Postmodern design was a short-lived movement that manifested itself chiefly in Italy and the United States in the early 1980s. The characteristics of vintage postmodern furniture and other postmodern objects and decor for the home included loud-patterned, usually plastic surfaces; strange proportions, vibrant colors and weird angles; and a vague-at-best relationship between form and function.
ORIGINS OF POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
CHARACTERISTICS OF POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW
VINTAGE POSTMODERN FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS
Critics derided postmodern design as a grandstanding bid for attention and nothing of consequence. Decades later, the fact that postmodernism still has the power to provoke thoughts, along with other reactions, proves they were not entirely correct.
Postmodern design began as an architectural critique. Starting in the 1960s, a small cadre of mainly American architects began to argue that modernism, once high-minded and even noble in its goals, had become stale, stagnant and blandly corporate. Later, in Milan, a cohort of creators led by Ettore Sottsass and Alessandro Mendini — a onetime mentor to Sottsass and a key figure in the Italian Radical movement — brought the discussion to bear on design.
Sottsass, an industrial designer, philosopher and provocateur, gathered a core group of young designers into a collective in 1980 they called Memphis. Members of the Memphis Group, which would come to include Martine Bedin, Michael Graves, Marco Zanini, Shiro Kuramata, Michele de Lucchi and Matteo Thun, saw design as a means of communication, and they wanted it to shout. That it did: The first Memphis collection appeared in 1981 in Milan and broke all the modernist taboos, embracing irony, kitsch, wild ornamentation and bad taste.
Memphis works remain icons of postmodernism: the Sottsass Casablanca bookcase, with its leopard-print plastic veneer; de Lucchi’s First chair, which has been described as having the look of an electronics component; Martine Bedin’s Super lamp: a pull-toy puppy on a power-cord leash. Even though it preceded the Memphis Group’s formal launch, Sottsass’s iconic Ultrafragola mirror — in its conspicuously curved plastic shell with radical pops of pink neon — proves striking in any space and embodies many of the collective’s postmodern ideals.
After the initial Memphis show caused an uproar, the postmodern movement within furniture and interior design quickly took off in America. (Memphis fell out of fashion when the Reagan era gave way to cool 1990’s minimalism.) The architect Robert Venturi had by then already begun a series of plywood chairs for Knoll Inc., with beefy, exaggerated silhouettes of traditional styles such as Queen Anne and Chippendale. In 1982, the new firm Swid Powell enlisted a group of top American architects, including Frank Gehry, Richard Meier, Stanley Tigerman and Venturi to create postmodern tableware in silver, ceramic and glass.
On 1stDibs, the vintage postmodern furniture collection includes chairs, coffee tables, sofas, decorative objects, table lamps and more.
Rose Tarlow “Blotto” Desk in French Ash Veneer with Leather-Lined Drawers
By Rose Tarlow
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A striking and sculptural “Blotto” desk by Rose Tarlow, finished in finely grained French ash veneer. This bold design features two semi-circular pedestal bases that create a dramati...
Wood, Ash
Post-Modern Italian Executive Desk Piano Black Burl by G&C Italia Art Deco Style
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Made in the 1980s in Italy, this desk features a sleek, post-modern, and angular design. Finished in a gloss piano black complemented by burl drawer-fronts, the large work surface ha...
Burl, Lacquer
$6,012Sale Price|20% Off
Rare Sesamo Pop Up Desk / Secretary by Gianfranco Frattini for Bernini, 1981
By Bernini, Gianfranco Frattini
Located in Basel, BS
Exquisite and very rare Pop Up Desk by Gianfranco Frattini in Italy for Bernini. Label present, and all drawer pulls are stamped with the logo. When you p...
Leather, Beech
1980s German Post-Modern Interlübke DUO Writing Desk by Peter Maly
By Interlübke, Peter Maly
Located in St. Louis, MO
A rare find in the states, 1980s Post-Modern Silver Gray & Black DUO Desk by German designer / architect Peter Maly for Interlübke. Asymmetrical heavy wood grain top with storage col...
Metal
$6,950 / item
Venice Rialto Desk by Morici
Located in Geneve, CH
Venice Rialto Desk by Morici Dimensions: W 113 x D 65 x H 77 cm, Drawers : 42×43 H6 covered in Alcantara. Materials: Wood, black Alcantara, inlay veneer. Finish : Gloss brushed polye...
