Paul Evans Burl and Chrome Expanding Dining Table
View Similar Items
Paul Evans Burl and Chrome Expanding Dining Table
About the Item
- Creator:Directional (Manufacturer),Paul Evans (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 29 in (73.66 cm)Width: 92 in (233.68 cm)Depth: 49 in (124.46 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1970s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Los Angeles, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU908314419031
Paul Evans
A designer and sculptor, Paul Evans was a wild card of late 20th century modernism. A leading light of the American Studio Furniture movement, Evans’s sideboards, credenzas, coffee tables and other work manifests a singular aesthetic sense, as well as a seemingly contradictory appreciation for both folk art forms and for new materials and technologies.
Evans’s primary material was metal, not wood, which was favored by his fellow studio designers, and Bucks County, Pennsylvania, neighbors George Nakashima and Phillip Lloyd Powell. He trained in metallurgy and studied at the Cranbrook Academy of Art, the famed crucible of modern design and art in suburban Detroit. For a time early in his career, Evans also worked at Sturbridge Village, a historical “living museum” in Massachusetts, where he gave demonstrations as a costumed silversmith.
Evans’s earliest work unites these influences. The pieces that made his reputation are known as “sculpted-front” cabinets: wood cases faced with box-like high-relief patinated steel mounts laid out in a grid pattern. Each mount contains a metal emblem, or glyph, and the effect is that of a brawny quilt.
Evans’s later work falls into three distinct style groups. His sculpted-bronze pieces, begun in the mid-1960s, show Evans at his most expressive. He employed a technique in which resin is hand-shaped, and later sprayed with a metal coating, allowing for artistic nuance in the making of chairs, tables and case pieces. Later in the decade and into the 1970s, Evans produced his Argente series for celebrated manufacturer Directional (a brand known to vintage mid-century modern furniture collectors everywhere): consoles and other furniture forms that feature aluminum and pigment-infused metal surfaces welded into abstract organic forms and patterns.
Last, Evans's Cityscape design series — a milestone in the history of brutalist design — meshed perfectly with the sleek, “high tech” sensibility of the later ’70s. Evans constructed boxy forms and faced them with irregular mosaic patterns that mixed rectangular plaques of chromed steel, bronze or burlwood veneer. These, like all of Paul Evans’s designs, are both useful and eye-catching. But their appeal has another, more visceral quality: these pieces have clearly been touched by an artist’s hand.
Find a collection of authentic Paul Evans furniture today on 1stDibs.
Directional
A brand known to vintage mid-century modern furniture collectors everywhere, Directional Furniture opened its doors after American furniture designer Paul McCobb created the high-end Directional Modern line of sofas distributed by the New York–based Modernage Company.
In his pivotal introduction of postwar modernism to the mass market, the revered Massachusetts-born McCobb had established several lines, from the affordable and refined Planner Group for Winchendon to the swooping and unexpected arms of the Symmetric Group for Widdicomb, a Shaker-inspired collection that included a sofa and a lounge chair. Like all of McCobb’s designs, the Directional pieces for Modernage are defined by a sleek aesthetic in which the focus is on elegant functionality, frequently using fine materials such as brass and walnut. In 1949, in partnership with New York furniture salesman B.G. Mesberg, McCobb set up the Directional Furniture Company.
The pair’s first pieces were upholstered chairs, intended to harmonize with the modular Multiplex pieces designed by Martin Feinman. McCobb then designed an array of furniture including storage, dining, seating, desks and other pieces with details such as leather tops, wood finishes and Roman Travertine surfaces. While Directional stopped production of McCobb’s work in the early 1960s, it still released numerous pieces by leading designers manufactured by a variety of companies.
Designer Paul Evans led the factory for a time after joining in 1964. His provocative work for the company often reflected his understanding of materials from his early training as a silversmith, such as the popular Cityscape series — a milestone in brutalist design — with its blocky forms accented with brass and chrome. At his shop in Lambertville, New Jersey, he collaborated with a design team to clad furniture pieces in metallic surfaces, like the Argente line that began production in 1968 and involved an acetylene torch to give its aluminum material a textural quality. He also worked on the Sculpted Bronze series with hand-formed resin shaped over plywood or steel that was then coated with atomized bronze.
