Paul Evans for Directional Brutalist Bronzed Sculpted Dining Table, circa 1970s
View Similar Items
Paul Evans for Directional Brutalist Bronzed Sculpted Dining Table, circa 1970s
About the Item
- Creator:Directional (Maker),Paul Evans (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 30 in (76.2 cm)Width: 75 in (190.5 cm)Depth: 45 in (114.3 cm)
- Style:Brutalist (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1970s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Overall in very good vintage condition. The bronzed legs and skirt have very minimal signs of wear. The highly polished walnut top with faint surface swirls in the finish from use.
- Seller Location:Peabody, MA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU888016299581
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.
- Danish Modern Staved Teak Dining Table Circa 1970sLocated in Peabody, MAA circular Danish dining table of just under 48" constructed of all solid and staved teak with beveled edge and pedestal base.Category
Vintage 1970s Unknown Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsTeak
On Hold$2,395 - David Parmelee for Founders Staved Rosewood X-Form Desk or Table, Circa 1970sBy Founders Furniture Company, David ParmeleeLocated in Peabody, MAMid-century modern writing desk featuring a staved rosewood top over an X-form chrome base, designed by Dave Parmelee for Founders Furniture, circa 1970s.Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsChrome
- Staved Teak Dining Table with Two Leaves, Circa 1960sLocated in Peabody, MADanish Modern dining table with top and leaves of highly figured blocks of staved figured teak, most certainly Scandinavian but unmarked as to country of origin. Measures 40.5" squar...Category
Vintage 1960s European Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsTeak
- Faux Goat Skin Lacquered Dining Table With Two Leaves, Circa 1980sBy Karl SpringerLocated in Peabody, MARacetrack oval form dining table in a faux goat skin lacquered finish, circa 1980s. Includes two leaves. Measures 60" wide without the leaves, ...Category
Vintage 1980s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsLacquer, Wood
- Danish Teak Oval Dining Table With Two Leaves by Gudme, Circa 1960sBy Gudme MøbelfabrikLocated in Peabody, MADanish teak oval dining table by Gudme, circa 1960s. Includes two 19" leaves, expanding the table from 59" long to 97" long with both in place.Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsTeak
- Arne Vodder for Sibast Model 227 Drop Leaf Danish Teak Dining Table, Ca. 1960sBy Arne Vodder, SibastLocated in Peabody, MADanish teak drop leaf dining table by Arne Vodder, Model #227 for Sibast. Supports a variety of configurations. Includes two additional 22" skirted leaves. When both are inserted, a...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsTeak
- Modern Brutalist Sculptural Welded Steel & Bronze Dining Table Paul Evans 1970sBy Paul Evans, DirectionalLocated in Keego Harbor, MIFor your consideration is a stupendous and iconic, glass topped dining table, on sculpturally welded steel and bronze bases, by Paul evans for Directional, circa the 1970s. In excell...Category
Vintage 1970s Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsBronze, Steel
- Midcentury Dining Table by Paul Evans for DirectionalBy Directional, Paul EvansLocated in Brooklyn, NYStunning vintage dining table by Paul Evans for Directional. Beautiful patchwork burl wood design that sits on a pedestal base with chrom...Category
Vintage 1960s Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsChrome
$10,500 Sale Price30% Off - Paul Evans Patchwork Copper 106" Extendable Dining Table for Directional, c 1967By Directional, Paul EvansLocated in Los Angeles, CAStunning and very rare copper clad extendable dining table by Paul Evans for Directional, produced circa 1967. This incredible piece of design history is fabricated from patinated pieces of copper, brass, and pewter formed in a patchwork pattern. Perfect statement piece for a discerning collector, design connoisseur or luxury interior designer. Hefty and sturdy construction in this extendable Parsons table which can be transformed from 66" up to a large 106" with the two matching leaves, allowing seating for up to 10 to 12 people. Or consider using as a heavy duty desk / work table. The fusion of these mixed metals of copper, brass and pewter formulates an exemplary piece which would be a welcomed statement to any connoisseur's collection. We have the matching cafe / game table and floating wall console...Category
Vintage 1960s American Brutalist Dining Room Tables
MaterialsBrass, Copper, Pewter
- Paul Evans Console for Directional Brutalist Sculpted Bronze & Glass Wall MountBy Paul Evans, DirectionalLocated in Dallas, TX1960s sculpted bronze wall mount console designed by Paul Evans and produced by Directional. New glass top. Original wall mount brackets.Category
Mid-20th Century American Brutalist Shelves and Wall Cabinets
MaterialsSteel
- Paul Evans Brutalist Bronze Stalagmite Dining TableBy Paul EvansLocated in North Hollywood, CAPaul Evans Brutalist bronze "Stalagmite" dining table base. Oval glass top shown is 84" x 48" x 1/2" thick with lots of scratches and not include. Will hold bigge and thicker glass. ...Category
Vintage 1960s American Brutalist Dining Room Tables
MaterialsBronze
- Paul Evans, "Cityscape" Dining Table, Mirror, Wood, Directional, USA, c. 1970By Directional, Paul EvansLocated in High Point, NCA wood and mirror "Cityscape" dining table designed by Paul Evans and produced by Directional, circa 1970.Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsMirror, Wood