Wood
$10,000Sale Price|20% Off
Michael Graves Unique Burl Maple Pedestal Vitrine Desk, 1990c.
Located in Chicago, IL
Michael Graves Unique Burl Maple Pedestal Vitrine Desk, 1990c. One-of-a-kind vitrine desk by architect and designer Michael Graves. The piece features a rectangular burl maple veneer...
Steel
Postmodern Italian Travertine Desk with Three Drawers, 1980s
Located in Palm Desert, CA
This sculptural Italian travertine three drawer desk dates to the 1980s and exemplifies the bold architectural approach to stone furniture associated with late 20th-century Italian d...
Travertine
1980s Gilbert Rohde Style Green Italian Oval Marble Desk
Located in Bensalem, PA
Exquisite desk in the manner of Gilbert Rohde features an amazing green Italian oval marble top which sits on 2 bronze half moon pedestals also has a s...
Marble
$4,716Sale Price|20% Off
Theodore Alexander Extendable Mahogany and Tooled Leather Top Writing Desk
Located in Germantown, MD
An Exquisite Theodore Alexander Extendable Mahogany and Tooled Leather Top Writing Desk. Banded and Tooled top. Two drawers and faux drawers on front and back. Measures 79" in width ...
Brass
Adjustable Desk in Beech Produced by Seltz, France 1980s
By Ebenisterie Seltz et Fils 1
Located in Hellouw, NL
Crafted in solid beech, this sculptural desk by Seltz from the 1980s combines functional ingenuity with expressive form, echoing the design principles associated with Pierre Chapo. ...
Beech
Santos Rosewood Wishbone Executive Office Desk by A. Jacob Marks
Located in Geneve, CH
Santos Rosewood Wishbone Executive Office Desk by A. Jacob Marks Dimensions: W 234 x D 234 x H 75 cm. Materials: Santos Rosewood. W30 Also available in different materials. Skram’...
Rosewood
Curved Shape Top Gold Bronze Desk with Metal Frame by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique, Seneca Desk Console by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 170 x D 80 x H 75 cm Materials: Metal frame and legs in Cloudy Bronze finish. Desk with curved shape top, cylinder legs and...
Metal
Vintage Aldo Tura Post-Modern Lacquered Parchment Desk, Italy
By Aldo Tura
Located in Miami, FL
Vintage Aldo Tura Post-Modern Lacquered Parchment Desk, Italy Offered for sale is a rare Italian Aldo Tura post-modern gloss-lacquered parchment goatskin desk with four pedestal key...
Goatskin, Wood, Lacquer
Barbarella Writing Desk / Secretary by Ettore Sottsass for Poltronova, 1966/1985
By Ettore Sottsass, Poltronova
Located in Kansas City, MO
Ettore Sottsass Barbarella cabinet for Poltronova, Italy. Designed in 1966, produced in 1985. The cabinet features three drawers over a drop-front ...
Brass
Santos Rosewood Wishbone Slab Top Desk by A. Jacob Marks
Located in Geneve, CH
Santos Rosewood Wishbone Slab Top Desk by A. Jacob Marks Dimensions: W 152 x D 76 x H 75 cm. Materials: Santos Rosewood, matte opaque black. W21 Also available in different material...
Rosewood
Contemporary Polished Steel and Black Oak Desk Console by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique, Black Oak Jean Desk Console by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 180 x D 80 x H 76 cm Materials: Polished Steel, Black Oak. Smooth lines of sculptural bases in polished stainless ...
Steel
Jay Spectre for Century Furniture Drop-Front Desk 1980c
By Jay Spectre, Century Furniture
Located in Chicago, IL
Jay Spectre for Century Furniture Drop-Front Desk 1980c Perceptive Drop-Front Desk Century Furniture, circa 1980 A rare and architecturally striking drop-front desk designed by Jay S...
