A designer and sculptor, Paul Evans was a wild card of late 20th century modernism. A leading light of the American Studio Furniture movement, Evans’s sideboards, credenzas, coffee tables and other work manifests a singular aesthetic sense, as well as a seemingly contradictory appreciation for both folk art forms and for new materials and technologies.
Evans’s primary material was metal, not wood, which was favored by his fellow studio designers, and Bucks County, Pennsylvania, neighbors George Nakashima and Phillip Lloyd Powell. He trained in metallurgy and studied at the Cranbrook Academy of Art, the famed crucible of modern design and art in suburban Detroit. For a time early in his career, Evans also worked at Sturbridge Village, a historical “living museum” in Massachusetts, where he gave demonstrations as a costumed silversmith.
Evans’s earliest work unites these influences. The pieces that made his reputation are known as “sculpted-front” cabinets: wood cases faced with box-like high-relief patinated steel mounts laid out in a grid pattern. Each mount contains a metal emblem, or glyph, and the effect is that of a brawny quilt.
Evans’s later work falls into three distinct style groups. His sculpted-bronze pieces, begun in the mid-1960s, show Evans at his most expressive. He employed a technique in which resin is hand-shaped, and later sprayed with a metal coating, allowing for artistic nuance in the making of chairs, tables and case pieces. Later in the decade and into the 1970s, Evans produced his Argente series for celebrated manufacturer Directional (a brand known to vintage mid-century modern furniture collectors everywhere): consoles and other furniture forms that feature aluminum and pigment-infused metal surfaces welded into abstract organic forms and patterns.
Last, Evans's Cityscape design series — a milestone in the history of brutalist design — meshed perfectly with the sleek, “high tech” sensibility of the later ’70s. Evans constructed boxy forms and faced them with irregular mosaic patterns that mixed rectangular plaques of chromed steel, bronze or burlwood veneer. These, like all of Paul Evans’s designs, are both useful and eye-catching. But their appeal has another, more visceral quality: these pieces have clearly been touched by an artist’s hand.
Find a collection of authentic Paul Evans furniture today on 1stDibs.
Exceptional Sculpted Bronze Dining Table by Paul Evans
By Paul Evans
Located in Atlanta, GA
Substantial Brutalist dining table base by Paul Evans for Directional, circa 1977. Iconic "sculpted bronze" series, with handcrafted surfac...
Bronze
Hand crafted steel and stone dining set, 1970s
Located in Leuven, Vlaams Gewest
Fully hand crafted dining set with 4 chairs and a hexagonal dining table. The chairs are crafted with a curled steel sheet backrest, twisted iron bases and a leatehrette seat. The ...
Stone, Steel
$35,000
H 29.5 in W 38.5 in D 38.5 in
Original Sculpted Bronze Paul Evans for Directional Brutalist Card Table
By Paul Evans
Located in North Miami, FL
This is a Paul Evans brutalist bronzed resin over steel table with wood veneer top. Provenance reference: Paul Evans Designer & Sculptor, Jeffrey Head, pg. 91.
Bronze
$14,500 / set
H 30 in Dm 59 in
1950s French Inspired Bronze Iron Dining Table Set Six Chairs Arturo Pani
By Arturo Pani
Located in Chula Vista, CA
For your consideration, French inspired Dining Table Set attributed to Arturo Pani, Mexico City circa the 1950s. Set includes 6 dining chairs. Forged iron and bronze. New glass top Dimensions: Table 30 x 59 inches diameter, Chairs 33.25 tall x 20 d x 20.5 w Seat 19.5 h. No label Dining table 4 legs clean and modern simple lines. Brass ball at feet. Please note beautifully decorated bronze sabots at tips on legs. French influence The chairs (6) have a beautiful X weave pattern on back, welded into forged iron frame. All firm and sturdy. Original vintage unrestored condition. Patina present. Original upholstery is sun faded. Retains vintage nail...
Brass, Bronze, Iron
Bronze Dining Table T14 by Peter Ghyczy, 1970s
By Peter Ghyczy
Located in Leuven, Vlaams Gewest
Impressive square glass dining table with cast bronze legs designed by Peter Ghyczy. The thick glass top is supported in the corners by the ...
