Postmodern design was a short-lived movement that manifested itself chiefly in Italy and the United States in the early 1980s. The characteristics of vintage postmodern furniture and other postmodern objects and decor for the home included loud-patterned, usually plastic surfaces; strange proportions, vibrant colors and weird angles; and a vague-at-best relationship between form and function.
ORIGINS OF POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
CHARACTERISTICS OF POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW
VINTAGE POSTMODERN FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS
Critics derided postmodern design as a grandstanding bid for attention and nothing of consequence. Decades later, the fact that postmodernism still has the power to provoke thoughts, along with other reactions, proves they were not entirely correct.
Postmodern design began as an architectural critique. Starting in the 1960s, a small cadre of mainly American architects began to argue that modernism, once high-minded and even noble in its goals, had become stale, stagnant and blandly corporate. Later, in Milan, a cohort of creators led by Ettore Sottsass and Alessandro Mendini — a onetime mentor to Sottsass and a key figure in the Italian Radical movement — brought the discussion to bear on design.
Sottsass, an industrial designer, philosopher and provocateur, gathered a core group of young designers into a collective in 1980 they called Memphis. Members of the Memphis Group, which would come to include Martine Bedin, Michael Graves, Marco Zanini, Shiro Kuramata, Michele de Lucchi and Matteo Thun, saw design as a means of communication, and they wanted it to shout. That it did: The first Memphis collection appeared in 1981 in Milan and broke all the modernist taboos, embracing irony, kitsch, wild ornamentation and bad taste.
Memphis works remain icons of postmodernism: the Sottsass Casablanca bookcase, with its leopard-print plastic veneer; de Lucchi’s First chair, which has been described as having the look of an electronics component; Martine Bedin’s Super lamp: a pull-toy puppy on a power-cord leash. Even though it preceded the Memphis Group’s formal launch, Sottsass’s iconic Ultrafragola mirror — in its conspicuously curved plastic shell with radical pops of pink neon — proves striking in any space and embodies many of the collective’s postmodern ideals.
After the initial Memphis show caused an uproar, the postmodern movement within furniture and interior design quickly took off in America. (Memphis fell out of fashion when the Reagan era gave way to cool 1990’s minimalism.) The architect Robert Venturi had by then already begun a series of plywood chairs for Knoll Inc., with beefy, exaggerated silhouettes of traditional styles such as Queen Anne and Chippendale. In 1982, the new firm Swid Powell enlisted a group of top American architects, including Frank Gehry, Richard Meier, Stanley Tigerman and Venturi to create postmodern tableware in silver, ceramic and glass.
On 1stDibs, the vintage postmodern furniture collection includes chairs, coffee tables, sofas, decorative objects, table lamps and more.
Magnussen Ponte Mactan Stone or Fossil Stone Coffee Table, 1980s
Located in Oud Beijerland, NL
Rare and very nice coffee or side table by Magnussen Ponte, 1980's. This stunning table is made of rough edged brick motif Mactan stone or Fossil Stone. We work with professional p...
Travertine
1970’s Bronze Ribbon Coffee Table Base by Silas Seandel
Located in Chicago, IL
1970’s patinated bronze Ribbon coffee table base designed by Silas Seandel.
Bronze
$5,525Sale Price|35% Off
Pawikan - Post-Modern Dining Table Steel & Glass Handcrafted in Brooklyn, NY
By Franco V
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Pawikan is a handcrafted dining table designed and fabricated in Brooklyn, New York by artist Franco V. Named after the Filipino word for sea turtle, this sculptural piece channels t...
Steel
$3,618Sale Price|68% Off
Portoro Marble Design Table Luxury Homes Interiors Unique Piece Furniture Meddel
By Meddel, Joaquín Moll
Located in VALVERDE DEL MAJANO, CL
Portoro Marble Design Table Luxury Homes Interiors Unique Piece Furniture Meddel The Portoro table is a striking sculptural design by Spanish designer Jo...
Marble
Post Modern Side End Table by Brayton International c 1990's
Located in New York, NY
Post Modern end, side table manufactured by Brayton International. The table features a thick frosted glass insert top, on a center wood pedestal base, with spayed aluminum legs.
Aluminum
Two Tier Lucite Glass Brass Coffee Table 1970s Modernist Charles Hollis Jones
Located in London, GB
This large, two-tiered coffee table is composed of two square sheets of bevelled, reinforced glass, gently curved at the corners. These are held in place by four ornate lucite column...