Brass, Stainless Steel
Contemporary Art Writing Desk Amanuense Dark Cherry Wood by Adolfo Natalini
Located in Pistoia, IT
Limited edition of 99 numbered and signed copies. Amanuense, decoded in his characterizing elements (the functional nature of the writing desk-Sécretaire, the symbolic hand and the stick) or dynamic elements; (the folding lid, closed/open) is a contraption of the symbolic time of the memory and of the intimate, of the intensity and of the intellectual and “spiritual” concentration, of the transcription of thoughts into figures, alphabets, ideograms, cosmology. Writing desk or secretary in dark cherry wood...
Bronze
Contemporary Art Writing Desk Amanuense Nero Black by Adolfo Natalini
Located in Pistoia, IT
Limited edition of 99 numbered and signed copies. Amanuense, decoded in his characterizing elements (the functional nature of the writing desk-Sécret...
Bronze
$6,950 / item
Venice Sestiere Desk by Morici
Located in Geneve, CH
Venice Sestiere Desk by Morici Dimensions: W 113 x D 65 x H 77 cm, Drawers : 42×43 H6 covered in Alcantara. Materials: Wood, black Alcantara, inlay veneer. Finish : Gloss brushed pol...
Wood
Curved Shape Top Glossy Red Desk with Striped Edge by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique, Medea Desk Console by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 170 x D 80 x H 75 cm Materials: Copper glossy lacquer finish. Writing desk with curved shape top, two cylinder legs, cylinde...
Copper
Rectangular Naturally Patinated Steel Contemporary Writing Desk by Dennis Kaiser
Located in Geneve, CH
Rectangular Patinated Steel Contemporary Forever Writing Desk by Dennis Kaiser Dimensions: D 50 x W 110 x H 77 cm. Materials: Steel. Handcrafted in Tuscany, Italy. Customization is ...
Steel
Textured Natural Wood Desk with Metal Bronze Details by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique, Sarah Desk Console by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 180 x D 82 x H 76 cm Materials: Chestnut burl texture, metal bronze finish for under top divider. Wide legs as a storage un...
Metal
Pedra Desk by Gustavo Neves, Brazilian Contemporary Furniture
Located in Sao Paulo, SP
Brazilian Contemporary Furniture Designer: Gustavo Neves AEon Collection Pedra desk Materials: stone (limestone), metal (brass) darkened with manual treatment, manually sanded ac...
Stone
Textured Natural Wood Desk with Support Round Leg by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique, Norah Desk Console by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 160 x D 65 x H 75 cm Materials: Chestnut Burl with metal finish dividers and plinth. Norah desk made in Chestnut Burl with ...
Copper
$2,875Sale Price / set|50% Off
"Big-Superbig" Desk Suite by Guido Faleschini for Mariani Via Pace Collection
By Guido Faleschini, i4 Mariani, Pace Collection
Located in Hanover, MA
***SALE*** Stylish and high quality executive office ensemble produced in 1976 by i4Mariani Italy, designed by architect Guido Faleschini and retailed in the USA through Pace Collec...
Chrome
$16,028 / item
Ebonized White Ash Wishbone Container by A. Jacob Marks
Located in Geneve, CH
Ebonized White Ash Wishbone Container by A. Jacob Marks Dimensions: W 213 x D 51 x H 91 cm. Materials: white ash, ebonized. W49 Also available in different materials. The wishbone...
Ash
$20,104 / item
Ebonized White Ash Drawer Desk by A. Jacob Marks
Located in Geneve, CH
Ebonized White Ash Drawer Desk by A. Jacob Marks Dimensions: W 152 x D 76 x H 75 cm. Materials: white ash, ebonized, rubbed bronze, natural. W26 Also available in different material...
Ash
Ebonized White Ash Wishbone Slab Top Desk by A. Jacob Marks
Located in Geneve, CH
Ebonized White Ash Wishbone Drawer Desk by A. Jacob Marks Dimensions: W 152 x D 76 x H 75 cm. Materials: white ash, ebonized, matte opaque black. W21 Also available in different mat...
Ash
$4,917 / item
Aries Medium Desk by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
Aries Medium Desk by Pastform Dimensions: D 65 x W 150 x H 76 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes and combinations: Whiskey, Rum, N...
Wood
$6,950 / item
Venice Cannaregio Desk by Morici
Located in Geneve, CH
Venice Cannaregio Desk by Morici Dimensions: W 113 x D 65 x H 77 cm, Drawers : 42×43 H6 covered in Alcantara. Materials: Wood, black Alcantara, inlay veneer. Finish : Gloss brushed p...
