Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
MID-CENTURY MODERN STYLE
Organically shaped, clean-lined and elegantly simple are three terms that well describe vintage mid-century modern furniture. The style, which emerged primarily in the years following World War II, is characterized by pieces that were conceived and made in an energetic, optimistic spirit by creators who believed that good design was an essential part of good living.
ORIGINS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
- Emerged during the mid-20th century
- Informed by European modernism, Bauhaus, International style, Scandinavian modernism and Frank Lloyd Wright’s architecture
- A heyday of innovation in postwar America
- Experimentation with new ideas, new materials and new forms flourished in Scandinavia, Italy, the former Czechoslovakia and elsewhere in Europe
CHARACTERISTICS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
- Simplicity, organic forms, clean lines
- A blend of neutral and bold Pop art colors
- Use of natural and man-made materials — alluring woods such as teak, rosewood and oak; steel, fiberglass and molded plywood
- Light-filled spaces with colorful upholstery
- Glass walls and an emphasis on the outdoors
- Promotion of functionality
MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW
- Charles and Ray Eames
- Eero Saarinen
- Milo Baughman
- Florence Knoll
- Harry Bertoia
- Isamu Noguchi
- George Nelson
- Danish modernists Hans Wegner and Arne Jacobsen, whose emphasis on natural materials and craftsmanship influenced American designers and vice versa
ICONIC MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNS
- Eames lounge chair
- Nelson daybed
- Florence Knoll sofa
- Egg chair
- Womb chair
- Noguchi coffee table
- Barcelona chair
VINTAGE MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS
The mid-century modern era saw leagues of postwar American architects and designers animated by new ideas and new technology. The lean, functionalist International-style architecture of Le Corbusier and Bauhaus eminences Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Walter Gropius had been promoted in the United States during the 1930s by Philip Johnson and others. New building techniques, such as “post-and-beam” construction, allowed the International-style schemes to be realized on a small scale in open-plan houses with long walls of glass.
Materials developed for wartime use became available for domestic goods and were incorporated into mid-century modern furniture designs. Charles and Ray Eames and Eero Saarinen, who had experimented extensively with molded plywood, eagerly embraced fiberglass for pieces such as the La Chaise and the Womb chair, respectively.
Architect, writer and designer George Nelson created with his team shades for the Bubble lamp using a new translucent polymer skin and, as design director at Herman Miller, recruited the Eameses, Alexander Girard and others for projects at the legendary Michigan furniture manufacturer.
Harry Bertoia and Isamu Noguchi devised chairs and tables built of wire mesh and wire struts. Materials were repurposed too: The Danish-born designer Jens Risom created a line of chairs using surplus parachute straps for webbed seats and backrests.
The Risom lounge chair was among the first pieces of furniture commissioned and produced by legendary manufacturer Knoll, a chief influencer in the rise of modern design in the United States, thanks to the work of Florence Knoll, the pioneering architect and designer who made the firm a leader in its field. The seating that Knoll created for office spaces — as well as pieces designed by Florence initially for commercial clients — soon became desirable for the home.
As the demand for casual, uncluttered furnishings grew, more mid-century furniture designers caught the spirit.
Classically oriented creators such as Edward Wormley, house designer for Dunbar Inc., offered such pieces as the sinuous Listen to Me chaise; the British expatriate T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings switched gears, creating items such as the tiered, biomorphic Mesa table. There were Young Turks such as Paul McCobb, who designed holistic groups of sleek, blond wood furniture, and Milo Baughman, who espoused a West Coast aesthetic in minimalist teak dining tables and lushly upholstered chairs and sofas with angular steel frames.
As the collection of vintage mid-century modern chairs, dressers, coffee tables and other furniture for the living room, dining room, bedroom and elsewhere on 1stDibs demonstrates, this period saw one of the most delightful and dramatic flowerings of creativity in design history.
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Style: Mid-Century Modern
Period: 1940s
Pair of Authentic California Fruit Crate Labels Featuring Apples. Circa 1940's
Located in Incline Village, NV
Offered is a pair of original "Apple" fruit crate labels, circa 1940's, unused and professionally mounted in oak frames with white colored beveled matte.