Brass
Sculptural Night Log Side Table by Panorammma, Wood & Resin
By Panorammma
Located in Ciudad de México, CDMX
Night Log Formed from a reclaimed tree trunk, Night Log preserves the natural silhouette of the wood its knots, cracks, and irregular contours that trace the memory of growth. After ...
Resin, Wood
Rosalie 100 Coffee Table in MDF Board, Pine Wood and Fabric by POPUS EDITIONS
Located in Geneve, CH
Rosalie 100 Coffee Table in MDF Board, Pine Wood and Fabric by POPUS EDITIONS. Dimensions: ⌀ 100 x H 38 cm. Materials: Solid beech frame combined with MDF, fir panels, and tailored f...
Wood, Hardwood, Beech, Pine
Elegant Set of 2 Shelves with Brass Frame and Glass Shelves
By Mice di rugiano domenico e c. s.n.c.
Located in Cantù, IT
Elegant modern shelf set combines elegance and functionality with a minimalist and sophisticated design. Polished brass frames support clear glass shelves, creating a fascinating con...
Brass
Polyte Solet Dolphin coffee table and stools, 1990s
Located in Leuven, Vlaams Gewest
Stunning and very rare set by french Artist Polyte Solet (b.1973) featuring two whale tail stools and a beautiful sculpted coffee table depicting a dolphin in mahogany. The wood ha...
Glass, Mahogany
$2,330 / item
Elk & Mule Deer Antler End Table by The Peak Antler
Located in Geneve, CH
Elk & Mule Deer Antler End Table by The Peak Antler Dimensions: D 60.96 x H 60.96 cm Materials: glass, naturally shed antlers Based in, produced and shipped from the US. Please con...
Glass
$5,984Sale Price|46% Off
Herder Dining Table Italian Travertine Marble, Slate & Glass Modern Design Spain
By Joaquín Moll, Meddel
Located in VALVERDE DEL MAJANO, CL
Herder Dining Table Italian Travertine Marble, Slate & Glass Modern Design Spain The Herder dining table is a striking example of contemporary collectible design, created by Span...
Crystal, Travertine, Marble, Slate
American Designer, Dining Table, Walnut, USA, 1990s
Located in High Point, NC
A studio-produced dining or center table designed and produced in the US, c. 1990s. Signed "Kavinsky".
Walnut
Plex Rectangular Dining Table in Powder-Coated Aluminum by altreforme
Located in Geneve, CH
Plex Rectangular Dining Table in Powder-Coated Aluminum by altreforme Dimensions: D 90 x W 200 x H 74 cm. Materials: Powder-coated aluminum. Available in different finish options. ...
Aluminum
1980s Maitland Smith Tessellated Travertine Stone Figurative Iron Coffee Table
Located in Fort Lauderdale, FL
Transport yourself back to the sleek and sophisticated 1980s with this Maitland Smith Tessellated travertine and iron figural coffee table. The ultra rare table exudes an air of luxu...
Stone, Travertine, Iron
Post Modern Coffee Table by Kaizo Oto for Design Institute of America c 1980s
By Kaizo Oto, Design Institute America
Located in New York, NY
Exceptional Post Modern coffee table designed by Kaizo Oto for Design Institute America circa 1980's. The table features a geometric pattern top executed in mixed metals, a black met...
Metal
$869 / item
Bended Black Glass Coffee Table, 2 Available
By FIAM
Located in Steenwijk, NL
This black glass coffee table is made out of 1 piece of curved glass. It has 4 aluminum ball shaped feet that can be taken of. The aluminum parts make th...
Glass
Nala Side Table in Natural Oak and Lava Stone Finish by Pendhapa
Located in Geneve, CH
Nala Side Table in Natural Oak and Lava Stone Finish by Pendhapa. Dimensions: W 45 x D 40 x H 52 cm. Materials: natural oak veneer, creme brulee lava stone top, Solid oak wood. This...
Oak, Wood, Hardwood
Selene Low Table in Solid Oak, Lava Stone and Lacquer by Pendhapa
Located in Geneve, CH
Selene Low Table in Solid Oak, Lava Stone and Lacquer by Pendhapa. Dimensions: W 160 x D 110 x H 35 cm. Materials: Solid Oak, Lava Stone and Lacquer. This listing features our Selen...
