Mid-Century Modern Seating
Organically shaped, clean-lined and elegantly simple are three terms that well describe mid-century modern American 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.
Postwar American architects and designers were animated by new ideas and new technology. The lean, functionalist “International Style” architecture of Le Corbusier and Bauhaus eminences such as Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Walter Gropius had been promoted in the United States during the ’30s 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, respectively, pieces such as the La Chaise and the Womb chair. George Nelson and his design team created Bubble lamp shades using a new translucent polymer skin. Harry Bertoia and Isamu Noguchi devised chairs and tables built of wire mesh and wire struts. Materials were re-purposed: the Danish-born designer Jens Risom created a line of chairs that used surplus parachute straps for webbed seats and backrests.
As the demand for casual, uncluttered furnishings grew, more mid-century 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, blonde-wood furniture — and Milo Baughman, who espoused a West Coast aesthetic in lushly upholstered chairs and sofas with angular steel frames.
As the collection of vintage mid-century modern American furniture on 1stDibs demonstrates, this period saw one of the most delightful and dramatic flowerings of creativity in design history.
1990s European Mid-Century Modern Seating
Cement
Late 20th Century British Mid-Century Modern Seating
Fabric
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Seating
Fabric
1950s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Metal, Brass
1980s Dutch Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Bouclé
20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Seating
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Mid-Century Modern Seating
Metal
2010s Spanish Mid-Century Modern Seating
Brass
1950s German Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Mid-Century Modern Seating
Bouclé, Velvet
1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Leather, Elm
2010s Australian Mid-Century Modern Seating
Leather, Ash
1950s European Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Sheepskin, Beech
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Mid-Century Modern Seating
Upholstery, Wood
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Seating
Leather
1950s Scandinavian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Wool, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Seating
Cord, Hardwood
1970s English Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Velvet, Rosewood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Mid-Century Modern Seating
Brass
1960s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Zinc
1970s European Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Leather
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Seating
Steel
1970s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Chrome
1950s French Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Steel
1950s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Seating
Cord, Hardwood, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Mid-Century Modern Seating
Chenille, Silk
1970s French Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Plexiglass
1960s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Fabric, Elm
1950s Danish Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Leather, Teak
1960s German Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Mohair, Foam, Wood
1950s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Steel
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Seating
Metal
1950s Danish Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Fabric, Wood
1960s French Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Fabric, Ash
2010s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Seating
Hardwood
1960s Danish Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Fabric, Teak, Upholstery
1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Chrome
2010s Portuguese Mid-Century Modern Seating
Velvet, Cane, Wood
1960s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Fabric, Fiberglass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Mid-Century Modern Seating
Bouclé, Velvet
1950s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Brass, Steel
1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Aluminum
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Seating
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Mid-Century Modern Seating
Aluminum, Iron
2010s Hungarian Mid-Century Modern Seating
Aluminum
1950s French Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Sheepskin, Oak
1960s Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Upholstery, Walnut
1950s Danish Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Steel
Late 20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Seating
Leather
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Seating
Walnut
1950s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Metal
1960s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Teak
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Seating
Leather, Elm
1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Brass, Steel
1970s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Brass
20th Century Mid-Century Modern Seating
Chrome
1970s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Seating
Chrome
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