Wood
Desk, Vintage, Mahogany, Gilding, Book-Spine Form Drawers, History of England
Located in BUNGAY, SUFFOLK
I have never seen a desk like this before, it is really quirky, a great conversation piece. Tan leather top with gold leaf embossed tooling surrounded by crossbanding. The frieze wi...
Giltwood, Mahogany
$6,950 / item
Venice Mestre Desk by Morici
Located in Geneve, CH
Venice Mestre Desk by Morici Dimensions: W 113 x D 65 x H 77 cm, Drawers : 42×43 H6 covered in Alcantara. Materials: Wood, black Alcantara, inlay veneer. Finish : Gloss brushed polye...
Wood
$2,380 / item
Bar Medium Desk by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
Bar Medium Desk by Pastform Dimensions: D 55 x W 120 x H 76 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes: Whiskey, Rum, BPA, Nobel, Brandy, ...
Wood
$14,248 / item
Woa Desk by Culto Ponsoda
Located in Geneve, CH
Woa Desk by Culto Ponsoda Dimensions: D 76 x W 160 x H 80 cm Materials: Velvet, wood, gold stainless steel, iron, glass. Available in other colors and finishes. Please contact us....
Stainless Steel, Iron
$3,763 / item
Classy Medium Desk by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
Classy Medium Desk by Pastform Dimensions: D 65 x W 160 x H 75 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes: Whiskey, Rum, BPA, Nobel, Brand...
Wood
$3,751 / item
David Desk by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
David Desk by Pastform Dimensions: D 61,5 x W 140 x H 78 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes and combinations: Whiskey, Rum, Nobel,...
Wood
$2,681 / item
Past Medium Office Desk by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
Past Medium Office Desk by Pastform Dimensions: D 70 x W 130 x H 76 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes: Whiskey, Rum, BPA, Nobel, ...
Wood
$2,356 / item
Cop Brown Medium Desk by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
Cop Brown Medium Desk by Pastform Dimensions: D 45 x W 120 x H 76 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes and combinations: Whiskey, Ru...
Wood
$6,950 / item
Venice Laguna Desk by Morici
Located in Geneve, CH
Venice Laguna Desk by Morici Dimensions: W 113 x D 65 x H 77 cm, Drawers : 42×43 H6 covered in Alcantara. Materials: Wood, black Alcantara, inlay veneer. Finish : Gloss brushed polye...
Wood
Black Oak Top Desk Console with White Finish Base by Ultramobili
Located in Geneve, CH
Unique, Teseo Desk Console by Ultramobili Dimensions: W 172 x D 72 x H 75 cm Materials: Black oak wood, Handmade white finish. Writing desk in black oak wood and handmade white fin...
Oak
$3,078 / item
Bona Large Desk by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
Bona Large Desk by Pastform Dimensions: D 73,5 x W 144 x H 76 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes and combinations: Whiskey, Rum, N...
Wood
$4,112 / item
Large Desk by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
1960 Large Desk by Pastform Dimensions: D 50 x W 120 x H 76 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes and combinations: Edel/Schwarz, Rum...
Wood
$3,583 / item
Saban Large Desk by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
Saban Large Desk by Pastform Dimensions: D 60 x W 144 x H 76 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes: Whiskey, Rum, BPA, Nobel, Brandy,...
Wood
$3,318 / item
Gemini Large Desk by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
Gemini Large Desk by Pastform Dimensions: D 55 x W 140 x H 76 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes: Whiskey, Rum, BPA, Nobel, Brandy...
Wood
$2,957 / item
Gemini Medium Desk by Pastform
Located in Geneve, CH
Gemini Medium Desk by Pastform Dimensions: D 55 x W 120 x H 76 cm. Materials: Stained and varnished wood. Available in different wood color finishes: Whiskey, Rum, BPA, Nobel, Brand...
Wood
$7,565 / item
Flamingo, Storage Unit by Hagit Pincovici
Located in Geneve, CH
Flamingo, storage unit by Hagit Pincovici Dimensions: W 41 x D 26 x H 85 cm Materials: Brass Hagit Pincovici founded her eponymous bespoke luxury furniture and lighting atelier ...
Brass