The labels would have been...
Category
1940s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Paper
Simone Colombier Abstract Gouache, Bordeaux School, France, 1947
By Simone Colombier
Located in La Teste De Buch, FR
Framed abstract gouache on paper by French painter Simone Colombier.
Signed and dated 1947.
Simone Colombier took part of the abstract movement in Bordeaux, France in the mid-1940s...
Category
1940s French Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Lenci Style Modern Italian Ceramic and Mosaic
By Fabio Lenci
Located in Roma, IT
Beautiful multicolored sculpture attributed to the Lenci factory
Faenza ceramic mosaic
Moving inscription with dedication on the back:
“In the u...
Category
1940s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Ceramic, Wood
8 brass door handles 1940s
By Gio Ponti
Located in Milano, IT
8 double handles from 1940, cast brass attributed to architect Gió Ponti.
They are in excellent condition with some patina from the era , but could be polished back to new.
Category
1940s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Brass
Original Vintage Photograph of an Aviator Pilot. C.1940
Located in St Annes, Lancashire
A wonderful image of an airplane pilot.
Silver gelatin print. On card
Photogapher and sitter both unknown
Unframed
Free shipping.
Category
1940s English Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Paper
Icon Madonna & Child in Glass Luigi Brusotti for Fontana Arte, Italy 1940s
Located in Rome, IT
Icon glass with Madonna and Child drawing attributed to Luigi Brusotti for Fontana Arte.
Made in Italy in the 1940s.
The back is made of wood.
Category
1940s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Metal
Very Rare Harry Bertoia Monoprint on Rice Paper
Located in Munich, DE
Purchased at la modern around 20 years ago. Size is of the visible picture inside passe-partout.
Category
1940s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Paint
Mid-20th Century Enamel and Iron Israeli 'Rambam' Street Name Sign
Located in New York, NY
Mid-20th century handmade Israeli street name sign. Made of enamel and iron, this street sign was created shortly after the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. The sign is ...
Category
1940s Israeli Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Enamel, Iron
Mid-20th Century Enamel and Iron Israeli 'Bar-Kokhba' Street Name Sign
Located in New York, NY
Mid-20th century handmade Israeli street name sign. Made of enamel and iron, this street sign was created shortly after the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. The sign is written in bolt blue letters over a white background, alluding to the colors of the national flag of the newly established state. The sign names the street 'Bar Kokhba' in Israel in both Hebrew and English letters. (In transliteration), as well as in Arabic.
Simon ben...
Category
1940s Israeli Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Enamel, Iron
Mid-20th Century Enamel and Iron Israeli 'Yitshak Katzenelson' Street Name Sign
Located in New York, NY
Mid-20th century handmade Israeli street name sign. Made of enamel and iron, this street sign was created shortly after the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. The sign is ...
Category
1940s Israeli Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Enamel, Iron
Mid-20th Century Enamel and Iron Israeli 'Dan' Street Name Sign
Located in New York, NY
Mid-20th century handmade Israeli street name sign. Made of enamel and iron, this street sign was created shortly after the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. The sign is ...
Category
1940s Israeli Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Enamel, Iron
Mid-20th Century Enamel and Iron Israeli 'Shapira' Street Name Sign
Located in New York, NY
Mid-20th century handmade Israeli street name sign. Made of enamel and iron, this street sign was created shortly after the establishment of the state o...
Category
1940s Israeli Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Enamel, Iron
Mid-20th Century Enamel and Iron Israeli 'Oded' Street Name Sign
Located in New York, NY
Mid-20th century handmade Israeli street name sign. Made of enamel and iron, this street sign was created shortly after the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. The sign is ...
Category
1940s Israeli Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Enamel, Iron
Mid-20th Century Enamel and Iron Israeli 'Hadar' Street Name Sign
Located in New York, NY
Mid-20th century handmade Israeli street name sign. Made of enamel and iron, this street sign was created shortly after the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. The sign is ...
Category
1940s Israeli Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Enamel, Iron
Mid-20th Century Enamel and Iron Israeli 'Daliya' Street Name Sign
Located in New York, NY
Mid-20th century handmade Israeli street name sign. Made of enamel and iron, this street sign was created shortly after the establishment of the state o...
