The pioneers of modern furniture design in America in the mid-20th century all had their moments of flamboyance: Charles and Ray Eames produced the startling, biomorphic La Chaise; George Nelson’s firm created the Marshmallow sofa; Edward Wormley had his decadent Listen to Me chaise. But no designer of the day steadily offered works with more verve and dynamism than Vladimir Kagan. While others, it seems, designed with suburban households in mind, Kagan aimed to suit the tastes of young, sophisticated city-dwellers. With signature designs that feature sleekly curved frames and others that have dramatic out-thrust legs, Kagan made furniture sexy.
Kagan’s father was a Russian master cabinetmaker who took his family first to Germany (where Vladimir was born) and then to New York in 1938. After studying architecture at Columbia University, Kagan opened a design firm at age 22 and immediately made a splash with his long, low and sinuous Serpentine sofa. Furniture lines such as the Tri-symmetric group of glass-topped, three-legged tables and the vivacious Contours chairs soon followed.
Kagan’s choices of form and materials evolved through subsequent decades, embracing lucite, aluminum and burl-wood veneers. By the late 1960s, Kagan was designing austere, asymmetrical cabinets and his Omnibus group of modular sofas and chairs. For all his aesthetic élan, Kagan said that throughout his career, his touchstone was comfort. “A lot of modern furniture was not comfortable. And so comfort is: form follows function. The function was to make it comfortable,” he once commented. “I created what I called vessels for the human body.”
A diverse group of bodies have made themselves at home with Kagan designs. Among the famous names who commissioned and collected his designs are Marilyn Monroe, Gary Cooper, Andy Warhol, David Lynch, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, and firms such as Gucci and Giorgio Armani. His work is in numerous museum collections, including those of the Victoria & Albert and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Because of its idiosyncrasy, Kagan’s work did not lend itself to mass-production. Kagan never signed on with any of the major furniture-making corporations, and examples of his designs are relatively rare. As you will see from the offerings on 1stDibs, even decades after their conception, Kagan pieces still command the eye, with their freshness, energy, sensuality and wit.
Vladimir Kagan: A Lifetime of Avant-Garde Design
By Vladimir Kagan
Located in New York, NY
With Vladimir Kagan’s death in 2016, the world of design lost one of its most celebrated practitioners. Pointed Leaf Press is honored to be reissuin...
Paper
$1,800Sale Price|25% Off
The Complete Kagan: Vladimir Kagan, A Lifetime of Avant-Garde Design, Signed
By Vladimir Kagan
Located in Brooklyn, NY
The Complete Kagan: Vladimir Kagan — A Lifetime of Avant-Garde Design. First edition. Signed by Kagan. Excellent condition. Hardback. 1st complete c...
Paper
1902 The Complete Works of Edgar Allan Poe
Located in Bath, GB
A beautiful limited edition set of the complete works of Edgar Allan Poe, illustrated with ten plates to each volume, and signed by t...
Paper
Visions of Home: Timeless Design, Modern Sensibility
By Rizzoli International Publications
Located in New York, NY
Author Andrew Cogar and Marc Kristal, Introduction by James L. Strickland, Photographs by Eric Piasecki A new volume from the esteemed architecture firm Historical Concepts features ...
Paper
Carlo Scarpa: The Complete Works (Book)
Located in North Yorkshire, GB
Before starting his career as an architect, Scarpa worked for more that ten years as artistic director at the Venini glass works where he gained an exceptional knowledge of raw mater...
Paper
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[1896] The Complete Works of William Hickling Prescott
By William Hickling Prescott
Located in Bath, GB
A beautiful and exceptionally bright leather set of these collected major works of William Hickling Prescott. Complete in twelve volumes. A set of the major works of William H. Pr...
Paper
Sar The Essence of Indian Design Book
Located in New York, NY
An exploration of the timeless beauty of Indian design through 200 classic objects. The Indian subcontinent is an amalgamation of peoples, cultures, languages and philosophies. Th...
Paper
Treasury of Art Nouveau Design & Ornament
Located in Bradenton, FL
Treasury of Art Nouveau Design & Ornament, a pictorial archive of 577 illustrations, selected by Carol Belanger Grafton. Softcover book, published in 1980 by Dover Publications, Inc....
Paper
"Sar The Essence of Indian Design" Book
Located in New York, NY
An exploration of the timeless beauty of Indian design through 200 classic objects. The Indian subcontinent is an amalgamation of peoples, cultures, languages and philosophies. Thro...
Paper
Dieter Rams The Complete Works
Located in New York, NY
The ultimate reference on one of the most influential product designers of all time For more than sixty years Dieter Rams has defined the look, feel, and function of some of the w...
Paper
House of a Lifetime: A Collector’s Journey in Tangier
By Rizzoli International Publications
Located in New York, NY
Author Umberto Pasti and Ngoc Minh Ngo, Foreword by Madison COX A photographic tour of an exceptional villa in Tangier with a special focus of its museum-worthy collections of Morrocan artworks...
