Vintage Space Age furniture captured post–World War II optimism with swooping shapes, bowed lines and experimentation with new materials including plastic and fiberglass.
From the launch of the Sputnik 1 satellite in 1957 to the landing of Apollo 11 astronauts on the moon in 1969, the space race between the Soviet Union and the United States propelled advancements in technology that transformed culture. Space Age design encompassed fashion, architecture, cars, furniture and objects for the home, bringing wonder and hope for the future into everyday life.
Coinciding with Pop art, Space Age style featured bold colors and forms. Eero Aarnio’s Ball chair, which debuted in 1966, used molded fiberglass for a capsule-like space while Verner Panton’s 1959 Panton chair was a single piece of molded plastic for a gravity-defying S shape. Red versions of Olivier Mourgue’s 1964 Djinn chair were futuristic enough to appear on the space station in Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey. Today, Joe Colombo is revered as a master of modern Italian design thanks to the provocative modular furniture pieces he created, such as the Tube chair and the Elda armchair, both of which embody the future-forward spirit of the Space Age.
The Space Age spirit extended to home building too. The futuristic Case Study Houses, which were designed by the likes of Pierre Koenig, Charles and Ray Eames, Richard Neutra and Whitney R. Smith, are considered a high point of modernism and the Southern California lifestyle.
Sometimes the nods to space exploration were more literal, like moon and star motifs or the 1965 Eclisse lamp by Vico Magistretti that saw the mid-century Italian designer integrating a movable inner shade to “eclipse” the light source. Alongside the pioneering moon missions, JVC manufactured the Videosphere portable television reminiscent of the Apollo 11 space helmets.
Although the style faded in the 1970s — with the 1975 joining of the Apollo and Soyuz spacecrafts signaling a new era of cooperation and the global oil crisis impacting the availability of plastics — the era’s innovations influenced designers into the 21st century such as Zaha Hadid and Djivan Schapira.
Find a collection of vintage Space Age seating, tables, lighting and other furniture on 1stDibs.
$6,974Sale Price|20% Off
Edwin Aldrin on the moon. Large high-resolution print, Switzerland, 1970s
Located in SANT ADRIÀ DE BESÒS, ES
Large high-resolution print of Edwin Aldrin on the moon, Switzerland, 1970. Photograph of Edwin Aldrin on the moon taken by the astronaut Neil Armstrong on July 21, 1969; original NA...
Wood, Paper
Hervé Télémaque Lithograph, Space Age Style, France, 1974, Paper Print
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Born in 1937 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Télémaque moved to New York in 1957 and entered an art scene dominated by Abstract Expressionism. In 1961, he settled permanently in Paris, whe...
Paper
Pair Verner Panton "Circle" Screen Print on Fabric / SPACE AGE POP ART
Located in Buffalo, NY
Verner Panton 'Circle,' Late 1960s / early 1970s. ^^^^NOTE^^^^PRICED SEPERATELY Screenprint on fabric. Nice original condition. Verso printed with 'Circle designed by Verner Pa...
Fabric
Monochrome Space Age Serigraphie Von Max H. Mahlmann
Located in Hamburg, DE
Monochrome Space Age serigraph by Max H. Mahlmann. The serigraph is unframed and will be sent in a roll. The picture is signed and dated in pencil. It is piece no. 78 in an edition of 100. Mahlmann worked from 1934 to 1938 as a student of Richard Müller...
Paper
Projekt 666 Sci-Fi Etching by Swedish Graphic Artist Bengt Böckman 1966
Located in Grythyttan, SE
This sublime etching by the swedish graphic artist Bengt Böckman portrays human construction interacting with organic structures. This vintage etching from 1966 is made with dark blu...
Paper
Printed Aluminum/paper 1970s multiple by Gino Marotta
By Gino Marotta
Located in Varese, Lombardia
Multiple with natural subject by Gino Marotta on a composite material support (metal/paper) depicting the stylized silhouette of a plant. No visible signature or date. The multiple ...
Aluminum
Framed Print of a Pin Up Girl circa 1970 by French Artist Aslan
Located in Hamburg, DE
Framed print of a pin up girl circa 1970 by French artist Aslan. The print of a 1970s pin up girl is framed behind glass and has been placed on a Cole and Son wallpaper. The offset print is quite worn and creased. Aslan (born Alain Gourdon...
Paper
Untitled Poster by Peter Phillips for Jabik & Colophon, 1970
By Peter Phillips, Jabik & Colophon
Located in Varese, Lombardia
This graphic multiple was designed by Peter Phillips in 1970 and printed in a limited edition (82/125) by Jabik & Colophon Editor, since 1970. It feat...
Aluminum
1970s "Fanfare" Screenprint by Frank Rowland
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A striking limited edition op art serigraph by American artist Frank Rowland (1927-2012) in the hard edge style. An abstract geometric composition in red, orange, and yellow against ...
Paper
$279Sale Price|20% Off
H 28.25 in W 17.75 in D 0.1 in
1971 Max Ernst "Orangerie Des Tuileries" Exposition Lithograph
By Max Ernst
Located in San Carlos, CA
Gorgeous color lithograph after Max Ernst. Printed in 1971 to announce a Max Ernst exhibition at L'orangerie des Tuilieres in Paris, France. This Max Ernst Lithograph...
