the fifties

In a Dickensian “best of times, worst of times” construction, one can choose to see the 1950s as either a time of irrepressible, youthful optimism and invention or as 20th-century America’s morally compromised mid-life crisis. Balancing conformity and dissent, this was a decade that, at its best, yielded some of America’s most innovative and original architecture, interior design, and, especially, furniture.

In the slideshow above, we feature some of the 1950s’ greatest hits, a few sleeping beauties, and a couple of surprises. Among the designers we celebrate, four were card-carrying modernists. The latter two, working within a more traditional framework, were modern in their approach. Our survey includes a portrait, a brief biography, a signature design, and a trademarked product currently in production. Taking a little license, we end with an interpretative selection by a new generation of designers who clearly internalized the aesthetic spirit of our Design Six.

To lend a little historical perspective on the visuals: The last half of the 1940s and the decade that followed were to become one of America’s most technically and artistically productive periods. Industrial materials and know-how adapted from World War II were harnessed to build housing and offices for returning servicemen and a shape-shifting landscape; a growing middle class and a robust economy attracted an enterprising generation of seismic talent dedicated to furnishing these homes and workplaces with unsurpassed creativity.

In 1946, George Nelson became design director of the renowned Herman Miller furniture company. He enlisted the prodigiously gifted Charles and Ray Eames. The same year, Florence Schust became partner of Knoll Associates and wife of Hans Knoll. This corporate coupling resulted in brilliant design progeny—including works by Harry Bertoia. Other milestones included the fortuitous appointment of Edward Wormley at Dunbar Furniture and T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings’s elegant commissions for the Widdicomb Furniture Company.

From the crucible of the ’40s flowed the forms of ’50s modernism, a style that to many defines “American design.” Be it wood laminate, foam rubber, plastic or fiberglass, modern materials were shaped into endless forms and configurations. Many 1950s silhouettes remain etched into our visual memory. Their originality and execution remind us that the ’50s were among the best of times. 

PHOTO CREDITS, DESIGNERS: FLORENCE KNOLL BASSETT; HARRY BERTOIA: KNOLL, INC.; T.H. ROBSJOHN-GIBBINGS, C. 1945, COURTESY OF THE TERENCE HAROLD ROBSJOHN-GIBBINGS PAPERS, 1945–1965, ARCHIVES OF AMERICAN ART, SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.

SIGNATURE DESIGN, T.H. ROBSJOHN-GIBBINGS: PAIR OF SABRE-LEG LAMP TABLES BY T.H. ROBSJOHN-GIBBINGS, PHOTO BY DUAL MODERN, AVAILABLE ON 1STDIBS.COM.

PERIOD DEALER, GEORGE NELSON: RARE DINING TABLE BY GEORGE NELSON, PHOTO BY MARK MCDONALD, AVAILABLE ON 1STDIBS.COM.

ALL PERIOD DEALER PHOTOS ALSO AVAILABLE THROUGH 1STDIBS.COM