Edward Wormley Desk
View Similar Items
Edward Wormley Desk
About the Item
- Creator:Edward Wormley (Designer),Dunbar Furniture (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 29.5 in (74.93 cm)Width: 58 in (147.32 cm)Depth: 28 in (71.12 cm)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:c. 1930's
- Condition:Overall wear to finish and leather, original finish retouched. Appearance is patinated but good.
- Seller Location:Chicago, IL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU8197820849
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.
Dunbar Furniture
Revered for its handcrafted and highly collectible mid-century modern sofas, coffee tables and other furnishings, Dunbar Furniture was founded in 1910 in Berne, Indiana, but it didn’t gain widespread recognition until the ’30s, following the introduction of its president to a designer who would leave an indelible mark on the company’s legacy: Edward Wormley.
After a stint at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Oswego, Illinois-born Wormley worked as an interior designer for Marshall Field’s before joining Dunbar in 1931. Initially focused on developing the company’s cheapest furniture line, which could be bought with soap coupons, he was soon leading Dunbar Furniture into a new era of residential furniture for modern American homes. He would serve as the company’s design director for over three decades, designing about 150 pieces each year.
During that time, he oversaw the production of designs in a wide range of materials, with influences ranging from Scandinavian modernism to Art Deco. There were modern upholstery pieces, like swiveling lounge chairs and low-slung sofas, and experiments with textural wood on bar carts and cabinets as well as minimal, sculptural tables and functional office furniture. A passionate collector of Tiffany Studios lamps, Wormley used their glass tiles in Dunbar tables in 1956. He also worked on the reproduction of pieces by designers such as Jean-Michel Frank and Richard Riemerschmid.
One standout Dunbar Furniture collection was Janus, introduced in the 1960s, with Austrian-born ceramicists Otto and Gertrud Natzler. These pieces see the Natzlers’ uniquely artful ceramic tiles set into several styles of wooden tables. They remain some of the most sought-after mid-century modern Dunbar pieces on the vintage market today. During the peak of his design career and, indeed, the height of Dunbar Furniture’s history, Wormley amassed a whopping 30 Good Design awards between 1950 and 1955 through the “Good Design” exhibition, hosted by the Chicago Merchandise Mart and the Museum of Modern Art. Dunbar today produces a limited selection of archival Wormley designs, but many sales of original Dunbar pieces are through the resale market.
Find a collection of authentic vintage Dunbar Furniture today on 1stDibs.
- Alvar Aalto Mahogany Desk for Artek with Drawers and Pull Out Work SurfacesBy Alvar AaltoLocated in Chicago, ILThe model #500 mahogany desk designed by Alvar Aalto, made in Sweden for Artek, Finland. Six drawers with two pull-out work surface boards. A nice example...Category
Vintage 1940s Swedish Scandinavian Modern Desks
MaterialsMahogany
- Marianne Brandt Table Desk Lamp for Kandem with Adjustable Arm and ShadeBy KandemLocated in Chicago, ILArtist, sculptor, designer and teacher Marianne Brandt's desk lamp by Kandem is a classic, Bauhaus inspired design. The adjustable arm and shade make it an excellent task / work lam...Category
20th Century German Industrial Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal
- Bakelite and Aluminum Industrial Desk Work Lamp with Adjustable Arm and ShadeLocated in Chicago, ILNice, circa 1930s, modernist style desk lamp in Bakelite and aluminum. The arm pivots on a ball and socket joint, and the shade adjusts its position on the arm. This is a nice exampl...Category
20th Century Industrial Table Lamps
MaterialsAluminum
- Louis Kalff Table or Desk Lamp for Philips with Perforated Metal ShadeBy PhilipsLocated in Chicago, ILTable lamp with open top and perforated metal shade designed by Louis Kalff for Philips, Netherlands. This lamp has pleasing proportions, and an elegantly tapered stem. Please conta...Category
20th Century Dutch Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal
- Teak Three-Tier Server Portable Dessert Cake Stand With Ring Handle Tripod LegsLocated in Chicago, ILThis three tier, teak tripod dessert server / stand has a Scandinavian modern style, a tripod construction for stability, and a ring handle for portability. Its country of origin is ...Category
Vintage 1960s Mid-Century Modern Serving Pieces
MaterialsTeak
- Frederick C. Boger Brass and Travertine Coffee Cocktail TableBy Frederick C. BogerLocated in Chicago, ILThis custom-made coffee or cocktail table was designed by Chicago architect, Industrial designer, and furniture maker Frederick C. (Fred) Boger. The brass base is beautifully made wi...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
MaterialsTravertine, Brass
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar Desk and ReturnBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in St. Louis, MO1960s Edward Wormley desk and ensuite return, label, currently being refinished, desk. Measures: 72 W x 36.5 D x 29 H. Return 60 W x 30.5 D x 29 H.Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsWood
$5,800 / set - Partners Desk by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Dallas, TXA mahogany partners desk with original leather top and base and brass hardware. Designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar.Category
Vintage 1950s Desks
MaterialsMahogany
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar Mid Century Walnut and Rosewood Executive DeskBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Countryside, ILEdward Wormley for Dunbar Mid Century Walnut and Rosewood Executive Desk This desk measures: 84 wide x 40 deep x 29 high, with a chair clearance of 25 inches All pieces of furnitur...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsRosewood, Walnut
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar MCM Model 452 Rosewood Tambour Door Executive DeskBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Countryside, ILEdward Wormley for Dunbar mid century Model 452 Rosewood Tambour door executive desk This desk measures: 74.5 wide x 28 deep x 35 high, with a chair clearance of 24 inches All ...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsBrass
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar Desk with Drop Leaves and File Cabinet in Dark FinishBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in St. Louis, MOUncommon Mid-Century Modern Edward Wormley model no.301-A designed compact desk for Dunbar, with two drop leaf extensions and model no.302-A pedestal file cabinet on wheels. Desk has...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsBrass
- Rosewood Roll Top Desk by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Edward WormleyLocated in Dallas, TXA rosewood tambour roll top desk with brass feet and leather trim. Designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar.Category
Vintage 1950s Desks