sofa, model 6329 by Edward Wormley for Dunbar
View Similar Items
sofa, model 6329 by Edward Wormley for Dunbar
About the Item
- Creator:Edward Wormley (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 31 in (78.74 cm)Width: 81 in (205.74 cm)Depth: 43 in (109.22 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1963
- Condition:Original upholstery shows light wear with scattered discolorations. Foam has hardened slightly over time. Fine, vintage condition overall.
- Seller Location:Chicago, IL
- Reference Number:Seller: wn2284.0011stDibs: LU84903140642
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.
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar model 5316 SofaBy Edward WormleyLocated in Dallas, TXA rare model 5316 sofa designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar in 1953. Floating back with exposed mahogany frame. Fully restored and upholstered in Holly Hunt / Vladimir / Silver Fog ...Category
Vintage 1950s Sofas
MaterialsMahogany
- Edward Wormley Slipper Sofa for DunbarBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Denton, TXEdward Wormley slipper sofa for Dunbar with off white upholstery and ebonized bentwood legs. Older restoration.Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsUpholstery, Bentwood
- Edward Wormley Sofa Model 4906, Dunbar, USA, 1950sBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in London, GBAn original Edward Wormley Model 4906 sofa, made by Dunbar in the USA, 1950s. Fast shipping worldwide.Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsBrass
- Janus Sofa #6329 by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Pasadena, TXJanus sofa #6329 by Edward Wormley for Dunbar Stunning sofa recently restored in champagne velvet with tufting. Mahogany base.Category
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsMahogany
$11,200 Sale Price20% Off - Janus Corner Sofa Designed by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Edward WormleyLocated in Stamford, CTA Janus Collection corner sofa produced by Dunbar and designed by Edward Wormley. Model 629A. Upholstered in Rogers and Goffigon fabric.Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsWalnut
- Edward Wormley Open Frame Sofa, Dunbar, USA, 1950sBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in London, GBA very rare two-seat Edward Wormley open frame sofa, made by Dunbar, in the USA, 1950s. Newly reupholstered in high quality fabric. Fast shipping worldwide.Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsFabric, Wood