Lacquer, Wood, Hardwood, Oak
$3,130 / item
Beige Hana Side Table by Tino Seubert
Located in Geneve, CH
Beige Hana Side Table by Tino Seubert Dimensions: D 43 x W 38 x H 50 cm. Materials: Solid walnut wood, walnut veneer, Formica. Oak or other wood possible. Please contact us. T...
Formica, Walnut
$2,240Sale Price|20% Off
Modernist Formica and Aluminum Coffee Table after Mayen
By Paul Mayen
Located in New York, NY
Chic architectural coffee table having a rectangular faux marble formica top, on rectangular brushed aluminum base. The table is in very good original condition, the formica has a co...
Aluminum
Limited Edition Kufe Coffee Table in Black Marble by Justus Knut Schomann
Located in Geneve, CH
Limited Edition Kufe Coffee Table in Black Marble by Justus Knut Schomann Limited Edition of 25 + 2AP. Dimensions: D 80 x W 255 x H 43 cm. Materials: Black marble. This piece has a ...
Marble
Large Travertine Mid Century Italian Modern Trapezoidal Glass Cocktail Table
Located in Philadelphia, PA
An extra long coffee table from Italy circa 1970's. It features 2 triangular travertine pedestals supporting a thick clear glass top.
Travertine
Cream Lacquered Glass Side Tables Wheels 1970s Hollywood Regency Pair bedside
Located in London, GB
A pair of effortlessly chic side tables, made of lacquered metal and sat atop castor wheels. Each table is composed of a cream lacquered frame, inside which is housed three glass pa...
Metal
Low Three Rocks Gold Leaf Coffee Table by InsidherLand
Located in Geneve, CH
Low Three Rocks Gold Leaf Coffee Table by InsidherLand Dimensions: D 75 x W 112 x H 37 cm. Materials: Gold Leaf. 19 kg. Other materials available. From The Special Tree, Fallen Leav...
Gold Leaf
Postmodern italian marble coffee table, 1980s
Located in Leuven, Vlaams Gewest
Postmodern angular white marble coffee table with black metal supporst and a clear bevelde glass top. Timeless design, beautiful marble. Very good condition 1980s - Italy Dimens...
Marble
Postmodern Travertine Nesting Side Tables, a Set of 3
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A set of three nesting side tables in solid travertine, designed in a stepped form typical of postmodern furniture. Each table is constructed as a U-shaped volume, allowing the small...
Travertine
$7,421Sale Price / item|20% Off
Contemporary Modern, Volume Wooden/Oak and Metal Column Oval Dining Table
By DAY Studio
Located in İstanbul, İstanbul
Volume is a collection of dining and side tables designed by DAY Studio in their unique simple and playful language. The powder coated metal base is completed with a table top select...
Marble, Metal
Natural Solid Pine Itooraba Side Table and Stool by Sizar Alexis
By Sizar Alexis
Located in Geneve, CH
Natural Solid Pine Itooraba Side Table and Stool by Sizar Alexis Dimensions: W 40 x D 40 x H 37 cm Materials: Natural Solid Pine. About: Sizar Alexis is a Swedish-Iraqi product and ...
Wood
Desk with Drawers and Wooden / Leater Top by Sebastiano Zilio
Located in Geneve, CH
Desk with Drawers and Wooden / Leater Top by Sebastiano Zilio Dimensions: W 250.8 x D 87.6 x H 77.3 cm. Materials: Solid Sungkai wood, About: Sebastiano Zilio Italy, 1969 Italian ...
Wood
Dama in Venice, Solid Wood, Dinner Table by Sebastiano Zilio
Located in Geneve, CH
Dama in Venice, Solid Wood, Dinner Table by Sebastiano Zilio Dimensions: W 462 x D 106.8 x H 77.3 cm. Materials: Solid Sungkai wood, About: Sebastiano Zilio Italy, 1969 Italian de...
Wood
Postmodern Side Table in the Memphis Group Style. Circa 1980s
Located in Miami, FL
Vintage Postmodern Side Table in the Memphis Group Style. Circa 1980s Features a quintessential 1980s postmodern design, with chrome pedestals, pastel colors lacquer and glass insert...
Glass, Lacquer
Talán Green Onyx and Parota Wood, Solid Tide Center Table by Tenam Studio
Located in Geneve, CH
Talán Green Onyx and Parota Wood, Solid Tide Center Table by Tenam Studio Dimensions: W 50 x D 50 x H 12 cm. Materials: Talán green onyx and parota wood. Weight: 10 kg About: Foun...
