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Vintage Aldo Tura Post-Modern Lacquered Parchment Desk, Italy

$24,000List Price

Aldo Tura

One of the most enigmatic and polarizing figures to emerge in Italian design, Aldo Tura is an outlier in the world of mid-century furniture. The designer’s glamorous bar carts, coffee tables, cabinets and more resist categorization and draw inspiration from Art Deco, Art Nouveau, Baroque, Surrealist and modernist styles.

Tura moved through distinct phases in his career in terms of aesthetics, influences and finishes, rendering his life’s work exciting and diverse. Despite these phases, he held a singular devotion to one material: lacquered goatskin. Tura established a furniture production house in 1939 in Lombardy, and some of his early work focused on tables, decorative lamps and more. He later expanded to bar furnishings like rolling carts, cabinets and complementary barware accessories like ice buckets and cocktail shakers. The eccentric, gleaming and luxe surface of lacquered goatskin was a constant, along with eggshell, parchment and leather.

By the 1950s, Tura had begun to use hand-painted figural panels on the surface of cabinets, serveware (such as carafes) and other pieces. He even replicated famous works by artists like Monet and Bruegel the Elder and art from the Middle Ages, sometimes playfully embedding the paintings on cabinets shaped like oversize books. Even though he had a favored color palette of rich chocolate browns and deep emeralds, his style remained consistently hard to define.

Tura was unlike most of his Italian contemporaries but held a similar reverence for the nation’s traditional craftsmanship and artisanal techniques. He never followed the growing trend of mass-produced, industrial furniture and stuck to creating small, meticulously handcrafted collections. This principled choice means that today, a Tura piece is a rare and highly coveted collectible. The Tura firm continues to operate in Brianza, promoting Italian craftsmanship and the eclectic materials embraced by their namesake designer.

Find authentic vintage Aldo Tura furniture today on 1stDibs.

Linea D Lacquered Top Carpanese Home Italia Desk

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H 29.53 in W 39.38 in D 80.71 in

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Desk in solid ash wood and ash-veneered wood fiber panels. Available with ash wood or matt lacquered top. Painted metal plates. Two drawers with push-pull system and eco-nubuck uphol...

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$18,000

H 30.71 in W 39.38 in D 23.63 in

Italian Desk from the 60s

Located in Ciudad Autónoma Buenos Aires, C

Logistics and International Shipping We provide a comprehensive export service so that your only concern is enjoying your acquisition. • Door-to-Door Service: Pieces located in our Argentina galleries are shipped directly to your address via air freight. • Simplified Customs Management: We handle the processing of export permits and the payment of customs duties. You will receive your purchase without additional paperwork or surprise costs. • High-Security Packaging: Following FedEx international standards, each piece is protected in custom-made wooden crates, designed to withstand 1-meter impacts and ensure the integrity of the object during transit. • Note for shipments to the USA: To comply with shipping company regulations and ensure delivery at the destination, a valid tax ID (EIN, SSN, or ITIN) is required. • Domestic US Shipping: For those pieces available in our United States storage, logistics are managed through 1stdibs. Personalized Restorations Our team of expert artisans offers restoration services tailored to your aesthetic preferences and design needs: • Cabinetry and Polishing: We perform polishing work on woods, allowing for transitions from light to dark tones (including deep black finishes). • Upholstery: We reupholster chairs and armchairs with fabrics or leathers of your choice, guaranteeing a high-quality finish. • Lighting: We adapt ceiling lamps by shortening smooth rods to adjust them to the height of your rooms. • Metal Treatment: * Restoration of chromed or silver-plated bronze pieces to their original state. o Chroming or silver-plating services for bronze objects. Personalized Quotes: We would be delighted to advise you and provide a quote for any intervention according to your personal taste. Red lacquered wood desk from the 60s...

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Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks

Materials

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Mid-Century Desk by Giaiotti, Italy, 1960s

$4,961

H 29.53 in W 70.87 in D 31.5 in

Mid-Century Desk by Giaiotti, Italy, 1960s

Located in Brussels, BE

Mid-Century Desk by Giaiotti, Italy, 1960s

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Mid-20th Century European Mid-Century Modern Desks

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Italian Mid-Century Modern PetiteTable Desk Designed by Vittorio Dassi, 1950s

$3,898

H 26.78 in W 35.44 in D 17.72 in

Italian Mid-Century Modern PetiteTable Desk Designed by Vittorio Dassi, 1950s

By Vittorio Dassi

Located in Traversetolo, IT

Stylish Italian Mid-Century Modern petite desk elegantly named "Dattilo" in wood teak designed by Vittorio Dassi, from the 1950s. The drawer front is very elegant, inspired by the co...

Category

Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks

Materials

Brass

Modernist lacquered wood executive desk

$22,500

H 31.25 in W 63 in D 29 in

Modernist lacquered wood executive desk

Located in New York, NY

Modernist lacquered wood five drawer executive desk and with cantilevered top.

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Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables

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Italian Modern Desk Designed By Sandro Petti

$12,850

H 29.75 in W 63.25 in D 30.5 in

Italian Modern Desk Designed By Sandro Petti

By Sandro Petti, Aldo Tura, Paolo Buffa, Gio Ponti, Karl Springer

Located in Houston, TX

Italian Modern Desk Designed By Sandro Petti. Offered is an large handsome desk with brass trim and three drawers designed by Sandro Petti in the 1970's. This stunning desk is finis...

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Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables

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Brass

A POST-MODERN Lacquered CONSOLE Table, ALDO TURA, ROCHE & BOBOIS, France 1970

$9,450

H 31.5 in W 51.19 in D 13.78 in

A POST-MODERN Lacquered CONSOLE Table, ALDO TURA, ROCHE & BOBOIS, France 1970

By Roche Bobois

Located in PARIS, FR

An elegant and luxurious console table with 2 trays, of Japanese inspiration, Post-Modern, Memphis, Constructivist, sophisticated geometric structure in lacquered wood, two separate ...

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Vintage 1970s French Post-Modern Console Tables

Materials

Wood, Lacquer

American Mid-Century Desk, Leather Finish, Custom Built, USA, 1960s

$18,950

H 29.5 in W 66 in D 32 in

American Mid-Century Desk, Leather Finish, Custom Built, USA, 1960s

Located in Queens, NY

American Mid-Century Karl Springer style custom desk with a white leather finish, having two pull out trays, two drawers with pencil wells and two file drawers with metal pulls

Category

Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Leather

Aldo Tura Mid-Century Modern Desk, Brown Parchment, Circa 1960s

$42,000

H 30 in W 72.5 in D 36 in

Aldo Tura Mid-Century Modern Desk, Brown Parchment, Circa 1960s

By Aldo Tura

Located in Queens, NY

Italian 1940/1950s brown parchment veneer desk with brass trimmed edge and 4 drawers supported on 2 rectangular pedestals with a vanity panel. (ALDO TU...

Category

Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Brass

Mid-Century Modern Desk/ Table by Borsani, Italy, 1950s

$2,126

H 31.89 in W 68.12 in D 36.42 in

Mid-Century Modern Desk/ Table by Borsani, Italy, 1950s

By Osvaldo Borsani

Located in Brussels, BE

Mid-Century Modern Desk/ Table by Borsani, Italy, 1950s

Category

Vintage 1950s Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Wood

Julie Charbonneau Takes a Bespoke Approach to Clean-Lined Design

When it comes to authentic materials and quality craftsmanship, the Toronto-based designer accepts no substitutes.

Vintage Aldo Tura Post-Modern Lacquered Parchment Desk, Italy

About the Item

Aldo Tura

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