Other Directional designers included Vladimir Kagan, who contributed biomorphic sofas and swivel chairs; Milo Baughman, who created tables and dressers inspired by Scandinavian modernism; and Jack Lenor Larsen, who covered sofas in dynamically patterned fabric.
Find authentic Directional Furniture seating, tables, case pieces and storage cabinets from top sellers around the world on 1stDibs.
- Solid Brass Patinated Mastercraft Expandable Glass Top Dining TableBy MastercraftLocated in Los Angeles, CAA wonderful Mid Century Modern solid brass and smoked glass Mastercraft table. The table expands from 67" - 110". The table has a great look with smoked glass top. With the righ...Category
20th Century Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsBrass
$2,580 Sale Price20% Off - Expandable Mahogany Dining Room Table in the Style of James MontBy James MontLocated in Los Angeles, CAA wonderful expandable Mahogany dining table in the style of James Mont. The tale has an Asian influent with the curvature of the apron and the leg...Category
20th Century Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsBrass
- Gerald McCabe Walnut Finish Pedestal Dining TableBy Gerald McCabeLocated in Los Angeles, CARound walnut finish pedestal dining table by Gerald McCabe. 54" round dining table, simple and straightforward, the 54" table will seat 6 easily, for dinners or projects. We have res...Category
20th Century Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsWalnut, Pine
- McGuire Rattan Dining Table with Glass TopBy McGuireLocated in Los Angeles, CAA wonderful McGuire mid century Rattan dining or side table with 48" glass. The base is in very good condition and is a heavy and substantial piece in look and weight. a compliment t...Category
20th Century Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsBamboo, Glass
- Arthur Court Gilt Aluminum Lily Dining TableBy Arthur CourtLocated in Los Angeles, CAA Sculpted Lily, which has become one of Arthur Court's Signature pieces. This version is best used as a dining or side table. The Glass shown is 48" and can support the daily use of a dining table - a compliment to many spaces and great for a breakfast room. The table can also be used for a smaller piece of glass and work as a side table. Due to the Aluminum Material, and design, the lily is perfect poolside or in or near a garden setting. The gilt look is a wonderful look and the gold only...Category
20th Century Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsAluminum, Gold
- Karl Springer Round Goatskin Center or Dining Table SignedBy Karl SpringerLocated in Los Angeles, CAA magnificent dining or center table by Iconic mid century Designer Karl Springer. The table has been completely restored and is ready for use. The perfect compliment to any entry or...Category
20th Century Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsGoatskin, Wood
- Paul Evans Cityscape Expandable Dining Table. Burl Wood and Chrome. Signed.By Directional, Paul EvansLocated in Kansas City, MOStunning extension dining table designed by Paul Evans for his Cityscape series and manufactured by Directional. Patchwork burl top and chrome base. Without leaves it is a 47 inch ...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsBurl
- Signed Paul Evans Octagonal Cityscape Burl Wood and Chrome Dining TableBy Paul EvansLocated in Middlesex, NJSigned Paul Evans octagonal cityscape burl wood and chrome dining table.Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsMetal
$7,700 Sale Price30% Off - Paul Evans Monumental Burl Wood Parsons Extension Dining Table, Newly RefinishedBy Directional, Paul EvansLocated in South Bend, INA rare and exceptional custom monumental Mid-Century Modern Parsons extension dining table or conference table By Paul Evans for Directional, "Cityscape" Collection USA, 1970s ...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsBurl
- Vintage Chrome "Cityscape" Dining Table by Paul Evans for DirectionalBy Directional, Paul EvansLocated in North Hollywood, CAExceptional vintage “Cityscape” dining table designed by Paul Evans for Directional in the United States, circa 1970s. This dining table belongs to ...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsChrome
- Paul Evans Designed 'Cityscape' Burl Dining TableBy Paul EvansLocated in Brooklyn, NYStunning mid-century modern dining table designed by Paul Evans for his Cityscape collection. Featuring burled olive wood and chrome patchwork, and a large 43 3/4" additional leaf. P...Category
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsChrome
- Paul Evans Dining Table in Burl and BrassBy Paul EvansLocated in Dallas, TXAn unusual asymmetrical cantilevered dining table with book matched burl top and patinated brass base. Designed by Paul Evans for Directional.Category
Vintage 1970s Dining Room Tables
MaterialsBrass