bouclé
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Club Chairs
Upholstery
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Slipper Chairs
Upholstery, Mahogany
Vintage 1960s American Slipper Chairs
Brass
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Slipper Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
Recently Viewed
View MoreThe 1stDibs Promise
Learn MoreExpertly Vetted Sellers
Confidence at Checkout
Price-Match Guarantee
Exceptional Support
Buyer Protection
Insured Global Delivery