Wall-Mounted Escritoire by Poul Cadovius
View Similar Items
Wall-Mounted Escritoire by Poul Cadovius
About the Item
- Creator:Poul Cadovius (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 15.75 in (40 cm)Width: 63 in (160 cm)Depth: 17.72 in (45 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:Teak,Woven
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1960s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Brussels, BE
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU164127162133
Poul Cadovius
While Poul Cadovius is most famous for his modular floating shelving system, his career in design didn’t actually start with wall units.
Born just outside of Copenhagen in 1911, Cadovius began manufacturing window treatments in the 1940s with his partner, Hother Brønner. He soon turned his focus from Venetian blinds to furniture, finding success designing svelte pieces in teak, a richly colored hardwood favored by the Danish mid-century modernists.
In 1945, Cadovius founded the furniture manufacturer Royal System with his designs, including the 1948 Royal System shelving unit, a space-saving solution that underscored Cadovius’s penchant for problem-solving in a multifunctional way. Rather than balance shelves on wooden or metal legs, it held them to the wall with brackets.
Cadovius followed the Royal System shelving unit with the System Ultra in 1957, the System Cado in 1960 and the System Abstracta, which was installed throughout the exhibition halls of the 1962 Cologne Furniture Fair. All expanded on his idea of wall-mounted shelving that saved space while offering functionality, allowing for limitless combinations of storage, shelves, work surfaces and other units. The Royal System proved to be especially popular and is still produced by Danish furniture brand dk3 today, with early models continuing to be in demand.
Along with the shelving systems, Cadovius designed everything from lounge chairs to mushroom-shaped bus shelters, and he held over 400 patents. In addition to being a designer, he was also an entrepreneur with an eye for opportunity, such as purchasing Danish manufacturer France & Søn in the mid-1960s and folded it into Cado, a company he founded years earlier. He used this as an occasion to experiment with his designs, conceiving such unusual pieces as an aluminum-based dining table topped with rosewood and hand-painted by artist Susan Fjedldoe Mygge.
Cadovius’s innovations in shelving continued throughout his career, with examples like the sculptural Butterfly shelf and vertical pieces mixing shelving and storage. In 2018, to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Royal System, dk3 reissued the celebrated shelving system as well as a more compact version reimagined for 21st-century homes.
Find a collection of vintage Poul Cadovius storage cabinets, seating and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- Shelving System Wall Unit by Poul CadoviusBy Cado, Poul CadoviusLocated in Vienna, ATLarge wall unit, shelving system by Cado Denmark designed by Poul Cadovius in 1958. This shelving systems is made in really height quality hard wood. The system allows arranging mu...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Mid-Century Modern Shelves
MaterialsHardwood, Softwood
- Poul cadoviusBy Poul CadoviusLocated in Grenoble, FRPoul cadovius Very nice set of Cadovius teak stoves from the Cado series from 1958 in very good condition. One of the boxes has a series of drawers, the doors are in painted plywood ...Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Bookcases
MaterialsWood
$4,604 - Scandinavian Modular Wall Unit by Poul CadoviusBy Poul CadoviusLocated in Paris, FRScandinavian shelf by Poul Cadovius (Denmark, 1911-2011). Teak version with three wall panels supporting several shelves and boxes. This wall system is composed of : - 4 shelves - 1 box with sliding doors in wood - 1 glass sliding door cabinet...Category
Vintage 1960s French Scandinavian Modern Bookcases
MaterialsTeak
- Wall Unit by Poul Cadovius, Denmark, 1960'sBy Poul CadoviusLocated in Brussels , BEWall Unit designed by famous Danish designer Poul Cadovius in the 1960's. The sheles are modular, and each plank has an original attribution mark on the back.Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Shelves
MaterialsWood
- Poul Cadovius Teak & Brass Wall Mounted Modular Shelf, Denmark, ca. 1960sBy Poul CadoviusLocated in Geneva, CHBeautiful wall mounted shelf in teak and brass brackets, with 2 cabinets with "braiding" teak finishing doors, 1 with two drawers inside, 1 with a simple shelf inside. 1 small cabine...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Shelves
MaterialsBrass
- Poul Cadovius Teak Royal Wall System DenmarkBy Royal, Poul CadoviusLocated in Den Haag, NLFor sale this original Poul Cadovius wall system .Two cabinets One with Three drawers .And one with folding door Desk cabinet . comes with 6 shelves . 3 Uprights and the hardware .V...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Mid-Century Modern Shelves
MaterialsTeak
$3,014 / set