The Complete Kagan: Vladimir Kagan, A Lifetime of Avant-Garde Design, Signed
About the Item
- Creator:Vladimir Kagan (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 2 in (5.08 cm)Width: 9 in (22.86 cm)Depth: 11 in (27.94 cm)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:2006
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Brooklyn, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU4190326882862
Vladimir Kagan
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.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Brooklyn, NY
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 1 day of delivery.
- Vladimir Kagan VK Armchair, Gray Blue Leather Lounge Chair, Polished Base.By Vladimir KaganLocated in Brooklyn, NYVladimir Kagan VK Armchair, Made in Italy. Gray Blue leather. Polished aluminum base. Originally designed as the Contour Collection (Trisymmetric Chaise Longue and Armchair Lounge) in the late 1950’s as a metal version of his tri-symmetric wood forms of the 1940’s for Kagan-Dreyfus. Produced under Vladimir Kagan New York...Category
Late 20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Vladimir Kagan Mohair Wing Chair 100c-S, Polished Nickel Swivel Base, Holly HuntBy Vladimir KaganLocated in Brooklyn, NYVladimir Kagan mohair wing chair 100c, polished nickel swivel base, holly hunt. Gorgeous Amber Whiskey Mohair Custom piece. Rare metal swivel base version...Category
Vintage 1940s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsStainless Steel, Nickel
- Vladimir Kagan 100C-S Mohair Wing Chair & 100BF Barrel Ottoman, Polished NickelBy Vladimir KaganLocated in Brooklyn, NYVladimir Kagan 100C-S Mohair Wing Chair & 100BF Barrel Ottoman, Polished Nickel, Holly Hunt. Gorgeous Amber Whiskey Mohair Custom piece. Rare metal swivel base version in polished ni...Category
Vintage 1940s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsStainless Steel, Nickel
- Vladimir Kagan 100C-S Mohair Wing Chairs & 100BF Barrel Ottoman, Polished NickelBy Vladimir KaganLocated in Brooklyn, NYVladimir Kagan 100C-S Mohair Wing Chairs & 100BF Barrel Ottoman, Polished Nickel, Holly Hunt. Gorgeous Amber Whiskey Mohair Custom piece. Rare metal swivel base version in polished n...Category
Vintage 1940s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsStainless Steel, Nickel
- Vetement Couture Limited Edition Calfskin Paperbag Clutch Messenger Bag, 2019Located in Brooklyn, NYVetement Couture limited edition calfskin paperbag clutch messenger bag, fall winter 2019. Numbered, limited edition.Category
Late 20th Century French Post-Modern Trunks and Luggage
MaterialsMagnets
- Frank Lloyd Wright for Schumacher Textile Woven Swatch Collection, 1986By Frank Lloyd Wright, SchumacherLocated in Brooklyn, NYFrank Lloyd Wright for Schumacher Textile Woven Swatch Collection 1986 . Rare Frank Lloyd Wright fabric swatch books published and produced b...Category
Late 20th Century American Mission Books
MaterialsTextile
- Vintage Tom Wesselmann Avant-Garde ‘Magazine’ 1968 (Tom Wesselmann nudes)By Tom WesselmannLocated in Brooklyn, NYVintage 1968 issue of Avant-Garde magazine with a superb, highly frame able cover illustration by American pop art icon, Tom Wesselmann. Celebrated within this issue is the artists w...Category
Vintage 1960s Post-Modern Decorative Art
MaterialsPaper
- The Complete Works of Geoffrey ChaucerLocated in Middletown, NYThe Complete Works of Geoffrey Chaucer; Edited From Numerous Manuscripts By The Rev. Walter W. Skeat Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1920 8vo, 7 1/2 x 5 1/2 in. (190 x 133 mm); pp xxi...Category
Antique Late 18th Century English Books
MaterialsLeather, Paper
- La Russie À L'Avant-Garde 1900-1935 by Fonds Mercator, Exhibition CatalogLocated in valatie, NYLa Russie À L'Avant-Garde 1900-1935 by Fonds Mercator. Published by Fonds Mercator, 2008. 1st Ed softcover Exhibition Catalog with French text. At the start of modernity and abstract...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Belgian Books
MaterialsPaper
- 'Antiques for the Table', A Complete Guide to Dining Room Accessories, SignedLocated in valatie, NY‘Antiques for the Table’, A Complete Guide to dining room accessories for Collecting and Entertaining by Sheila Chefetz. Penguin Publishing Group 1993. Signed and inscribed first edition 4th printing hardcover with dust jacket. Inscribed "Enjoy our 'feast' for the eyes!" More than 200 full-color photographs. 'Antiques for the Table' presents dozens of table setting ideas for every occasion. Antiques authority Sheila Chefetz tells readers how to use, store, identify, and appreciate fine examples of 18th, 19th, and 20th century China, glass, and silver. A definitive volume on antique tableware...Category
1990s American Books
MaterialsPaper
- 1902 The Complete Works of Edgar Allan PoeLocated in Bath, GBA beautiful limited edition set of the complete works of Edgar Allan Poe, illustrated with ten plates to each volume, and signed by the publisher. The Arnheim Edition of Poe's works...Category
Antique Early 1900s Books
MaterialsPaper
- 1997-98 The Complete Works of George OrwellBy George OrwellLocated in Bath, GBA striking complete set of the works of George Orwell, a sought after collection of both his fiction and non-fiction. Complete in twenty volumes. The complete works of George Orwel...Category
1990s European Books
MaterialsPaper
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
Martyn Lawrence Bullard Welcomes You to the Hotel Californian
A Spanish Colonial Revival gem in the heart of Santa Barbara has been reborn as a luxurious new boutique hotel.
How the Anglepoise Lamp Went from Desktop Companion to Hollywood Icon
Since its 1934 debut, the ingenious task light has become one of the most celebrated examples of industrial design.