In its striking curtain wall of glass and modernist steel columns, Gordon Bunshaft’s International-style design for the Lever House — cocreated with Natalie de Blois — garnered widespread acclaim. The Pritzker Prize-winner was a legendary American architect, and his influence can be found today in city skylines all over the world.
Bunshaft studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology before undertaking fellowships in Europe and North Africa. In 1937, he joined New York City architectural firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill where he worked until his retirement in 1979.
Bunshaft shared the same interest in modernist furniture as Florence Knoll, an architect and furniture designer who had a subtle but profound influence on the course of mid-century American modernism and who helped make Knoll Inc. a leading firm in its field. Bunshaft recommended that Knoll be placed in charge of interiors when, while at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, he designed the Connecticut General Life Insurance Company’s headquarters in the mid-1950s.
Bunshaft’s projects drew heavily on the pioneering architectural work of Le Corbusier as well as Mies van der Rohe, an iconic furniture designer and fellow proponent of modernist architecture.
Celebrated architectural marvels created by Bunshaft include the Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library for Yale University and the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Research Building for the University of Texas. Completed in 1974, Bunshaft designed the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, part of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., and finished the National Commercial Bank in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in 1983. The National Commercial Bank was his last project.
On 1stDibs, find vintage Gordon Bunshaft case pieces and other furniture.
1970s Davis Allen for Stow Davis 4-Position Credenza in Walnut or Mahogany
By Davis Allen
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This is a 4-Position Credenza, originally designed by Davis Allen of SOM for Stow Davis. This particular example was produced in the United States in the 1970s. The design features a...
Marble, Chrome
1970s Davis Allen of SOM for Stow Davis Cabinet / Credenza in Walnut
By Davis Allen
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This is a cabinet / credenza, originally designed by Davis Allen of SOM for Stow Davis. This particular example was produced in the 1970s. The design features a clean, architectural ...
Chrome
1965 Roger Sprunger Eight Drawer Walnut Credenza from Yamasaki Building 75x28x28
By Roger Sprunger, Dunbar Furniture
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This is an eight-drawer credenza designed by Roger Sprunger for Dunbar. This particular example was produced in 1965 and came from the Northwestern National Life Building, designed b...
Chrome
C. 1968 Alexis Yermakov Electa Series 42 inch Credenza Cabinet in Walnut
By Alexis Yermakov, Stow Davis
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This is a Walnut Credenza from the 'Electa Series', designed by Interior Designer Alexis Yermakov for Stow Davis in 1968. The series featured freestanding pieces with heavy chromed s...
Steel, Chrome
1960s Gordon Bunshaft and Davis Allen of Teak Credenza for Chase Manhattan Bank
By Davis Allen, Gordon Bunshaft
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This is a substantial teak credenza, designed ca. 1965 by Gordon Bunshaft and Davis Allen for Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill. It is a custom-made piece, created to grace the offices o...
Steel
C. 1968 Myrtle Desk of High Point 900 Series Four Position Credenza in Walnut
By Myrtle Desk Co.
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This is a substantial 900 Series Walnut and Chromed-Steel Credenza, model 9CR 75, designed in the late 1960s by Myrtle Desk of High Point, North Carolina. They referred to the piece ...
Steel, Chrome
Gordon Bunshaft Mid Century Walnut and Marble File Credenza
Located in Franklin Park, IL
Gordon Bunshaft Mid Century Walnut and Marble File Credenza This credenza measures: 95.75 wide x 19 deep x 26.75 inches high All pieces of furniture can be had in what we call res...
Marble, Chrome
Knoll Style Mid Century Walnut and Marble Top File Credenza
By Knoll
Located in Franklin Park, IL
Knoll Style Mid Century Walnut and Marble Top File Credenza This credenza measures: 55 wide x 22.75 deep x 28 inches high All pieces of furniture can be had in what we call restore...
Marble
65 Davis Allen Oak Stainless Credenza
By Davis Allen
Located in Pasadena, TX
Davis Allen joined Skidmore, Owing and Merrill (SOM) in 1950 as a junior architectural designer. In the intervening forty years, and since 1965 with the rank of Associate Partner, Senior Interior Designer, Allen collaborated with three generations of SOM partners. 64" GF Davis Allen...
Stainless Steel
Sleek Restored Vintage Modern Credenza in Walnut by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings
By Widdicomb Furniture Co.
Located in Atlanta, GA
A stunning example of a rare multipurpose case piece by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings for Widdicomb, circa 1950s. Expertly crafted walnut case construction with elegant lines and detail. Wo...
Walnut
1960s Credenza by Poul Hundevad for Hundevad and Co in rosewood
By Paul Hundavad
Located in Victoria, BC
This credenza was designed by Poul Hundevad and produced by Hundevad & Co in Denmark during the 1960s. It is crafted in rosewood, with a strong linear form defined by its continuous ...
Wood
Paul McCobb for Calvin Linear Mid Century Walnut and Stainless Steel Credenza
By Paul McCobb, Calvin Furniture
Located in Franklin Park, IL
Paul McCobb for Calvin Linear Mid Century Walnut and Stainless Steel Credenza This credenza measures: 66 wide x 18 deep x 34.25 inches high Good Vintage Condition - Areas of Minor ...
Stainless Steel