Paper
Defining Style The Book of Interior Design
Located in New York, NY
Discover 25 of the most recognizable design styles through 150 residential interiors from the world’s leading designers From Coastal to Contemporary, Maximal to Mediterranean, Tailored to Textured, this inspirational lookbook guides beginners and enthusiasts alike through the most timeless interior design styles of the last century. Learn to identify and understand each style like an expert through introductory texts describing key tenets and featured real-world examples by today’s best contemporary designers, such as Studio Shamshiri, Laura Gonzalez, and Vincenzo De Cotiis...
Paper
Iro: the Essence of Color in Japanese Design
Located in New York, NY
The first and only survey of Japanese design as seen through the lens of Japan’s traditional color spectrum – an exquisitely packaged fresh take on a universally popular topic The...
Paper
Elan The Interior Design of Kate Hume
By Rizzoli International Publications
Located in New York, NY
Author Kate Hume and Linda O'Keeffe, Photographs by Frans van der Heijden The first book from celebrated interior and furniture designer Kate Hume. Kate ...
Paper
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H 32.25 in W 100 in D 19 in
Important Bedroom Set by Vladimir Kagan for Kagan-Dreyfuss, 1950s, Signed
By Kagan-Dreyfuss, Inc., Vladimir Kagan
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This very rare and important bedroom set featuring a sculptural double dresser and a pair of floating sculptural nightstands was designed by Vladimir Kagan and handcrafted by Kagan-D...
Walnut
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H 23.75 in W 24 in D 18 in
Important Vladimir Kagan Sculptural Nightstands, Signed Kagan-Dreyfuss, 1950s
By Kagan-Dreyfuss, Inc., Vladimir Kagan
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This very rare and important pair of sculptural nightstands / end tables were designed by Vladimir Kagan and handcrafted by Kagan-Dreyfuss Inc du...
Walnut
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H 36 in W 42 in D 2 in
Vladimir Kagan 2 Twin Headboards/ King and Single Nightstand for Kagan Dreyfuss
By Kagan-Dreyfuss, Inc., Vladimir Kagan
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Vladimir Kagan for Kagan Dreyfuss pair of twin headboards/ King headboard with one nightstand. Commissioned in 1954 directly from Kagan Dreyfuss for a New York City Apartment. Altern...
Walnut
Vladimir Kagan, Nightstands, Wood, Acrylic, Studio, America, 1970s
By Vladimir Kagan
Located in High Point, NC
A pair of nightstands / bedside cabinets. Designed by Vladimir Kagan. Produced by Vladimir Kagan Inc. Marked with manufacturers plaque reading "handmade in the workshop of Vladimir K...
Metal
Vladimir Kagan Nightstands for Grosfeld House
By Vladimir Kagan
Located in San Francisco, CA
Vladimir Kagan design nightstands for Grosfeld House, N.Y. Perfectly refinished in a medium walnut color with one door and one adjustable shelf.
Walnut
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H 82 in W 42 in D 6 in
Vladimir Kagan Architectural Louvered & Illuminated Room Divider with COA, 1967
By Vladimir Kagan
Located in Brooklyn, NY
An incredibly rare louvered and illuminated room divider in solid walnut floating over a cylindrical brass foot, custom-designed by Vladimir Kagan circa 1967. Six sculptural, marquise-shaped slats are angled at 45 degrees to the frame and flank the light box which houses a single 6-foot fluorescent bulb. Authenticated by and registered with the Vladimir Kagan Design Group, this piece is offered to the collector with all corresponding documents including certificate of authenticity, company letter, related archival photos, and numbered registration plaque. While their archivists have seen similar slatted dividers that Kagan designed (see last image in this listing), they’d not seen one with an incorporated lighting element before and thus feel that this example may well be one-of-a-kind or, at the very least, from a strictly limited run. That said, it seems that this general concept of combining lighting with room partitioning...
Brass
Vladimir Kagan for Grosfeld House Sculptural Walnut Nightstands, 1950s
By Grosfeld House, Vladimir Kagan
Located in Dallas, TX
This is an original pair of sculptural lacquered walnut nightstands designed by Vladimir Kagan for Grosfeld House. An early rare form desi...
Walnut
Vladimir Kagan: A Lifetime of Avant-Garde Design, Signed by Kagan
By Vladimir Kagan
Located in Brooklyn, NY
"The Complete Kagan: Vladimir Kagan: A Lifetime of Avant-Garde Design." Pointed Leaf Press, 2004. Preface by Tom Ford. Large, beautiful signature on flyleaf by Vladimir Kagan. ...
Paper
Walnut Framed Headboard by Vladimir Kagan
By Vladimir Kagan
Located in Sagaponack, NY
An oversized upholstered headboard with an undulating walnut frame for a king mattress.
Walnut