5 Piece Midcentury Modern Couch
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Rattan
Vintage 1970s European Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Leather
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Steel
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Sectional Sofas
Velvet
Vintage 1920s Swedish Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Fabric, Mahogany
Vintage 1960s Danish Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Elm
Early 2000s American Modern Sofas
Stainless Steel
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Steel
Vintage 1960s Dutch Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Metal
20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Leather, Foam
20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Leather, Foam
20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Leather, Foam
20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Iron
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Fabric
Late 20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Leather, Foam
Late 20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Leather, Polystyrene
Vintage 1970s Unknown Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Cane, Mahogany
Vintage 1970s Unknown Mid-Century Modern Sectional Sofas
Bamboo, Mahogany
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Sectional Sofas
Fabric, Walnut
Vintage 1970s Unknown Mid-Century Modern Sectional Sofas
Mahogany, Rattan
Vintage 1980s American Modern Sectional Sofas
Fabric, Foam
Vintage 1970s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Sectional Sofas
Leather
2010s French Modern Sectional Sofas
Leather, Foam
2010s French Modern Sectional Sofas
Leather, Foam
Vintage 1970s French Modern Sectional Sofas
Velvet, Foam
2010s French Modern Sectional Sofas
Fabric
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Sectional Sofas
Wool
Vintage 1980s French Modern Sectional Sofas
Ultrasuede, Foam
Vintage 1980s French Modern Sectional Sofas
Ultrasuede, Foam
Vintage 1980s French Modern Sectional Sofas
Ultrasuede, Foam
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Enamel
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Mahogany
21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Bamboo, Canvas, Wood
Vintage 1970s French Mid-Century Modern Chairs
Foam, Leather
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Patio and Garden Furniture
Wrought Iron
Antique Early 19th Century European Biedermeier Canapes
Fruitwood, Walnut
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
Metal, Aluminum, Steel
Vintage 1950s Danish Mid-Century Modern Living Room Sets
Wool, Oak
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
Metal, Aluminum, Steel
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
Walnut
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Patio and Garden Furniture
Iron, Wrought Iron
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Cupboards
Steel
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Cupboards
Steel
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Aluminum, Steel
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern End Tables
Oak
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Pedestals
Steel
20th Century Unknown Art Deco Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Marble, Steel
20th Century Swiss Mid-Century Modern Sectional Sofas
Vintage 1950s Canadian Mid-Century Modern Sectional Sofas
Vintage 1970s British Mid-Century Modern Sectional Sofas
Velvet, Wicker
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Cotton, Plastic, Plywood
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Fabric, Foam
Mid-20th Century North American Post-Modern Sofas
Upholstery
Vintage 1960s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Leather
Vintage 1970s Canadian Mid-Century Modern Sectional Sofas
Velvet, Foam
Vintage 1970s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Sectional Sofas
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5 Piece Midcentury Modern Couch For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a 5 Piece Midcentury Modern Couch?
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.
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Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona Chair Shook Modernism and Charmed Hollywood
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Herman Miller Got Its Start in the Office, but Its Legacy Is in the Home
The brand that turned Charles and Ray Eames, Isamu Noguchi and George Nelson into mid-century household names is just as relevant today as it was six decades ago.
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