Bronze
Vintage brass dining set by Belgochrom, 1970s
Located in Leuven, Vlaams Gewest
Vintage dining set by Belgochrom consisting of a dining table with a curved brass 4legged base and a clear glass beveled top combined with 4 chairs with brass frames and cream alcant...
Brass
$34,401 / set
H 30 in W 36 in D 72 in
Louise Dining Table Set with 4 Club Chairs in Medium Hammered Brass Over Teak
By Stephanie Odegard Collection, Paul Mathieu (French)
Located in New York, NY
Dining room sets in Louis XV Style with a set of 4 chairs & a Louise Dining Room Table is designed by the renowned designer Paul Mathieu. He chose the name “Louise” when he created h...
Sheet Metal, Brass
$4,995 / set
H 30 in W 75 in D 39.5 in
Post-Modern Italian Sculptural Dining Table Set Six Chairs Italy
By Pietro Costantini
Located in Chula Vista, CA
For your consideration, a Postmodern Italian Dining Table Set with 6 chairs. New Blue Velvet upholstery. In the style of Pietro Costantini. Set includes Six (6) Dining Chairs and D...
Fabric, Wood
$11,050 / set
H 29 in W 54 in D 36 in
Rare Dining Room Set by Paul McCobb for Calvin Furniture, USA, c. 1950s
By Paul McCobb
Located in Deland, FL
Introducing the exquisite vintage expanding dining table from the renowned designer Paul McCobb for Calvin Furniture. This timeless set, part of the lauded Irwin Collection, showcase...
Mahogany
$240,000
H 30 in W 132.25 in D 47.375 in
Philip and Kelvin LaVerne, Rare and Important Dining Table, Bronze, USA, 1960s
By Philip and Kelvin LaVerne
Located in Stamford, CT
Philip and Kelvin LaVerne, Rare and Important 'Xiang Shi' Dining Table, Bronze, USA, 1960s A very rare and important 'Xiang Shi' dining table designed and produced by Philip (1907-1...
Bronze
Set of Ten Dining Chairs by Milo Baughman for Thayer Coggin
By Thayer Coggin, Milo Baughman
Located in Dallas, TX
A stunning set of ten Milo Baughman "Thin Line" dining chairs for Thayer Coggin, circa 1970s. These iconic chairs feature a sleek chromed steel construction and have been meticulousl...
Steel
Paul Evans Sculpted Bronze Brutalist Glass Top Coffee Table for Directional 1969
By Paul Evans
Located in Dallas, TX
Rare and unusual coffee table from the Paul Evans "Sculpted Bronze" Series produced in the late 60s and sold through the directional showroom. The base alone measures approximate...
Bronze, Steel
Cast and Welded Sculptural Bronze Round 'Swirl' Coffee Table by Daniel Gluck
By Daniel Gluck
Located in Dallas, TX
Early and dare Daniel Gluck table from his 'swirl' series. Sculpted solid cast bronze base with circular glass top. There were many imitations of this piece created over the years bu...
Bronze
PE-128 Coffee Table by Paul Evans
By Paul Evans
Located in Dallas, TX
Early production PE-128 Coffee Table designed by Paul Evans, 1969. This Incredible brutalist coffee table, part of the"Sculptured Metal Collection" that Paul Evans created for Direct...
Steel
Dining Set "Die vier Himmelsrichtungen" by Bjorn Wiinblad for Rosenthal
By Rosenthal, Bjorn Wiinblad
Located in Dallas, TX
Dining set "Die vier Himmelsrichtungen" - "The Four Cardinal Points". This is an exceptional, very beautiful and unique dining set that consist of dining table with six chairs design...
Wood, Lacquer, Paint
Dining Table by Florence Knoll for Knoll International
By Knoll, Florence Knoll
Located in Dallas, TX
Beautiful dining table designed by Florence Knoll for Knoll International. Table features a teak top with a chromed steel base and is in excellent condition.
Teak