Category
1940s Israeli Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Enamel, Iron
Mid-20th Century Enamel and Iron Israeli 'El'azar' Street Name Sign
Located in New York, NY
Mid-20th century handmade Israeli street name sign. Made of enamel and iron, this street sign was created shortly after the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. The sign is ...
Category
1940s Israeli Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Enamel, Iron
Mid-20th Century Enamel and Iron Israeli 'Sinai' Street Name Sign
Located in New York, NY
Mid-20th century handmade Israeli street name sign. Made of enamel and iron, this street sign was created shortly after the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. The sign is ...
Category
1940s Israeli Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Enamel, Iron
Mid-20th Century Enamel and Iron Israeli 'Yoav' Street Name Sign
Located in New York, NY
Mid-20th century handmade Israeli street name sign. Made of enamel and iron, this street sign was created shortly after the establishment of the state o...
Category
1940s Israeli Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Enamel, Iron
Mid-20th Century Enamel and Iron Israeli 'S'madar' Street Name Sign
Located in New York, NY
Mid-20th century handmade Israeli street name sign. Made of enamel and iron, this street sign was created shortly after the establishment of the state o...
Category
1940s Israeli Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Enamel, Iron
Parrot Porcelain , 1945
Located in Ciudad Autónoma Buenos Aires, C
Material: porcelain
Porzellanfabrik Karl Ens was established in 1899 but it wasn't first porcelain business of the Ens family. Karl Ens (senior) founded in 1860 the Triebner, Ens & ...
Category
1940s German Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Porcelain
Majolica Palissy Portuguese Lobster Wall Platter, circa 1940
Located in Austin, TX
Large Majolica Palissy Portuguese lobster platter, circa 1940.
Decorated with mussels and shells,
Signed Caldas da Rainha.
12.5 inches Diameter.
Category
1940s Portuguese Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Ceramic, Faience, Majolica
Mid-Century Modern Picasso Style Abstract of Face E. Ruff, 1945
Located in Redding, CT
Mid Century Modern Picasso style Abstract of a face by E.Ruff 1945.
Amazing composition and color. Nice gilt frame. One small tear can be repaired.
Category
1940s Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Canvas, Wood, Paint
Large Antique Chinese Fan Painted Entirely by Hand 1940 China Ducks Flower
Located in Palermo, Sicily
Large Antique Chinese fan Painted Entirely by Hand 1940 China Ducks Flower.
Category
1940s Chinese Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Wood, Paper
Vintage Brass Wall Sculpture Of Naked Woman, Circa 1940
Located in Zohor, SK
Beautiful and elegant wall art sculpture in brass. Produced probably in Czechoslovakia circa 1940s. The art work portraits a nude woman. Unknown autho...
Category
1940s Czech Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Brass, Copper
Representation of an African Giraffe Embossed Copper and Iroko Frame
Located in Labrit, Landes
African carved giraffe representation
Embossed copper and frame in carved iroko
Signed Mwamba
Shipping:
L 40 P2,5 H86.
Category
1940s African Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Copper
Framed Ww ii Nautical Signal Flag 'Yellow & Blue'
Located in East Hampton, NY
This flag represents the sign for "BOOT SIGNAL - STEER TOWARDS" - according to the international flags and pennants chart. The flag is a vivid yellow and blue. Hardware is galvanized steel. This is a large ship standard sized flag. THIS ITEM IS LOCATED AND WILL SHIP FROM OUR MIAMI, FLORIDA SHOWROOM.
Professionally framed in natural maple low profile shadow box and sewn on to the matting, this vintage German-made nautical Signal flag from WW II era, was never used and acquired as a group. The purpose of International Signal Code Flags...
Category
1940s German Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Fabric, Glass, Wood
Framed Ww ii Nautical Signal Flag 'Red & White'
Located in East Hampton, NY
This flag represents the sign for "ASW EXCERCISES" - according to the international flags and pennants chart. The flag is a vivid red and white. Hardware is galvanized steel. This is a large ship standard sized flag. THIS ITEM IS LOCATED AND WILL SHIP FROM OUR MIAMI, FLORIDA SHOWROOM.
