1950s Atomic Furniture
Vintage 1950s German Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces
Brass
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal, Brass
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal, Brass
Vintage 1950s Mid-Century Modern Coat Racks and Stands
Metal
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Crystal, Metal, Brass
Vintage 1950s German Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces
Metal, Brass
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Plaster, Wood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal, Aluminum
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal, Chrome
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal, Chrome
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Decorative Baskets
Metal
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern End Tables
Steel
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Tobacco Accessories
Steel
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Decorative Bowls
Stoneware
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Barware
Aluminum
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Tobacco Accessories
Ceramic
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Barware
Gold
Vintage 1950s German Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Brass
Mid-20th Century European Space Age Armchairs
Iron
Vintage 1950s Mexican Chandeliers and Pendants
Brass, Metal
Vintage 1950s Australian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Brass, Enamel
Vintage 1950s German Mid-Century Modern Planters and Jardinieres
Metal
Vintage 1970s Mid-Century Modern Wall Brackets
Vintage 1950s Australian Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Velvet
Vintage 1950s French Space Age Coat Racks and Stands
Metal
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Barware
Gold
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Magazine Racks and Stands
Iron
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Chairs
Iron
Vintage 1950s French Coat Racks and Stands
Iron
Vintage 1950s German Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Coat Racks and Stands
Wrought Iron
Vintage 1950s American Table Lamps
Brass
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
Steel
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern End Tables
Brass
Vintage 1950s French Floor Lamps
Brass
20th Century Philippine Mid-Century Modern Serving Bowls
Wood
20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Magazine Racks and Stands
Metal, Copper
Vintage 1950s French Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Steel
Vintage 1950s Mid-Century Modern Models and Miniatures
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Ceramic, Walnut
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Stools
Iron
Mid-20th Century European Mid-Century Modern Dry Bars
Brass
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
Metal
Vintage 1950s American Floor Lamps
Iron
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Aluminum, Brass
20th Century Philippine Mid-Century Modern Serving Bowls
Wood
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
Naugahyde, Walnut
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Chrome
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Tobacco Accessories
Brass
Vintage 1950s French Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Ceramic
20th Century North American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal
Vintage 1950s Czech Mid-Century Modern Scientific Instruments
Wood
20th Century North American Mid-Century Modern Architectural Elements
Ceramic, Wood
Vintage 1950s British Mid-Century Modern Coat Racks and Stands
Metal
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal, Chrome
- 1
1950s Atomic Furniture For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a 1950s Atomic Furniture?
A Close Look at Mid-century-modern Furniture
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 celebrated 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.
Generations turn over, and mid-century modern remains arguably the most popular style going. 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.
- What is 1950s furniture called?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertSeptember 23, 20241950s furniture is called vintage furniture. Some pieces produced during this period may be considered mid-century modern based on their characteristics. Mid-century modern design refers to the variety of modernism that rose to prominence in the 1940s and ’50s. It displays many of the characteristics of the earlier versions of modernism, including simple forms and a focus on functionality. Other traits common in mid-century modern furniture include unadorned silhouettes, clean lines and mixed materials, emphasizing wood, wool, steel and plastic. On 1stDibs, explore a large collection of 1950s furniture.
- 1stDibs ExpertNovember 13, 2024The best-known 1950s furniture style is called mid-century modern. Organically shaped, clean-lined and elegantly simple are three phrases that describe vintage mid-century modern furniture. The style emerged primarily in the years following World War II through creators who believed that good design was an essential part of good living. Mid-century modern designers combined natural and human-made materials, such as teak, rosewood and oak woods as well as steel, fiberglass and molded plywood. Some well-known mid-century modern designers include Charles and Ray Eames, Eero Saarinen, Milo Baughman, Florence Knoll, Harry Bertoia, Isamu Noguchi and George Nelson. On 1stDibs, shop a large selection of mid-century modern furniture.
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