Edward Wormley for Dunbar Illuminated Globe
View Similar Items
Edward Wormley for Dunbar Illuminated Globe
About the Item
- Creator:Dunbar Furniture (Manufacturer),Edward Wormley (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 34 in (86.36 cm)Diameter: 20 in (50.8 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. In great condition.
- Seller Location:Asbury Park, NJ
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU984913233021
Edward Wormley
As the longtime director of design for the Dunbar furniture company, Edward Wormley was, along with such peers as George Nelson at Herman Miller Inc., and Florence Knoll of Knoll Inc., one of the leading forces in bringing modern design into American homes in the mid-20th century. Not an axiomatic modernist, Wormley deeply appreciated traditional design, and consequently his work has an understated warmth and a timeless quality that sets it apart from other furnishings of the era.
Wormley was born in rural Illinois and as a teenager took correspondence courses from the New York School of Interior Design. He later attended the Art Institute of Chicago but ran out of money for tuition before he could graduate. Marshall Field hired Wormley in 1930 to design a line of reproduction 18th-century English furniture; the following year he was hired by the Indiana-based Dunbar, where he quickly distinguished himself. It was a good match.
Dunbar was an unusual firm: it did not use automated production systems; its pieces were mostly hand-constructed. For his part, Wormley did not use metal as a major component of furniture; he liked craft elements such as caned seatbacks, tambour drawers, or the woven-wood cabinet fronts seen on his Model 5666 sideboard of 1956. He designed two lines for Dunbar each year — one traditional, one modern — until 1944, by which time the contemporary pieces had become the clear best sellers.
Many of Wormley’s signature pieces — chairs, sofas, tables and more — are modern interpretations of traditional forms. His 1946 Riemerschmid Chair — an example is in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art — recapitulates a late 19th-century German design. The long, slender finials of his Model 5580 dining chairs are based on those of Louis XVI chairs; his Listen-to-Me Chaise (1948) has a gentle Rococo curve; the “Precedent” line that Wormley designed for Drexel Furniture in 1947 is a simplified, pared-down take on muscular Georgian furniture. But he could invent new forms, as his Magazine table of 1953, with its bent wood pockets, and his tiered Magazine Tree (1947), both show. And Wormley kept his eye on design currents, creating a series of tables with tops that incorporate tiles and roundels by the great modern ceramicists Otto and Gertrud Natzler.
As the vintage items on 1stDibs demonstrate, Edward Wormley conceived of a subdued sort of modernism, designing furniture that fits into any decorating scheme and does not shout for attention.
Dunbar Furniture
Revered for its handcrafted and highly collectible mid-century modern sofas, coffee tables and other furnishings, Dunbar Furniture was founded in 1910 in Berne, Indiana, but it didn’t gain widespread recognition until the ’30s, following the introduction of its president to a designer who would leave an indelible mark on the company’s legacy: Edward Wormley.
After a stint at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Oswego, Illinois-born Wormley worked as an interior designer for Marshall Field’s before joining Dunbar in 1931. Initially focused on developing the company’s cheapest furniture line, which could be bought with soap coupons, he was soon leading Dunbar Furniture into a new era of residential furniture for modern American homes. He would serve as the company’s design director for over three decades, designing about 150 pieces each year.
During that time, he oversaw the production of designs in a wide range of materials, with influences ranging from Scandinavian modernism to Art Deco. There were modern upholstery pieces, like swiveling lounge chairs and low-slung sofas, and experiments with textural wood on bar carts and cabinets as well as minimal, sculptural tables and functional office furniture. A passionate collector of Tiffany Studios lamps, Wormley used their glass tiles in Dunbar tables in 1956. He also worked on the reproduction of pieces by designers such as Jean-Michel Frank and Richard Riemerschmid.