Professionally framed in natural maple low profile shadow box and sewn on to the matting, this vintage German-made nautical Signal flag from WW II era, was never used and acquired as a group. The purpose of International Signal Code Flags...
Category
1940s German Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Fabric, Glass, Wood
"FANTASY" Oil on Canvas by Thomas Hart Benton
Located in New York, NY
"FANTASY" by Thomas Hart Benton. Oil on canvas laid on wood with a gorgeous gold gilded frame. Price upon request.
Category
1940s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Canvas, Paint
Italian mid century rectangular mirror with lines drawing, Gio Ponti style, 1940
By Gio Ponti
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian mid-century modern rectangular mirror with lines drawn on the glass, in the style of Gio Ponti, 1940s.
Rectangular mirror, with Pontian lines drawing on the glass. White desi...
Category
1940s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Mirror, Wood
Representation of an African Woman Embossed Copper and Iroko Frame
Located in Labrit, Landes
African carved woman representation.
Embossed copper and frame in carved iroko.
Signed Mwamba.
Shipping:
L 40 P 2,5 H 86.
Category
1940s African Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Copper
Decorative Mid-Century Chinese Fan Paper Decorated Wooden Painted
Located in Palermo, Sicily
Large Decorative Mid-century Chinese Fan in Paper Decorated Painted Wooden Structure.
Decoration on gold leaf, of swans, herons and plants. very stylish.
It has some wear, as shown...
Category
1940s Asian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Gold
Early 20th Century Butlins Lithograph Advertising Poster
Located in London, GB
Early 20th century Butlins lithograph advertising poster
A charming, fun, and rare example of a 1940s lithograph advertising poster for Butlins fair. Produced by Willsons, Printers of Leicester. The advert is written in the form of a £5 reward for a lost grey parrot...
Category
1940s British Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Paper
1940's Gunnar Nylund Bronze Plate
Located in Madrid, ES
Bronze plate with Aquatic decoration by Gunnar Nylund for Äkta Brong. Sweden, 1940s.
Excellent condition.
Category
1940s Swedish Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Bronze
Majolica Palissy Portuguese Lobster Wall Platter, circa 1940
Located in Austin, TX
Large Majolica Palissy Portuguese lobster platter, circa 1940.
Decorated with mussels and shells,
Signed Caldas da Rainha.
12.5 inches Diameter.
Category
1940s Portuguese Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Faience, Majolica, Ceramic
Decorative Mid-Century Chinese Fan Paper Decorated Painted Wooden Structure chic
Located in Palermo, Sicily
Decorative Mid-century Chinese fan in paper decorated painted wooden structure.
Decoration on gold leaf, of swans, herons and plants. very stylish.
Category
1940s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Gold Leaf
Decorative Mid-Century Chinese Fan in Paper Decorated Painted Wooden Structure
Located in Palermo, Sicily
Decorative Mid-century Chinese Fan in paper decorated painted wooden structure and straw.
Decoration on gold leaf, of swans, herons and plants. very stylish.
Category
1940s Italian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Straw, Wood, Paper
Mid-Century Modern Art Work by Joseph Roelants
By Jospeh Roelants
Located in Weesp, NL
Mid-Century Modern ceramic tiles Art by Joseph Roelants for Gilliot & Cie, 1948
"The allegorical representation of Architecture and sculptural art blo...
Category
1940s Belgian Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Ceramic
Decorative Mid-Century Chinese Fan in Paper Decorated Painted Wooden Structure.
Located in Palermo, Sicily
Decorative Mid-century Chinese Fan in Paper Decorated Painted Wooden Structure.
Decoration on gold leaf, plants. very stylish.
Category
1940s Chinese Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Gold Leaf
Original Fashion Drawing, Pat Kerr, 1946
By Pat Kerr
Located in St Annes, Lancashire
Wonderful ink and wash by Pat Kerr, 1946. So evocative of the 1940s.
On card. Unsigned.
Presented in an antique water gilded frame
Drawn for A & C Kay, New Bond St. London.
...
Category
1940s English Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Paper
Original Artwork for a Detective Newspaper Strip, 1940s
Located in St Annes, Lancashire
Amazing artwork for a story by James Hadley Chase. So evocative of this period.