Other
$3,850
H 36 in W 36 in D 1.5 in
Einstein State I, a Pop-Art Screen-Print of Albert Einstein by Sak Steve Kaufman
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Title: Einstein State I (with embellishments). By: Steve Kaufman. Date: 1990s. A limited edition screen-print on canvas with hand embellishments (in oil). Depicting Alber...
Peter Max Signed Limited Edition Color Serigraph
Located in Bridgeport, CT
Peter Max (German/American, B.1937) signed limited edition color serigraph, "Brown Lady with Vase," female figure on a patterned background in pastel tones....
Wood
Japanese Woodblock on Paper Print by Katsuyuki Nishijima
Located in Weesp, NL
Beautiful Japanese woodblock print by Katsuyuki Nishijima born in Kyoto in 1945. Signed, titled and numbered by the artist in pencil. Nishijima ha...
Paper
Mira-X Circular Pattern Textile Panel by Verner Panton
By Verner Panton, Mira-X
Located in Paris, FR
This Mira-X textile panel designed by Verner Panton features a bold circular composition rendered in concentric rings of saturated color. The rhythmic geometry and optical depth exem...
Wool, Natural Fiber
$447Sale Price|20% Off
H 10.4 in W 18.82 in D 0.02 in
Antique Fish Print 'Cyprinus Nasus' by C. von Meidinger, 1785
Located in Langweer, NL
Antique original hand-colored print of the Nose-Carp. This print originates from 'Icones Piscium Austriae Indigenorum' by the Baron von Meidinger.
Paper
Victor Vasarely Op Art Tuz Signed and Numbered Screen Print
Located in Chesterfield, NJ
Very cool original Op Art blue and silver screenprint, TUZ, by Victor Vasarely from 1974. Signed in the lower right hand corner, numbered 291/340 in the lower left. This has the orig...
Metal
$2,250
H 32 in W 60 in D 0.75 in
Scandinavian Fabric Screen Print by Barbara Brenner for Intair Finland
Located in Chicago, IL
Cotton fabric screen print by Barbara Brenner attached to a wooden stretcher. Intair - Internationales Stoffdesign.
Fabric
$400
H 22.45 in W 27.96 in D 0.79 in
Olle Bonnier, Swedish artist. Color lithograph. Abstract composition, 1957
Located in København, Copenhagen
Olle Bonnier (1925–2016) Color lithograph Abstract composition from 1957 with dynamic movement and contrasting color fields, characteristic of Bonnier’s experimental approach to pos...
Paper
Untitled Marc Chagall 1966 Lithograph
Located in York, GB
This untitled print from Marc Chagall (1887-1985) was produced in 1966 and printed by Mourlot (ref470) and was published in 'XXe Siegle,' no. 26, by San Lazzaro, Paris. There were a...
Paper
Modern Tropical Flowers Lithograph / Print
Located in Toledo, OH
Modern tropical flowers lithograph / print. Nice colors, circa 1980s. Unsigned. Very nice condition. Slight wear to frame. Dimensions: 61.5" W x 41.5"...
Paper
Victor VASARELY (1906-1997) Screenprint FV 18/40 1970s
Located in Handewitt, DE
Victor VASARELY (1906-1997) Printed in 1970s. Signed bottom left. No. FV 18 / 40. High quality framed. - incl frame: 62.5 x 62.5 cm // color print: 40 x 40 cm
Glass, Wood
Sold
H 39.38 in W 27.56 in D 0.4 in
Roy Lichtenstein poster printed in 1989 by Impronte Edizioni on an Arches paper
Located in SAINT-YRIEIX-SUR-CHARENTE, FR
Roy Lichtenstein Untlited (pointing finger) 1973. Printed edition of 1989 Offset lithograph on fine Arches velin paper, published by Impronte Edizioni. Size 100 x 70 cm. Very good c...
Paper
Sold
H 22.05 in W 22.05 in D 0.79 in
Italian space age chromed steel frame with optical abstract design print, 1970s
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian space age chromed steel frame with optical and abstract design print, 1970s Framework with chromed steel frame and abstract design in shades of blue, white and green, reminis...
Metal
Danish Space Age Geometric Square Painting by Verner Panton, 1970s
Located in MIlano, IT
Danish Space Age Geometric square painting by Verner Panton, 1970s Geometric square painting composed of several squares placed in a concentric way in color: red, pink, blue. blue, g...
Fabric, Wood
6 Lithographic Prints by Luigi Colani
By Luigi Colani
Located in Hamburg, DE
Collection folder of Luigi Colani from around 1982. The collection consists of 5 lithographic prints with signatures. They depict aviation motifs and vehicles . One additional sheet, which is slightly damaged (see photos) Print looks like Chalk on black paper...
Paper
Sold
H 27.56 in W 39.38 in D 1.19 in
Art O Matic Cidacutie Multiple Poster by Peter Phillips, Jabik & Colophon, 1972
By Peter Phillips, Jabik & Colophon
Located in Varese, Lombardia
This graphic multiple was designed by Peter Phillips and printed in a limited edition (52/100) by Jabik & Colophon Editor in 1972. It features its ori...
Aluminum
Sold
H 27.56 in W 39.38 in D 0.79 in
"Untitled" Multiple Poster by Peter Phillips for Jabik & Colophon, 1974
By Peter Phillips, Jabik & Colophon
Located in Varese, Lombardia
This graphic multiple was designed by Peter Phillips in 1974 and printed in a limited edition (201/250) by Jabik & Colophon Editor. It features its or...
Aluminum