Paul McCobb (1917-1969) was a popular American designer who became a household name in the Fifties. He started his career as a designer of retail displays, but he soon turned to the design of furniture, wallpaper, fabric, glassware and ceramics, lighting, radios, televisions, console stereos and even typewriters. His well-made, moderately priced home furnishings became an immediate success, earning him the nickname “America’s decorator."
McCobb was born in Boston, where he received training in fine art at Vesper George School of Art. Although he had no formal training in design, he established his own company, Paul McCobb Design Associates, in 1945. Working with the distributor B. G. Mesberg*, he introduced the Planner Group in 1950, which was followed by the Directional, Predictor Linear and Perimeter lines, all produced by Winchendon Furniture and marketed by McCobb himself.
McCobb’s pieces were not only economical but practical and functional as well, designed to meet the needs of young middle-class families who were furnishing their first homes. For example, he created “living walls,” which were movable room dividers and storage systems. These allowed maximum flexibility and efficient use of limited space in small post-war housing.
McCobb won the MoMA Good Design Award five times between 1950 and 1955, as well as the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s Contribution to Better Design award in 1959.
He was design consultant for many leading corporations, including Singer, Alcoa, Goodyear, Columbia Records and Remington Rand. His work has been exhibited in the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Merchandise Mart in Chicago.
From lostcityarts.com, September 9, 2010, and r20thcentury.com, September 17, 2010
*According to the Directional, Inc. web site, B. G. "Bud" Mesberg founded that company in 1950 and worked with Paul McCobb, among other well-known designers of the time. The company was operated by the Mesberg family until 1994. Lost City Arts spells the name "Mosberg," and R Gallery spells it "Mersburg," but I believe my spelling to be correct.
(While researching the information for this post, I found a blog by Paul McCobb's daughter, Melissa. You might be interested in reading it: http://melissamccobbhubbell.typepad.com/meliscellanea/
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Planner Group credenza, 1950
fubiz.com |
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Contempri "Eclipse" china by Jackson
modish.net |
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Bar cart
artnet.com |
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CBS-Columbia Model 205C2, 1954
plan59.com |
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From my mix 'n' match collection
of Paul McCobb Jackson China restaurantware |
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Roulette tile for Pomona
pinterest.com - Raisa Sandstrom |
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Starspray tile for Pomona
pinterest.com - Raisa Sandstrom |
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Patterns tile for Pomona
pinterest.com - Raisa Sandstrom |
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Brass table by Calvin Furniture
reformgallery.1stdibs.com |
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Sofa by Custom Craft
reformgallery.1stdibs.com |
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Planner Group desk and chair
1stdibs.com |
Update:
This post originally identified the following room divider as a Paul McCobb design, but it is not.
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Room divider by Mark J. Furst and Robert Fellner for Furnett
detnk.com |
