Rare Early Art Deco Gilbert Rohde Chest of Drawers for Herman Miller
View Similar Items
Rare Early Art Deco Gilbert Rohde Chest of Drawers for Herman Miller
About the Item
- Creator:Gilbert Rohde (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 36.25 in (92.08 cm)Width: 18.75 in (47.63 cm)Depth: 43 in (109.22 cm)
- Style:Art Deco (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1940
- Condition:Repaired: We have restored this dresser so that it has no deep scratches, chips or missing veneer. We have made sure it is structurally sound, all the drawers all slide smoothly and that the wood is in excellent vintage condition. Refinished. Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:San Diego, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU6417229683722
Gilbert Rohde
Pioneering self-taught industrial designer, writer and teacher Gilbert Rohde helped define the earliest phase of modernism in the United States. He is one of the most influential figures of 20th-century design and is credited with helping legendary mid-century modern furniture manufacturer Herman Miller avert financial disaster during the Great Depression.
Born in New York City, Rohde studied painting at the Art Students League after high school. He found lucrative employment, first as a political cartoonist and then as a catalog illustrator for American department stores. He was particularly enthralled with drawing furnished interiors.
Rohde began to design furniture in his spare time. He traveled to the Bauhaus school in Germany and the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts in Paris, and drew on the Art Deco movement and the work of designers such as Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann in his early pieces. Rohde opened his own studio in 1929 and secured private and commercial commissions. His clients would come to include formidable furniture makers Heywood-Wakefield and Troy Sunshade, and his innovative bentwood furnishings for them were practical and intended for the modern consumer.
In 1930, Rohde met Herman Miller founder D.J. De Pree in the company’s Michigan showroom during a business trip. By then, Rohde had a long list of prominent clients and his furniture had been exhibited in museums and galleries. Herman Miller was weathering a devastating slowdown in business, and the American furniture industry had generally been hit hard by the Great Depression.
Rohde boldly informed De Pree that the brand’s furniture had become outdated, which was part of the reason the company was in financial jeopardy. Homes had become smaller and could no longer accommodate the large Gothic– and Victorian–style furnishings and traditional reproductions of period bedroom suites that Herman Miller was offering at the time, Rohde explained.
Rohde secured a contract to design for the Michigan manufacturer. He championed the use of exotic woods and tubular steel, and created streamlined, unadorned bedroom furniture for Herman Miller — collections that included convenient vanities, which were unconventional pieces for De Pree’s company back then.
In 1933, Rohde oversaw the design of two bedrooms featuring sleek Herman Miller furniture — including innovative storage pieces he designed — as part of an International–style exhibit at the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair. The installation garnered acclaim for De Pree’s brand all over the world and afforded Rohde the opportunity to execute on his visionary ideas in front of a global audience. Rohde later designed lighting, seating and more for Herman Miller and was extensively involved in the company's marketing strategy and other areas of the business.
In 1942, Herman Miller, anticipating a postwar economic boom, began to produce office furniture for the first time, but its legacy is in the home. Working with legendary designers such as Ray and Charles Eames, Isamu Noguchi and Alexander Girard, the manufacturer fostered some of the boldest expressions of what we now call mid-century modern style.
Find vintage Gilbert Rohde coffee tables, lounge chairs, table lamps and other items on 1stDibs.
- La Fonda coffee table by Alexander Girard for Herman MillerBy Herman Miller, Charles EamesLocated in San Diego, CALa Fonda coffee or large end table designed by Charles and Ray Eames and manufactured by Herman Miller. This series was designed for the La Fonda restaurant, designed by Alexander Gi...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
MaterialsSlate, Chrome
- George Nelson Rosewood Thin Edge 4 drawer Dresser by Herman Miller #2By George NelsonLocated in San Diego, CAA rosewood thin edge chest designed by George Nelson for Herman Miller with exquisite rosewood grain and early original white porcelain handles. The George Nelson Rosewood Thin Edg...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Dressers
MaterialsAluminum
- George Nelson Rosewood Thin Edge 4 drawer Dresser by Herman Miller #1By George NelsonLocated in San Diego, CAA rosewood thin edge chest designed by George Nelson for Herman Miller with exquisite rosewood grain and early original white porcelain handles. The George Nelson Rosewood Thin Edg...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Dressers
MaterialsAluminum
- Arne Vodder "Triennale" Teak Dresser with Blue Bowtie Drawers for Sibast MøblerBy Arne VodderLocated in San Diego, CAAn iconic design by Arne Vodder 'Triennale' dresser was produced by Sibast Mobler, circa 1950. Constructed in teak, the long eight drawer dresser is a classic piece of danish modern ...Category
Mid-20th Century Swedish Mid-Century Modern Dressers
MaterialsTeak
