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.
Paul Evans Sculpted Bronze Brutalist Sideboard, USA, 1969
By Paul Evans
Located in Miami, FL
Paul Evans Sculpted Bronze Brutalist Sideboard, USA, 1969 An exceptional example from Paul Evans’ iconic sculpted bronze series, this brutalist sideboard was created in 1969 by the a...
Slate, Metal
Bronze Sculpture "Feminity" by James L. Lawton, 1967
Located in Miami, FL
Bronze sculpture by James Lawton, titled "Feminity" Signed and dated Jim Lawton 67 Comes with archive pictures and letter by the artist (see pictures).
Bronze
Paul Evans Studio Floating Console Shelf and Mirror Set, USA, Circa 1970s
By Paul Evans
Located in Miami, FL
Paul Evans studio floating console shelf and mirror set, USA, Circa 1970s Brutalist patchwork design in copper and pewter. A striking example of Paul Evans’ iconic Brutalist aestheti...
Slate, Brass, Copper, Pewter
1970s Pia Manu Belgian Studio Slate Mosaic Sideboard, Glass Top
By Pia Manu
Located in Miami, FL
This exceptional Brutalist sideboard by Belgian designer Pia Manu is a wonderful example of the organic modernism of mid-to-late 20th-century European studio furniture. Resting on a ...
Slate, Metal, Chrome
Single Giacometti style Console Dark Bronze Patina, USA 1970's
By Alberto and Diego Giacometti
Located in Miami, FL
A vintage cast aluminum patinated in a deep textured dark bronze finish and glass console table featuring a tree-of-life motif. The console is designed in the brutalist artistic mann...
Aluminum
Pair of Paul Evans Studio Argente PE-37 Cube Tables for Directional, 1970s
By Paul Evans
Located in Miami, FL
Pair of Paul Evans Studio Argente PE-37 Cube Tables for Directional, 1970s Exceptional and rare pair of Paul Evans Studio Argente PE-37 cube tables, produced by Directional circa 1...
Slate, Metal, Aluminum
Paul Evans for Directional Large-Scaled 'PE 122' Bar Cabinet in Sculpted Bronze
By Paul Evans, Directional
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Paul Evans, Paul Evans Studio for Directional, largely sized wall-mounted bar cabinet, model 'PE 122' epoxy bronzed resin over laminate, painted wood, wood wrapped in leather, United...
Bronze
Rare "Sculpted -Bronze" 'Disc Bar' by Paul Evans for Directional
By Paul Evans
Located in Montreal, QC
Rare "sculpted -bronze" 'Disc Bar,' Model PE-122, by Paul Evans for Directional. Signed on top right corner of back, "PE 71," as shown. This piece is an original iconic Paul Evans cr...
Composition
Paul Evans, 72'' Wall-mounted Sculpted Bronze Disc Bar
By Paul Evans
Located in New York, NY
A dynamic hand-sculpted, wall-mounted cabinet, Paul Evans’ Disc Bar, is arguably one of Evans’ most iconic designs. The sculptural design is monume...
Bronze
Monumental Adrian Pearsall Brutalist Wall Mounted Disc Dry Bar, 1970's
By Adrian Pearsall, Craft Associates
Located in Culver City, CA
Available right now we have this increasingly rare, mid century modern, brutalist disc bar by Adrian Pearsall for Craft Associates. This brutalist wall mounted disc cabinet is definitely a conversation piece-- stretching a whopping 48" in diameter, this disc dar opens to reveal a mirrored back as well as 2 shelf inserts. They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and this entire brutalist line of furniture appears to have (pretty obviously) been inspired by American craft movement designer Paul Evans, who designed nearly identical pieces which were available through Directional Furniture to the trade in the 1960's and 1970's. While this piece doesn't have the pedigree of an original Paul Evans piece, what is does have is an abundance of over-the-top maximalist style with a much more palatable price tag. Without being mounted to the wall, this piece was a little tougher than an average piece to photograph, but for scale purposes we photographed it resting on the floor alongside a Fabricius and Kastholm grasshopper...
Resin, Wood
Rare Brutalist "Sculpted Bronze" Cabinet by Paul Evans
By Paul Evans
Located in Montreal, QC
"Sculpted bronze" buffet by Paul Evans for Directional the front fitted with four panel doors and the top fitted typical slate slabs, the inside featuring adjustable shelves. Signed:...
Bronze, Metal
Paul Evans Sculpted Bronze 2-Door Cabinet
By Paul Evans
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Paul Evans sculpted bronze cabinet Incised signature and date Original surface, grain painted interior and shelf.
Resin
