Verner Panton introduced the word “groovy” — or at least its Danish equivalent — into the Scandinavian modern design lexicon. He developed fantastical, futuristic forms and embraced bright colors and new materials such as plastic, fabric-covered polyurethane foam and steel-wire framing for the creation of his chairs, sofas, floor lamps and other furnishings. And Panton’s ebullient Pop art sensibility made him an international design star of the 1960s and ’70s. This radical departure from classic Danish modernism, however, actually stemmed from his training under the greats of that design style.
Born on the largely rural Danish island of Funen, Panton studied architecture and engineering at Copenhagen’s Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, where the lighting designer Poul Henningsen was one of his teachers. After graduating, in 1951, Panton worked in the architectural office of Arne Jacobsen, and he became a close friend of Hans Wegner's.
Henningsen taught a scientific approach to design; Jacobsen was forever researching new materials; and Wegner, the leader in modern furniture design using traditional woodworking and joinery, encouraged experimental form.
Panton opened his own design office in 1955, issuing tubular steel chairs with woven seating. His iconoclastic aesthetic was announced with his 1958 Cone chair, modified a year later as the Heart Cone chair. Made of upholstered sheet metal and with a conical base in place of legs, the design shocked visitors to a furniture trade show in Copenhagen.
Panton went on to successive bravura technical feats. His curving, stackable Panton chair, his most popular design, was the first chair to be made from a single piece of molded plastic.
Panton had been experimenting with ideas for chairs made of a single material since the late 1950s. He debuted his plastic seat for the public in the design magazine Mobilia in 1967 and then at the 1968 Cologne Furniture Fair. The designer’s S-Chair models 275 and 276, manufactured during the mid-1960s by August Sommer and distributed by the bentwood specialists at Gebrüder Thonet, were the first legless chairs crafted from a single piece of plywood.
Panton would spend the latter half of the 1960s and early ’70s developing all-encompassing room environments composed of sinuous and fluid-formed modular seating made of foam and metal wire. He also created a series of remarkable lighting designs, most notably his Fun chandeliers — introduced in 1964 and composed of scores of shimmering capiz-shell disks — and the Space Age VP Globe pendant light of 1969.
Panton’s designs are made to stand out and put an eye-catching exclamation point on even the most modern decor.
Find vintage Verner Panton chairs, magazine racks, rugs, table lamps and other furniture on 1stDibs.
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Bar Cabinet in Blue for Verpan
By Verner Panton
Located in Tilburg, NL
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Bar Cabinet for Verpan. Designed in 1963, current production. Adaptable side table and mobile storage unit in one. Barboy consists of three round-shaped drawe...
Wood
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Bar Cabinet in Orange for Verpan
By Verner Panton
Located in Tilburg, NL
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Bar Cabinet for Verpan. Designed in 1963, current production. Adaptable side table and mobile storage unit in one. Barboy consists of three round-shaped drawe...
Wood
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Bar Cabinet in Black for Verpan
By Verner Panton
Located in Tilburg, NL
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Bar Cabinet for Verpan. Designed in 1963, current production. Adaptable side table and mobile storage unit in one. Barboy consists of three round-shaped drawe...
Wood
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Bar Cabinet in Lilac Grey for Verpan
By Verner Panton
Located in Tilburg, NL
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Bar Cabinet for Verpan. Designed in 1963, current production. Adaptable side table and mobile storage unit in one. Barboy consists of three round-shaped drawe...
Wood
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Bar Cabinet in Mushroom for Verpan
By Verner Panton
Located in Tilburg, NL
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Bar Cabinet for Verpan. Designed in 1963, current production. Adaptable side table and mobile storage unit in one. Barboy consists of three round-shaped drawe...
Wood
Verpan Barboy Side Table and Mobile Storage by Verner Panton, Orange
By Verpan, Verner Panton
Located in Varedo, MB
Brand: Verpan Design: Verner Panton Model: Barboy The Barboy by Verner Panton for Verpan is a multifunctional design icon that combines a side table and a mobile storage unit in one...
Wood
Verpan Barboy Side Table and Mobile Storage by Verner Panton, Deep Blue
By Verpan, Verner Panton
Located in Varedo, MB
Brand: Verpan Design: Verner Panton Model: Barboy The Barboy by Verner Panton for Verpan is a multifunctional design icon that combines a side table and a mobile storage unit in one...
Wood
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Bar Cabinet in White for Verpan
By Verner Panton
Located in Tilburg, NL
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Bar Cabinet for Verpan. Designed in 1963, current production. Adaptable side table and mobile storage unit in one. Barboy consists of three round-shaped drawe...
Wood
Verpan Barboy Side Table and Mobile Storage by Verner Panton, Blue
By Verpan, Verner Panton
Located in Varedo, MB
Brand: Verpan Design: Verner Panton Model: Barboy The Barboy by Verner Panton for Verpan is a multifunctional design icon that combines a side table and a mobile storage unit in one...
Wood
Verpan Barboy Side Table and Mobile Storage by Verner Panton, Fresh Orange
By Verpan, Verner Panton
Located in Varedo, MB
Brand: Verpan Design: Verner Panton Model: Barboy The Barboy by Verner Panton for Verpan is a multifunctional design icon that combines a side table and a mobile storage unit in one...
Wood
Verpan Barboy Side Table and Mobile Storage by Verner Panton, Cream White
By Verner Panton, Verpan
Located in Varedo, MB
Brand: Verpan Design: Verner Panton Model: Barboy The Barboy by Verner Panton for Verpan is a multifunctional design icon that combines a side table and a mobile storage unit in one...