We have found no record of this story, A Medal for Miss Lantis, so presumably it was never publishe...
Category
1940s English Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Paper
Early Carta Blanca Beer Sign. Mexico, 1940’s.
Located in San Diego, CA
Rare Carta Blanca beer porcelain metal sign.
Mexico, ca. 1940’s.
Category
1940s Mexican Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Sheet Metal
Very Rare Harry Bertoia Monoprint on Rice Paper
Located in Munich, DE
Purchased at la modern around 20 years ago. It´s the size of the work - not the frame.
Category
1940s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Paper
Set of Nine Framed American Typography Pages, 1938
Located in Downingtown, PA
Set of nine framed American typography pages.
From new letters and lettering by Paul Carlyle & Guy Oring,
Originally published, 1938
The pages ...
Category
1940s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Paper
Original Charles Kiffer Lithograph of Alhambra Theatre Maurice Chevalier
Located in New York, NY
This beautiful original Mid-Century Modern lithograph was created for the inauguration of the new Alhambra Theater, featuring Maurice Chevalier, circa 1948. It features the actor don...
Category
1940s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Paper
Running Horses Abstract Impressionist Oil Painting
By Sheila Hendricks
Located in Rochester, NY
"Horses Running", a bold abstract impressionist oil painting with heavy impasto. By Sheila Hedricks. Oil on board. In a period hand...
Category
1940s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Gesso, Wood, Paint
Lucite Dimensional Racetrack Sculptural Panels Custom Framed Pair of Vintage
Located in North Miami, FL
This pair of absolutely stunning tall dimensional, sculptural and textural 1940s Lucite panels are newly custom framed. The lucite panels look and feel like textural running water. T...
Category
1940s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Linen, Lucite, Wood
Decorative Lacquer Panel Midcentury by P. Paulin theme “Heaven on Earth’’
Located in Miami, FL
French painter and master glassmaker, Beaux Art School in Lyon , born in 1907 . He sudied with G. Decote who used to work with Gustave Moreau. He is inspired by the symbolist movemen...
Category
1940s French Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Lacquer
Depisis Style Midcentury Oil Panting Vase Rose Flowers 1940s Classic Frame
Located in Palermo, Sicily
Depisis style midcentury oil panting vase rose flowers signed T.Rossi 1940s classic frame.
Elegant and refined as a picture of Depisis.
Category
1940s European Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Jute, Wood, Paint
Engraved Pink Tinted Glass Panel, circa 1940
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Engraved pink tinted glass panel, circa 1940.
Category
1940s French Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Glass
Engraved Pink Tinted Glass Panel, circa 1940
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Engraved pink tinted glass panel, circa 1940.
Little splinter on the bottom (see picture) but not visible when assembled.
Category
1940s French Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Glass
Angelo Testa Print on Canvas
By Angelo Testa
Located in Pawtucket, RI
Whimsical print on canvas by noted artist and textile designer Angelo Testa. Large print depicting dogs and other biomorphic shaped animals.
Category
1940s American Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Materials
Canvas
Gazelle French Shoe Poster Signed ''Robys''
By Robys
Located in Westport, CT
Stamped'' Robys'' Advertising shoe poster with gift box and shoes and Gazelles jumping out of it! Framed in black and silver leaf trim Frame, circa 1940, ...
Category
1940s French Vintage Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Mid-century Modern decorative art for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a broad range of unique Mid-Century Modern decorative art for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage decorative art created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include wall decorations, serveware, ceramics, silver and glass, decorative objects and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with wood, ceramic and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Mid-Century Modern decorative art made in a specific country, there are Europe, North America, and United States pieces for sale on 1stDibs. While there are many designers and brands associated with original decorative art, popular names associated with this style include Robert Picault, Curtis Jeré, Vallauris, and Daniel Clesse. It’s true that these talented designers have at times inspired knockoffs, but our experienced specialists have partnered with only top vetted sellers to offer authentic pieces that come with a buyer protection guarantee. Prices for decorative art differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $50 and tops out at $406,322 while the average work can sell for $1,323.
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