In the store: Care for a Danish?

No, not a pastry. More Danish Modern. But this time it's a little exciting for us, because we have beautiful Hans Wegner pieces in the store, some of which aren't even pictured in this post...so if you're local, you need to get in to see them. (The store, usually closed on Sundays, will be open for the Deep Ellum Arts Festival.) Feast your eyes on these great additions:

Solid teak dining table by Johannes Andersen

Hans J. Wegner teak chairs with original leather seats for CM Madsens

Not Danish, but Scandinavian nonetheless, these chairs are by Norwegian designer Torbjørn Afdal.

Form chairs by Torbjørn Afdal, also with original leather seats

And on the American front, we have bowtie chairs attributed to Paul McCobb, as well as a spectacular 72" bench/coffee table by Kip Stewart and Stewart MacDougall and a pair of Lightolier pendant lamps. (The lamps are a story in themselves. They were found in new old stock condition...still in original packaging with hangtags. They had never been removed from the box and were marked 1959.)

Bowtie chairs attributed to Paul McCobb

72" bench/coffee table by Stewart and MacDougall for Drexel

Lightolier pendants in mint condition

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Mid2Mod Blog Giveaway

I'm giving away this pair of vintage candleholders, created in Italy for Rosenthal Netter. To enter, become a Google follower of this blog and leave a comment on this post saying you're a follower and want to be entered.

It's easy to be a site member. In the Google Followers box to the right of this post, click on Join this site. Once you have set up a Google account, click Follow publicly, and you're done.

The deadline for entering is midnight CDT (North America) on Friday, April 12. The winner will be announced on Saturday, April 13.

My SIL is also having an exciting giveaway right now. Check for details on our Facebook page, but act quickly on that one, because it ends today.

Counterpoint

I was looking online at John Van Koert designs and stumbled upon an 80-piece mahogany and cherry furniture collection he designed for Drexel called Counterpoint, which I'd never seen before.

instappraisal.com

A little research turned up a 1956 Drexel ad for the line, so apparently it predates his Profile line for the same company.

I was completely smitten by this small dresser/chest when I found it on eBay.

Drexel Counterpoint chest
ebay.com - atomic-lipstick

...but not so much by this one, which seems a bit too traditional. If Van Koert had added the wing-like extensions to the large dresser, I would have loved it too.

Drexel Counterpoint dresser
modernlove20.com

I was surprised to see that Van Koert made only a few changes to the Counterpoint dining table and chairs and called it Profile in a later incarnation.

Drexel Counterpoint dining set
use.com

See how similar it is to the later Profile dining set? He did refine the design somewhat and make the dowels in the seat back much smaller.

My Drexel Profile dining set

Personally, I prefer the pulls on the Profile set. Their shape seems more modern and has more visual appeal to me.

Brass Counterpoint pulls
canadiandesignresource.ca

Silver Profile pulls
1stdibs.com

One final interesting find was a photo of a Counterpoint dresser in white, with an acid washed mirrored top. Although I know that Van Koert sometimes used interesting materials for the tops of his pieces, I thought at first that this might be a custom finish, but I eventually found another example from a different seller.

Drexel Counterpoint dresser in white lacquer with acid wash top
belvairformodernliving.1stdibs.com

Close-up of acid washed top
galleryvermillion.com

And then there was Drexel

Edward Wormley

Edward Wormley went to work for Dunbar Furniture in 1931 and is probably known best for the designs he did for them. He decided to open his own New York office in 1945, agreeing to continue as a consultant to Dunbar. He went back to Dunbar in 1957.

In between stints with Dunbar, he produced the Precedent collection for competing Drexel Furniture Company. The collection was given its name because “it promised to set so many bright new standards in contemporary living.” It featured bleached mahogany, silver elm, beechwood, solid brass handles and sliding panels. Wormley created 100 pieces for the Precedent collection, combining the essence of modern design with tradition. His work was featured in the Good Design show at the Museum of Modern Art in 1951 and 1952.

His work for Drexel put a strain on his relationship with Dunbar, so for a time after the Precedent collection came out, he found it prudent to maintain a lower profile, designing showrooms, textiles and small objects like the popular Cosmopolitan globe stand for Rand McNally.

From r20thcentury.com and furniturebrands.typepad.com

Advertising brochure
furniturebrands.typepad.com

1951 magazine ad
ebay.com - Seller: whitemtnhowdy

Dresser
bondandbowery.com

Tiered end tables
momoderne.net

Dining chair
vandm.com

Desk
vandm.com

Dining chairs
metroretro.com

Sofa
1stdibs.com

Chest
1stdibs.com

Coffee table
treadwaygallery.com

Side table
treadwaygallery.com

In the store: Drexel Precedent, Braun stereo and Robert Preusser art

We're happy to add several unique pieces to our store. This time my SIL has outdone himself, bringing in some rarely-seen items that are bound to cause quite a stir.

An out-of-town buying trip turned up a gorgeous Drexel Precedent desk/vanity by Edward Wormley. If it weren't already nice enough, it already has glass cut for the top.

Equally exciting is a tube stereo, circa 1958, by Herbert Hirsch for Braun with a Deiter Rams interface. My SIL calls it "the iPod of the 1950s."

Finally, check out the large piece of art by Robert Preusser above the stereo. I'll be posting more about the artist soon.

Drexel Precedent desk by Edward Wormley

Braun stereo by Herbert Hirsch
 and Polyurethane Relief #7 (1968) by Robert Preusser

Braun stereo, turntable

Edward Wormley

Edward Wormley (1907-1995) studied interior design through a correspondence course while still in high school. He enrolled at the Art Institute of Chicago in 1926, but financial difficulties forced him to drop out after a year and look for work. He soon found a job at Marshall Field's design studio.

However, it was with the Dunbar Furniture Company that Wormley's name is most often associated. He started working there in 1931 and would remain, on and off, for the next thirty years, eventually serving as the design director. Wormley was given the task of refining Dunbar's collection of wood and upholstered furniture. He brought a sleek, refined elegance to the company's products.

Wormley opened an office of his own in New York in 1945. He designed the "Precedent" collection for Drexel in 1947, complicating his relationship with Dunbar for a period of several years, but tensions had eased by the late 1950s.


From lostcityarts.com

Tete a Tete sofa
1stdibs.com

Sheaf of Wheat side table
1stdibs.com

Sideboard
1stdibs.com

Listen to Me chaise
1stdibs.com

Lounge chairs
1stdibs.com

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