Onyx
Postmodern Italian Memphis Design dining table 1980s Marble Base
Located in San Diego, CA
Rare majestic Dining table from the 1980's Memphis movement with Italian Carrara marble uprights and steel elements. very rare piece striking and unique in great condition the top is...
Marble, Steel
Jennet Games Table in Walnut Wood, Veneer Marquetry and Tile by Madheke
Located in Geneve, CH
Jennet Games Table in Walnut Wood, Veneer Marquetry and Tile by Madheke. Dimensions: Ø 125 x H 76 cm. Materials: Classic veneer marquetry top with brass trim, central tiled surface, ...
Brass
Port Saint Laurent Refined Contemporary Marble Round Table M/R 180
Located in Geneve, CH
Port Saint Laurent Refined Contemporary Marble Round Table M/R 180 Dimensions: 180 x H 75 cm Materials: Marble Angelo is the essence of a round table in natural stone, a sculptural ...
Marble
Slice Me Up Coffee Table in Madrona Burl Wood by Pietro Franceschini
Located in Geneve, CH
Slice Me Up Coffee Table in Madrona Burl Wood by Pietro Franceschini. Dimensions: W 161cm x L 117cm x H 36 cm. Materials: Madrona Burl, matte...
Wood
$1,340Sale Price|20% Off
Monumental Solid Iron Postmodern Memphis Era Large Triangle Coffee Table Base
Located in San Diego, CA
Majestic solid patinated iron art Deco memphis era coffee table base, nice red & black finish that can easily be resprayed but looks great as/is, circ...
Iron
Vintage French Faux Stingray Table
By R & Y Augousti, Karl Springer, Aldo Tura
Located in Houston, TX
Vintage French Faux Stingray Table. This great faux R & Y Augousti style stingray table, gueridon or side table is an interesting shape and was made...
Faux Leather
Shell Console Table in Natural Oak Veneer and Lava Stone by Pendhapa
Located in Geneve, CH
Shell Console Table in Natural Oak Veneer and Lava Stone by Pendhapa. Dimensions: W 170 x D 45 x H 93 cm. Materials: natural oak veneer, lava stone with creme brulee finish. This li...
Oak
Postmodern Glass and leather coffee table in the style of Karl Springer
Located in Las Vegas, NV
Postmodern Sculptural Glass Coffee Table Leather Base, Style of Karl Springer Striking postmodern coffee table featuring a sculptural leather base and a thick freeform glass top. T...
Leather, Glass
Brik Black Console Table in Stone Textured Lacquered MDF by Hermhaus
Located in Geneve, CH
Brik Black Console Table in Stone Textured Lacquered MDF by Hermhaus Dimensions: D 50 x W 180 x H 90 cm Materials: MDF with stone texture and special lacquer finish. Shaped by the ...
Medium Density Fibreboard (MDF)
$22,960 / item
Isla Dressing Table by MOB
Located in Geneve, CH
Isla dressing table by MOB Limited editions of 5 + 1 prototype Designer: Ivan Navaro and Courtney Smith (USA) Dimensions: H 154 x D 76 x W 154cm Material: Birch plywood, mirror, white coated light bulb This sculpture is a dressing table. It is inspired by the fusion of Courtney’s work...
Mirror, Birch
Set of 2 Anemos Large Dining Tables in Solid Teak Wood by Pendhapa
Located in Geneve, CH
Set of 2 Anemos Large Dining Tables in Solid Teak Wood by Pendhapa. Dimensions: W 240 x D 120 x H 74 cm (each table). Materials: Solid teak wood. This piece offers a choice between ...
Hardwood, Teak
Fanza Sculptural Side Table, 2-Piece Modular Design by Madheke
Located in Geneve, CH
Fanza Sculptural Side Table, 2-Piece Modular Design by Madheke. Dimensions: W 68 x D 23.2 x H 51.5 cm. Materials: Cast-brass construction with deep-textured surface. This listing fe...
Metal, Brass
Labirinto Patina Bronze Console Table by Palena Furniture
Located in Geneve, CH
Labirinto Patina Bronze Console Table by Palena Furniture Dimensions: W 165.1 x D 35.56 x H 83.82 cm Materials: Patina Bronze, Black Lacquer Available in custom dimensions and mater...
