Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

BRUTALIST STYLE

The design of brutalist furniture encompasses that which is crafted, hewn and worked by hand — an aesthetic rebuke (or, at least, a counterpoint) to furniture that is created using 21st-century materials and technology. Lately, the word “brutalist” has been adopted by the realms of furniture design and the decorative arts to refer to chairs, cabinets, tables and accessory pieces such as mirror frames and lighting that are made of rougher, deeply textured metals and other materials that are the visual and palpable antithesis of the sleek, smooth and suave.

ORIGINS OF BRUTALIST FURNITURE DESIGN

Brutalism emerged during the mid-20th century
Term coined by architecture critic Reyner Banham
Originated in the United Kingdom
Brutalist architecture gained popularity in the United States beginning in the early 1960s
Inaugural brutalist projects include Unité d'habitation and the city of Chandigarh, India, both of which owe to influential architect Charles-Édouard “Le Corbusier” Jeanneret
Le Corbusier’s cousin, Pierre Jeanneret, designed hundreds of chairs, tables, cabinets and lamps for Chandigarh
Informed by the Bauhaus, constructivism, modernism and the International Style; part of mid-century modernism
Contrasted starkly with Beaux Arts style

CHARACTERISTICS OF BRUTALIST FURNITURE DESIGN

Use of industrial materials — tubular steel, concrete, glass, granite
Prioritizes functionalism, minimalism and utilization of negative space
Spare silhouettes, pronounced geometric shapes
Stripped-down, natural look; rugged textures, modular construction
Interiors featuring airy visual flow and reliance on neutral palettes

BRUTALIST FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW

VINTAGE BRUTALIST FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS

The term brutalism — which derives from the French word brut, meaning “raw” — was coined by architecture critic Reyner Banham to describe an architectural style that emerged in the 1950s featuring monumental buildings, usually made of unornamented concrete, whose design was meant to project an air of strength and solidity.

Le Corbusier essentially created the brutalist style; its best-known iterations in the United States are the Whitney Museum of American Art, which was designed by Marcel Breuer, and Paul Rudolph's Yale Art and Architecture Building. The severe style might have been the most criticized architectural movement of the 20th century, even if it was an honest attempt to celebrate the beauty of raw material. But while the brutalist government buildings in Washington, D.C., seemingly bask in their un-beauty, brutalist interior design and decor is much more lyrical, at times taking on a whimsical, romantic quality that its exterior counterparts lack.

Paul Evans is Exhibit A for brutalist furniture design. His Sculpture Front cabinets laced with high-relief patinated steel mounts have become collector's items nonpareil, while the chairs, coffee table and dining table in his later Cityscape series and Sculpted Bronze series for Directional Furniture are perhaps the most expressive, attention-grabbing pieces in American modern design. Other exemplary brutalist designers are Silas Seandel, the idiosyncratic New York furniture designer and sculptor whose works in metal — in particular his tables — have a kind of brawny lyricism, and Curtis Jere, a nom-de-trade for the California team of Curtis Freiler and Jerry Fels, the bold makers of expressive scorched and sheared copper and brass mirror frames and wall-mounted sculptures.

Brutalist furniture and sculptures remain popular with interior designers and can lend unique, eccentric, human notes to an art and design collection in any home.

Find authentic vintage brutalist chairs, coffee tables, decorative objects and other furniture on 1stDibs.

Style: Brutalist

1960s French Bleached Brutalist Table or Desk

Located in London, GB

A brutalist desk or small dining table constructed from mixed bleached timbers. The carved single plank top in wenge, with free form club-like legs in elm. Would also work as a conso...

Category

Mid-20th Century French Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Elm, Wenge

1960s French Bleached Brutalist Table or Desk

$3,972

Solace No4 Wall Table – Abstract Solid Wood Legs, Design by Joel Escalona

Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Mid-20th Century French Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

1960s French Bleached Brutalist Table or Desk

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No4 Wall Table – Abstract Solid Wood Legs, Design by Joel Escalona

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No8 Sculptural Wood Table for Halls and Walls, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No34 Accent Table – Pebble-Inspired Legs, Design by Joel Escalona

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No43 Accent Table – Rhythmic Shape in Solid Wood, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No29 Wall Table – Subtle Curved Base in Wood, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No46 Narrow Table – Stone-Like Legs in Wood, by NONO

2010s Italian Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Concrete Circular Dining Table Laoban Ultra High Performance Silver Grey Cement

Late 20th Century Dutch Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Dutch Pine Waterfall Desk, C. 1970.

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No3 Accent Table – Organic Shape and Tactile Wood, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No21 Accent Table – Voluminous Wood Legs, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No37 Entry Table – Tactile Legs and Organic Form, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No2 Entry Table in Solid Wood with Fluid Legs, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No6 Foyer Table – Sculptural Carved Wood Base, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No38 Accent Table – Minimal Form, Strong Presence, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Elefante Console Table 45, Joel Escalona, Bold Wood Silhouette

21st Century and Contemporary Russian Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Sculpted Dining Table in Solid Oakwood

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No40 Hallway Table – Sculptural Movement in Wood, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No26 Entry Table – Rhythmic Carved Legs, Design by Joel Escalona

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Joel Escalona Elefante Console Table 47, Solid Wood, Geometric Detail

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No39 Console Table – Carved Details, Design by Joel Escalona

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No30 Display Table – Abstract Carved Form, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No16 Display Table – Organic Wood Base, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No9 Accent Table – Rhythmic Solid Wood Form, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

NONO Elefante Console Table 37, Dramatic Wood

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No12 Foyer Accent Table – Fluid Shape in Wood, by NONO

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Solace No13 Wall Table – Monolithic Design by Joel Escalona

2010s American Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

James de Wulf Concrete Leaning Table, Available Now

2010s Italian Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Concrete Circular Dining Table Laoban Ultra High Performance White Cement

21st Century and Contemporary Russian Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Sculpted Dining Table in Solid Oakwood 'Rustic Style', Custom Size

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Elefante Console Table 59 by NONO, Deep Solid Wood, Luxurious Touch

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Design by Joel Escalona, Elefante Sideboard 38, Layered Elegance, Solid Form

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

NONO Elefante Sideboard 56, Sharp Lines, Solid Wood Modern Appeal

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Elefante Console Table 39 by NONO, Stacked Design, Joel Escalona's Touch

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

NONO Sideboard 34, Elefante Range, Joel Escalona's Bold Curves

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

NONO Sideboard Elefante 46, Solid Wood, Streamlined Design

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Joel Escalona's Elefante Table 44, Sturdy Solid Wood, Modern Edge

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

Joel Escalona Elefante Sideboard 50, Rich Textured Wood

2010s Mexican Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables

NONO Sideboard 54, Elefante, Bold Lines, Solid Wood Elegance

1960s Unknown Vintage Brutalist Desks and Writing Tables