Wood
Verpan Barboy Side Table and Mobile Storage by Verner Panton, Mushroom
By Verner Panton, Verpan
Located in Varedo, MB
Brand: Verpan Design: Verner Panton Model: Barboy The Barboy by Verner Panton for Verpan is a multifunctional design icon that combines a side table and a mobile storage unit in one...
Wood
Verpan Barboy Side Table and Mobile Storage by Verner Panton, White
By Verner Panton, Verpan
Located in Varedo, MB
Brand: Verpan Design: Verner Panton Model: Barboy The Barboy by Verner Panton for Verpan is a multifunctional design icon that combines a side table and a mobile storage unit in one...
Wood
Verpan Barboy Side Table and Mobile Storage by Verner Panton, Black
By Verner Panton, Verpan
Located in Varedo, MB
Brand: Verpan Design: Verner Panton Model: Barboy The Barboy by Verner Panton for Verpan is a multifunctional design icon that combines a side table and a mobile storage unit in one...
Wood
Verpan Barboy Side Table and Mobile Storage by Verner Panton, Lilac Grey
By Verner Panton, Verpan
Located in Varedo, MB
Brand: Verpan Design: Verner Panton Model: Barboy The Barboy by Verner Panton for Verpan is a multifunctional design icon that combines a side table and a mobile storage unit in one...
Wood
Aldo Tura Bar Cabinet, Iconic Italian Designer Goatskin Dry Bar Cabinet
By Aldo Tura
Located in Miami, FL
Own a piece of mid-century iconic Italian designed bar cabinet. Historical style and stunning this Aldo Tura dry bar cabinet, crafted in the 1950s is a great choice. Considered one ...
Brass
$1,201 / item
H 28.5 in Dm 15 in
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Side Table and Storage Cabinet in Blue for Verpan
By Verpan, Verner Panton
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Verner Panton 'Barboy' side table and storage cabinet in blue for Verpan. Verner Panton was one of Denmark's most legendary modern furniture and interior designers. His innovative...
Chrome
$1,500 / set
H 14 in W 14 in D 14 in
1970s Verner Panton Attributed Pantonova Wire Cube Side Tables, a Pair
By Verner Panton
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Mid-century Verner Panton Pantonova wire cube for Fritz Hansen is raw yet elegant, industrial in its design. The Panton wire units can be used indi...
Steel
Barboy Bar Trolley in Orange by Verner Panton, Re-Edition
By Verpan, Verner Panton
Located in Paris, FR
The Barboy is a celebrated modular bar trolley originally designed by Verner Panton in 1963 and reissued by Verpan. Conceived as a flexible storage and serving unit, the design consi...
Metal
$4,050
H 30.25 in W 40 in D 20 in
Paul McCobb for Directional Black Lacquered Flip Top Server Bar Cart, Refinished
By Directional, Paul McCobb, Calvin Furniture
Located in South Bend, IN
An exceptional Mid-Century Modern flip top extension rolling bar cart server By Paul McCobb for Directional and produced by Calvin Furniture, "Calvin Group" USA, 1950s Black lacqu...
Brass
$2,500
H 27.56 in W 23.23 in D 15.75 in
Vintage Orange bar trolley Style Alberto Rosselli for Kartell, 1970s
By Alberto Rosselli Saporiti
Located in Autonomous City Buenos Aires, CABA
Vintage Orange bar trolley Style Alberto Rosselli for Kartell, 1970s Fun and versatile beverage cart or bar cart in the style of Alberto Roselli for Kartell. Probably from the '70s, ...
Plastic
$641Sale Price|20% Off
H 20.87 in W 18.51 in D 18.51 in
Space Age Orange Plastic Mobile Bar Trolley Table Made in Italy, 1970s
Located in San Benedetto Del Tronto, IT
A charming blend of form and function, this vintage bar cart from the 1970s stands as a testament to Italy’s renowned design legacy. Fashioned from a beautiful warm-toned orange pla...
Plastic
Aldo Tura Rolling Bar Cabinet
By Aldo Tura
Located in Hanover, MA
1960 Aldo Tura "Organetto" cocktail bar cabinet trolley in beautifully grained pallisander and lacquered goatskin parchment with gilt brass hardware, key and wheels. This whimsical design is in the form of a barrel organ...
Brass
$1,201 / item
H 28.5 in Dm 15 in
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Side Table and Storage Cabinet in Mushroom for Verpan
By Verpan, Verner Panton
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Verner Panton 'Barboy' side table and storage cabinet in mushroom for Verpan Verner Panton was one of Denmark's most legendary modern furniture and interior designers. His innovat...
Chrome
$1,201 / item
H 28.5 in Dm 15 in
Verner Panton 'Barboy' Side Table and Storage Cabinet in Orange for Verpan
By Verner Panton, Verpan
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Verner Panton 'Barboy' side table and storage cabinet in orange for Verpan Verner Panton was one of Denmark's most legendary modern furniture and interior designers. His innovative ...
Chrome
1998, Verner Panton, Dark Grey/ Black, Phantom Chair/Table
By Verner Panton
Located in Amsterdam IJMuiden, NL
Phantom in dark grey / black. Original Phantom chair/table in plastic including marks and stamps. Multiuse chair, bench, table designed by Verner Panton....
Plastic
Danish Bar Cabinet by Dyrlund, 1960's
By Dyrlund
Located in Barcelona, ES
Bar cabinet by Dyrlund, Denmark, 1960's. Reversible doors with white laminated and interior with red laminated, hardwood shelves and storage space for bottles.
Laminate