Bronze, Other
Luna Lux Foco Desk in Walnut Veneer by PANOPTIKUM COLLECTIONS
Located in Geneve, CH
Luna Lux Foco Desk in Walnut Veneer by PANOPTIKUM COLLECTIONS Dimensions: D 60 x W 160 x H 75 cm. Materials: MDF in walnut veneer. A desk with elegant proportions and clear geometry...
Other
Mid Century Italian Post Modern Dining Table or Desk in Grey Tone Granite Marble
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A simple form design dining table that would also make a fabulous desk. It features solid slab speckled granite construction. In very good ready to use condition.
Granite
Tabula Magna Dining Table by Oscar Tosquets Blanca for Driade Aleph, '1991'
By Oscar Tusquets Blanca, Driade
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A extraordinarily stately extendable dining table in cherry and wenge woods designed by Spanish designer Oscar Tosquets Blanca in 1991 for Driade Aleph. His aim was to design a table...
Wenge
$61,228 / item
Vena Polished Bronze Dining Table by Palena Furniture
Located in Geneve, CH
Vena Polished Bronze Dining Table by Palena Furniture Dimensions: Small: W 274.32 x D 91.44-101.6 x H 76.2 cm Large: W 304.8 x D 101.6-111.76 x H 76.2 cm Materials: Polished Bronze,...
Bronze, Other
Post Modern Style Demilune Console And Mirror After Michael Graves
Located in Bridgeport, CT
Reminiscent of the furniture designed by the iconic American Architect and designer Michael Graves. A Console and Mirror in bold Architectural form with Geometric patterns formed by ...
Mirror, Wood
One-of-a-Kind Checkerboard Oak Coffee Table by Finemarq, Netherlands
Located in amstelveen, NL
Unique custom-made coffee table crafted by Finemarq, Netherlands, featuring a striking black and natural oak checkerboard marquetry inlay. The bold geometric pattern wraps seamlessly...
Oak
Astra Dining Table in Solid Oak and Natural Oak Veneer by Pendhapa
Located in Geneve, CH
Astra Dining Table in Solid Oak and Natural Oak Veneer by Pendhapa. Dimensions: W 250 x D 120 x H 74 cm. Materials: Solid oak wood, Natural oak veneer. Please note that the price li...
Wood, Hardwood, Oak
Italian Mid-Century Post-Modern Sottsass Style Side Table of Concrete and Steel
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This table has all the Classic elements of the Postmodern style taking disparate elements and combining them in a new form to make an ingenious design. Glass, cement, enameled steel.
Cement
$11,480 / item
LCN 402 Table by Tommaso Le Rose
Located in Geneve, CH
LCN 402 Table by Tommaso Le Rose Dimensions: Iron Structure: W 120 x D 70 x H 33 cm. Glass: W 170 x D 75 x H 34 cm Materials: Iron, Glass. Lichene is a new experimental design proj...
Iron
Vintage English Gate Leg Side Table
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
This charming vintage gate-leg side table beautifully captures the timeless appeal of English Jacobean design. Crafted with an eye for traditional detail, the table features an elega...
Walnut
Postmodern Compar Coffee Table, White Lacquer with Genuine Murano Glass Inlay, I
Located in Wommelgem, BE
A postmodern coffee table produced by Compar, an Italian furniture manufacturer based in the Venice region, known for combining lacquered wood with genuine Murano glass. The high-glo...
Murano Glass
Servomuto table by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni for Zanotta, 1974
By Zanotta, Achille & Pier Giacomo Castiglioni
Located in Athens, Attiki
Servomuto table of the range Servi by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni for Zanotta, 1974. Servomuto, light and easy to move, is the worthy heir of the essential stylish and balan...
Metal, Steel
$20,409 / item
Bronzo Coffee Table by Marsica Fossati
Located in Geneve, CH
Bronzo Coffee Table by Marsica Fossati Dimensions: D 70 x W 50 x H 45 cm. Materials: Bronze. Dimensions and finishes available upon request. These coffee tables embody both artisti...
Bronze
$1,996 / item
Stone Bronze Isola 800 Coffee Table by Disain1971
Located in Geneve, CH
Stone Bronze Isola 800 Coffee Table by Disain1971 Dimensions: D 80 x H 30 cm Materials: black, Bronze. Weight: 9 kg. Code: DT1062 Round coffee tables with a light top decorated wi...
Bronze