One standout Dunbar Furniture collection was Janus, introduced in the 1960s, with Austrian-born ceramicists Otto and Gertrud Natzler. These pieces see the Natzlers’ uniquely artful ceramic tiles set into several styles of wooden tables. They remain some of the most sought-after mid-century modern Dunbar pieces on the vintage market today. During the peak of his design career and, indeed, the height of Dunbar Furniture’s history, Wormley amassed a whopping 30 Good Design awards between 1950 and 1955 through the “Good Design” exhibition, hosted by the Chicago Merchandise Mart and the Museum of Modern Art. Dunbar today produces a limited selection of archival Wormley designs, but many sales of original Dunbar pieces are through the resale market.
Find a collection of authentic vintage Dunbar Furniture today on 1stDibs.
- Server Bar by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Asbury Park, NJA multifunctional walnut bar cart on casters by Edward Wormley for Dunbar– Model 5433. The cabinet has two cedar shelves which can be adjusted up or down. One drawer above the cabine...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Dry Bars
- Pair of Ottomans by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Asbury Park, NJGreat pair of X-base ottomans by Edward Wormley for Dunbar. This was model number 5002 from the 1950s. Vinyl tops with painted black mahogany legs. Purchased from the original owner.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Ottomans and Poufs
MaterialsMahogany
$6,800 / set - Replogle Terrestrial Floor GlobeBy Replogle GlobesLocated in Asbury Park, NJThis floor globe by Replogle floats within a ring of walnut, supported by four 'turned' chrome stiles, which connect to a base of walnut. The ...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Globes
- Rare Severin Broby Bowl for HadelandBy HadelandLocated in Asbury Park, NJSeverin Brody bowl. Larger size is rarely seen. Signed on the bottom of bowl.Category
Vintage 1960s Norwegian Mid-Century Modern Glass
MaterialsBlown Glass
- Tommi Parzinger for Stiffel Table LampBy Tommi ParzingerLocated in Asbury Park, NJPleased to offer this large brass Tommi Parzinger lamp. This classic design retains its original beautiful patina. The lamp has been rewired. This is truly a striking lamp.Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass
- George Nelson for Koch & Lowy LampBy George NelsonLocated in Asbury Park, NJThis floor lamp by George Nelson for Koch & Lowy, was Nelson's last lamp design. It culminated many design features developed by Nelson over his career. The...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Floor Lamps
- Illuminated Globe Lamp attributed to Edward Wormley DunbarBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Chicago, ILGlobe Lamp attributed to Edward Wormley for Dunbar. These are wired and illuminate.Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Globes
MaterialsWood
- Illuminated Glass World Globe on Mahogany Stand by Edward Wormley for DunbarBy Edward Wormley, Rand McNally & Co., Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Brooklyn, NYMahogany sculptural globe stand supported by brass sabots originally designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar in 1953. The globe itself is a 16" Rand McNally Terrestrial globe composed ...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Globes
MaterialsBrass
- Vintage Mid Century Modern Illuminated Globe on Mahogany Stand By Edward WormleyBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Chicago, ILVintage Mid Century Modern Illuminated World Globe on Mahogany Stand By Edward Wormley for Dunbar This light up globe is perfect for anyone searching for eclectic light sources. This soft light will make any living room or waiting area cozier. American designer Edward Wormley was inspired by sleek Scandinavian modernism with this wood stand. This is a great for history buffs, as the globe displays mid...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Globes
MaterialsWood, Mahogany
- Ed Wormley of Dunbar Mid-Century Modern Illuminated Globe Light FixtureBy Edward WormleyLocated in Rockaway, NJWalnut and brass tripod or tri-leg base stand Mid-Century Modern illuminated globe by Ed Wormley.Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Globes
MaterialsBrass
- World Globe by Edward WormleyBy Edward WormleyLocated in New York, NYThe ultimate world globe designed by Edward Wormley for Rand McNally, USA, circa 1950. Features a rotating globe mounted on a walnut base with brass capped legs. Marked "Rand McNally...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Globes
- Edward Wormley for Dunbar NightstandsBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in Los Angeles, CAEarly minimalist nightstands designed by Edward Wormley for Dunbar. Beautiful bleached mahogany cases with inset matching hardware and leather wrapped bases. Very functional set and ...Category
Vintage 1950s American Cabinets
MaterialsLeather, Mahogany
$9,500 / set