Burled Wood and Brass Console by Century Furniture Company
View Similar Items
Burled Wood and Brass Console by Century Furniture Company
About the Item
- Creator:Century Furniture (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 31 in (78.74 cm)Width: 40.5 in (102.87 cm)Depth: 16 in (40.64 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:Unknown
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:New Hyde Park, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU238438048683
Century Furniture
Known for its durable vintage display cabinets, nightstands and dressers made of cherry, oak, walnut and more, Century Furniture of Hickory, North Carolina, began as an upholstered goods company in 1947 but added case goods and sophisticated mahogany dining-room furnishings shortly thereafter.
Launched by Harley Ferguson Shuford Sr., a Hickory native who was born to a family of textile mill owners, Century Furniture was intended to be “the best furniture company in the world.” With respect to speed and efficiency, the brand found its footing midway through production on a government contract that Shuford had secured in the early days to manufacture thousands of five-drawer chests. The effort was significant, but it was also a teachable moment as far as Shuford and his team’s learning the ropes of running a factory.
After hiring designer Raymond K. Sobota in 1950 and introducing the enormously popular Citation Collection in 1954, Century established its reputation as a leader in stylishly designed high-quality furniture. Sobota had furniture in his blood — after graduating from Kendall College of Art & Design in Grand Rapids, Michigan, he worked for his uncle Karl Schmidt, who was at the time a well-known furniture designer for Berkey and Gay and other makers in the Grand Rapids area, then known as America’s furniture capital. Sobota soon launched his own studio, designing furniture as a freelancer for various local manufacturers. Shuford found him by happenstance, journeying to Michigan’s second-largest city to offer a job to another designer who turned him down but recommended Sobota instead.
Century’s Citation line — a sizable collection for the brand that spanned furnishings for the bedroom, dining room and more — is revered in the world of vintage mid-century modern furniture collectors. The pieces sold very well during the 1950s, and the line is an oft-cited success story for Sobota, who would go on to win awards for his work and whose own catalogue of designs for the brand is massive.
In his 40-year career at Century, until he retired in 1995, he designed well over 100 furniture lines. Sobota’s nightstands, cabinets, side tables and more are characterized by his interest in Asian design, distinctly and brilliantly expressed in his Hollywood Regency–style Chin Hua line, which debuted during the 1970s. With its geometrically decorative brass drawer pulls and door handles as well as dining-chair seat-back carvings — all inspired by Asian motifs — this collection has rendered vintage pieces that saw Century’s craftsmen working with alluring ebonized walnut and more, some of the company’s most sought-after work today.
Also in the 1970s as well as in the 1980s, Manhattan interior designer Jay Spectre introduced an Art Deco–informed spirit at Century Furniture, creating oversize, inviting lounge chairs and bentwood benches that featured plush tufted leather cushions. Spectre’s Eclipse collection was at one point among the largest-selling lines for the brand.
Century licensed collections with celebrity interior designers such as Thomas O’Brien, Charlotte Moss and Bunny Williams among others. In 2013, when Alex Shuford III was named president of Century Furniture, the move marked the succession of the third generation to lead this company, which is today one of the world’s largest privately held manufacturers of high-end furniture.
Find Century Furniture lounge chairs and dining chairs as well as vintage mid-century modern credenzas, dressers and more on 1stDibs.
- B.B.P (Banfi Belgioioso Peressutti) Italian Wood and Crystal Console, 1941By Maria Luisa BelgiojosoLocated in Milano, ITWonderful and very rare sideboard designed by the great designers Banfi, Belgioiso, Peressutti in 1941. Published a very similar example. The sideboard is inhumanly beautiful, with a base that represents its strong point. The base is made of black painted metal, very elegant and suited to the industrial style that this sideboard follows. The base covers the entire depth of the piece and is made within a rectangular frame that is quite hard and rigid in shape. Within this frame we see three large cube-shaped blocks within which the metal planks have been placed, some diagonally, some straight, some higher. They create a simply enchanting, eye-catching effect. This geometric play is the focal point of this wonderful sideboard. This structure is supported by four rigid, geometric square feet. Above we see the central body of the sideboard made entirely of a dark precious solid wood; there are 3 drawers running the full length of the sideboard, each with two spherical brass inlays allowing them to open. Above this is a smaller top, highlighted by a structure to raise it up, as long as the entire sideboard, made of a beautiful ground crystal that gives it an out-of-the-ordinary beauty. The sideboard is suitable for industrial chic, modern and vintage areas. It is a product that can be very adaptable to the type of environment already present. A similar example of this sideboard is published among the vintage design books.Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Buffets
MaterialsCrystal, Metal
- Sideboard Samoa in Iron Wood, Brass and LacquerBy Mambo Unlimited IdeasLocated in Lisbon, PTSamoa sideboard is a high quality product by Mambo Unlimited Ideas, crafted in polished or matte iron wood venner structure and feet, brass applications and lacquered doors. It featu...Category
2010s Portuguese Mid-Century Modern Buffets
MaterialsBrass
$4,420 / item - Baker Furniture Georgian Carved Walnut Sideboard Buffet or Console TableBy Baker Furniture CompanyLocated in South Bend, INA gorgeous Georgian style sideboard buffet, credenza, or console table By Baker Furniture USA, Circa 1980s Carved walnut, with original brass hardware. Measures: 51" W x ...Category
Late 20th Century American Georgian Sideboards
MaterialsBrass
- Sideboard in Wood, Brass and Marble MalcolmBy Mambo Unlimited IdeasLocated in Lisbon, PTMalcolm sideboard is a high quality product by Mambo Unlimited Ideas, crafted in carved wood venner, brass applications and a marble top. It features...Category
2010s Portuguese Art Deco Sideboards
MaterialsMarble, Gold Plate
$6,416 / item - 20th Century Exotic Wood and Brass Decorations Italian Modern Sideboard, 1970Located in Vicoforte, PiedmontItalian sideboard from the second half of the 20th century. High quality furniture in exotic wood and brass decorations. Sideboard with four side doors and four central drawers of ex...Category
Late 20th Century Italian Sideboards
MaterialsBrass
- The Special Tree Sideboard, Wood and Brass, InsidherLand by Joana Santos BarbosaBy Joana Santos Barbosa, InsidherLandLocated in Maia, PortoThe Special Tree is a tree in which two lovers write the promise of an everlasting love. The Special Tree sideboard is a redesign of the original cabinet...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sideboards
MaterialsBrass
$12,916 Sale Price / item30% Off