Cowan's Corner

Modern Furniture On Radar for 2008

By Wes Cowan

People have been asking what's going to be hot this year in the antique market. While this is often a dangerous exercise, here's my annual prediction.

Mid-20th century modern furniture and accessories will be on the radar of collectors. The strong, clean lines and innovative designs of home and office furnishing of the 1930s-1960s have always had a devoted following. This part of the market has taken off in the last few years.

Furniture crafted by George Nakashima (1940-1990) exemplifies this remarkable trend. Nakashima was a Japanese-American furniture maker from New Hope, Penn. His tables and benches, made from slabs of wood, and imaginative chairs and cabinets are superb examples of the modernist movement. Examples of his work fetched nearly one million dollars at auction in 2007. For collectors looking for remarkable pieces but unable to spend six figures, his shop is still open and run by his daughter.

While many will never see a Nakashima piece in a local shop or flea market, there is still plenty of mid-century furniture that can be purchased for reasonable prices. Charles and Ray Eames popularized a style of kitchen and office chairs that are still being produced today. Edward Wormley (1907-1995) produced great upscale furniture for sophisticated buyers. Examples of Wormley furniture are marketed through the Indiana-based Dunbar Company and are commanding increasingly higher prices.

Furniture manufactured by the Herman Miller Company of Zeeland, Mich., has enjoyed a healthy following since the inception of the business in the 1920s. Their stylish office chairs and furniture are still being manufactured virtually unchanged. Many of the lines first produced in the 1950s and '60s are still available, but collectors generally prefer vintage rather than new.

When hunting for these mid-century modern pieces, condition is very important. Original upholstery and construction elements add value to the piece. Though prices for mid-century modern decorative arts are climbing, deals can still be found for lesser-known names.

About the author: Wes Cowan is founder and owner of Cowan's Auctions, Inc. in Cincinnati, Ohio. An internationally-recognized expert in historic Americana, Wes stars in the PBS television series History Detectives and is a featured appraiser on Antiques Roadshow. He can be reached via email at info@cowans.com.

This Wormley-designed couch manufactured by the Dunbar Company recently fetched $5,175 at a recent Cowan's Auction.

A group of four Eames DCM chairs with an estimated value of $800-$1,000.

Another Wormley for Dunbar example, this cabinet sold for almost $4,900 at a recent auction.