- Want more images or videos?Request additional images or videos from the seller
Pair of Mid-Century Modern Sheaf of Wheat Tables Dunbar for Edward Wormley

About
Details
- CreatorEdward Wormley (Designer),Dunbar Furniture (Manufacturer)
- DimensionsHeight: 21 in. (53.34 cm)Diameter: 22 in. (55.88 cm)
- Sold AsSet of 2
- StyleMid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques
- Place of Origin
- Period
- Date of Manufacturecirca 1955
- ConditionWear consistent with age and use.
- Seller LocationPort Jervis, NY
- Reference Number1stDibs: LU958625093702
Shipping & Returns
- ShippingShips From: Port Jervis, NY
- Return Policy
A return for this item may be initiated within 7 days of delivery.
About the Designer
Edward Wormley
As the longtime director of design for the Dunbar furniture company, Edward Wormley was, along with such peers as George Nelson at Herman Miller Inc., and Florence Knoll of Knoll Inc., one of the leading forces in bringing modern design into American homes in the mid-20th century. Not an axiomatic modernist, Wormley deeply appreciated traditional design, and consequently his work has an understated warmth and a timeless quality that sets it apart from other furnishings of the era.
Wormley was born in rural Illinois and as a teenager took correspondence courses from the New York School of Interior Design. He later attended the Art Institute of Chicago but ran out of money for tuition before he could graduate. Marshall Field hired Wormley in 1930 to design a line of reproduction 18th-century English furniture; the following year he was hired by the Indiana-based Dunbar, where he quickly distinguished himself. It was a good match.
Dunbar was an unusual firm: it did not use automated production systems; its pieces were mostly hand-constructed. For his part, Wormley did not use metal as a major component of furniture; he liked craft elements such as caned seatbacks, tambour drawers, or the woven-wood cabinet fronts seen on his Model 5666 sideboard of 1956. He designed two lines for Dunbar each year — one traditional, one modern — until 1944, by which time the contemporary pieces had become the clear best sellers.
Many of Wormley’s signature pieces — chairs, sofas, tables and more — are modern interpretations of traditional forms. His 1946 Riemerschmid Chair — an example is in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art — recapitulates a late 19th-century German design. The long, slender finials of his Model 5580 dining chairs are based on those of Louis XVI chairs; his Listen-to-Me Chaise (1948) has a gentle Rococo curve; the “Precedent” line that Wormley designed for Drexel Furniture in 1947 is a simplified, pared-down take on muscular Georgian furniture. But he could invent new forms, as his Magazine table of 1953, with its bent wood pockets, and his tiered Magazine Tree (1947), both show. And Wormley kept his eye on design currents, creating a series of tables with tops that incorporate tiles and roundels by the great modern ceramicists Otto and Gertrud Natzler.
As the vintage items on 1stDibs demonstrate, Edward Wormley conceived of a subdued sort of modernism, designing furniture that fits into any decorating scheme and does not shout for attention.
- Mid Century Modern Granite Top Cocktail Table in The Style of Tommy ParzingerBy Tommi ParzingerLocated in Port Jervis, NYEbony oak with a granite center in the form of a parsons style table. Beautiful grain in both the oak and the granite which sits flush. In excellent vintage condition with minimal wear.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
MaterialsGranite
- Pair of Mid Century Aluminum Industrial PedestalsLocated in Port Jervis, NYPair of industrial looking pedestals to display your art or to function on their own merit. Height for the smaller pedestal is 22.75 with a square 10.25 top surface, larger pedestal ...Category
Vintage 1970s American Industrial Pedestals and Columns
MaterialsAluminum
- Mid Century Modern Murano Glass Drop ChandelierLocated in Port Jervis, NYFabulous Murano glass chandelier with 40 petal like drop glass curved discs. Has 10 total candleabra size sockets for illumination on 3 tiers.Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsChrome
- Mid-Century Modern Kovacs Chrome Floor LampBy George KovacsLocated in Port Jervis, NYSimple and elegant slim line chrome floor lamp by George Kovacs. Tall with five sockets for plenty of illumination, choice of center socket only for simple lighting or add two or all...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Floor Lamps
MaterialsChrome
- Mid-Century Modern Classical Ten Arm Chandelier with Glass BobechesLocated in Port Jervis, NYMid century 10 arm brass chandelier. Amber colored glass bobeches that are 6 inches in diameter. Height is 46.5, but can be adjusted.Category
Vintage 1950s French Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsBrass
$2,636 Sale Price20% Off - Mid-Century Modern Leather and Rosewood Lounge Chairs Knut Saeter Vatne MoblerBy Vatne Møbler, Knut SæterLocated in Port Jervis, NYFabulous pair of leather with rosewood frame lounge chairs by Knut Seater for Vatne Mobler. Beige leather with down filled cushions which have significant wear, no rips or tears but ...Category
Vintage 1960s Norwegian Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Rosewood, Down
You May Also Like
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern End Tables
Walnut
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern End Tables
Wood, Ceramic
Late 20th Century French Mid-Century Modern End Tables
Limestone, Bronze
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Sets
Fabric, Mahogany, Rosewood
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Nesting Tables and Stacking Ta...
Laminate, Ash
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern End Tables
Marble, Steel
21st Century and Contemporary French Side Tables
Bronze
20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Side Tables
Rosewood
20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern End Tables
Travertine, Marble, Brass
Late 20th Century French Mid-Century Modern End Tables
Limestone, Wrought Iron
Recently Viewed
View MoreThe 1stDibs Promise
Learn MoreExpertly Vetted Sellers
Confidence at Checkout
Price-Match Guarantee
Exceptional Support
Buyer Protection
Trusted Global Delivery