- Rare Hans Wegner RY-25 Rosewood Sideboard for Ry MoblerBy Hans J. WegnerLocated in San Diego, CAThe rarest and most sophisticated cabinet designed by the master of Danish Modern design executed in Brazilian rosewood and white oak. This exquisite credenza sits on brushed stainle...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Credenzas
MaterialsMetal
- Rare Hans J. Wegner Settee For Johannes Hansen, Model JH 555By Hans J. WegnerLocated in San Diego, CAWe are so excited to present this gorgeous rare Hans J. Wegner Settee For Johannes Hansen, Model JH 555, with slanted upholstered seat and back, on a teak base,...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Settees
MaterialsWool, Teak
- Pair of Chest of Drawers by Gilbert Rohde for Herman MillerBy Herman Miller, Gilbert RohdeLocated in Palm Springs, CAA pair of three drawer chests, designed by Gilbert Rohde for Herman Miller in the the 1930's. Bleached mahogany cabinets with original padded naugahyde drawer fronts. Great detailing...Category
20th Century American Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsMahogany, Naugahyde
- Gilbert Rohde 4140 Tall Chest for Herman MillerBy Gilbert Rohde, Herman MillerLocated in Hanover, MABeautifully refinished mahogany tall boy chest of four drawers by Gilbert Rohde for Herman Miller's 4140 collection with original off-white "leather cloth" (Fabrikoid) padded drawers. Top drawer is fitted with vide poche sliding and removable tray. See pages from original 1941 Herman Miller catalog...Category
Vintage 1940s American Art Deco Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsFaux Leather, Mahogany
- Gilbert Rohde Paldao Cabinet for Herman MillerBy Herman Miller, Gilbert RohdeLocated in Hanover, MAGilbert Rohde designed this chest for Herman Miller as part of his 1941 Paldao Line of streamline modernist and modular furniture in exotic veneer. This is model no. 4103, two-door cabinet with distinctively incised large round pulls, interior fitted with two adjustable shelves behind the left door and five pull-out drawers behind the right door, fronts finished in black enamel. The case top and sides are Paldao wood; the doors are in highly figured burl Acacia. The finish is called "Beaver" which is natural color, no stain, satin varnish. The back is numbered "4130." All of Rohde's designs for Herman Miller are marked with a 4-digit number; the first two numbers indicate the year, and the second two numbers indicate the individual piece. Newly refinished and ready to place in your home. The Herman Miller Furniture Company was devoted to manufacturing period reproduction furniture until Pioneer industrial designer Gilbert Rohde walked into their Grand Rapids showroom in 1930. A devout modernist, Rohde convinced D.J. De Pree to focus on modern furniture throughout the 1930s, and to produce exclusively modern furniture by the time Rohde died in 1944. Work by the pioneering American industrial and furniture designer, Gilbert Rohde, is notable for its thoroughly modern, informal, and multifunctional qualities. Rohde’s ability to create appealing modernist furnishings for middle-class homes, while also devising merchandising strategies to sell these goods, places him within a unique framework in American design history. Born and raised in New York, Rohde was the son of a cabinetmaker. He attended New York City public schools and his post-high school education included courses at the Art Students League and the Grand Central School of Art. Rohde’s visit to Europe in the spring and summer of 1927 (with later trips in 1931 and 1937) to see the Bauhaus in Dessau and the French modernist design that debuted in the 1925 Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris, profoundly inspired his concept of design and the role it should play in daily life. The French Art Deco and German rationalist styles he saw in Europe influenced the furniture he designed from the late 1920s into the 1940s, pieces he created to suit a rapidly changing American lifestyle. In addition to his work for Herman Miller Inc., Rohde also designed for several other furniture firms, including Thonet, Troy Sunshade, and Heywood-Wakefield. What set Rohde apart from his contemporaries was his all-encompassing understanding of the furniture industry, from design and production to marketing and showroom display.[1] During his time with Herman Miller Inc. (1932-1944), Rohde set the standard for collaborative efforts between designers and furniture firms, with George Nelson and Charles and Ray Eames later...Category
Vintage 1940s American Mid-Century Modern Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsMahogany
- Gilbert Rohde 4140 Dresser for Herman Miller 3 AvailableBy Herman Miller, Gilbert RohdeLocated in Hanover, MAWe have a total of three available of these beautifully refinished mahogany chests of three drawers by Gilbert Rohde for Herman Miller's 4140 collection with original off-white "leather cloth" (Fabrikoid) padded drawers. Top drawer is fitted with vide poche sliding and removable tray and has original label. See pages from original 1941 Herman Miller catalog...Category
Vintage 1940s American Art Deco Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsFaux Leather, Mahogany
- Gilbert Rohde Cabinet for Herman MillerBy Herman Miller, Gilbert RohdeLocated in Philadelphia, PAGilbert Rohde Cabinet from the Mahogany Series dating to the late 1930's. Refinished about 10 years ago in a Satin Black Finish. Still presents pretty well but not perfect. Retains O...Category
Vintage 1930s American Art Deco Cabinets
MaterialsMetal
- Gilbert Rohde for Herman Miller ShelfBy Herman Miller, Gilbert RohdeLocated in Philadelphia, PAGilbert Rohde for Herman Miller Open Display or Bookshelf. Newly refinished and ready to go! Perfect for your amazing collection! Pe...Category
Vintage 1930s American Art Deco Shelves
MaterialsMahogany