322
322
Mid-Century Modern Chairs Surveys, fourteen
Mid-Century Modern Chairs Surveys, fourteen
estimate: $150–200
result: $2,000
provenance: Collection of Mark McDonald
Complete Lot Details
Pioneers of Modern Furniture Colin Amery, Lund Humphries Publishers Limited, London, 1991. Softcover.
20th Century Seats, Galerie Ulrich Fiedler, Koln, 2000. 76 pages, Hardcover.
The Chair: From Artifact To Object Trevor Richardson, Weatherspoon Art Gallery, The University of North Carolina, Greensboro, 1991. 59 pages, Softcover.
Modern Equipment for the 20th Century, Galerie Ulrich Fiedler, Koln, 2004. 103 pages, Hardcover with dustjacket.
Sourcebook of Modern Furniture, Second Edition Jerryll Habagger and Joseph H. Osman, W.W. Norton & Company, New York/London, 1997. 576 pages, Hardcover with dustjacket.
Tubular Steel Furniture. Art Documents Number Two Barbie Campbell-Cole and Tim Benton, The Art Books Company, London, 1979. 72 pages, Hardcover with dustjacket.
Modern Furniture Classics Since 1945 Charlotte and Peter Fiell, The American Institute of Architects Press, Washington, D.C., 1991. 192 pages, Hardcover with dustjacket.
Isokon Plus: Classic & Contemporary Furniture, Iokon Plus, London. 16 pages, Softcover.
Isokon Plus: Classic & Contemporary Furniture, Isokon Plus, London. 16 pages, Softcover.
The Modern Chair: Twentieth Century British Chair Design Linda Brown and Deyan Sudjic, Institute of Contemporary Arts, London, 1988. 64 pages, Softcover.
Mark McDonald
The Founder of Mid-century Design
Mark McDonald has always been at the epicenter of the world that is mid-century design, to a large extent, it is a world he created. For over forty years, Mark has pioneered whole fields of collecting, providing the scholarship and creating the market for mid-century furniture, studio jewelry, ceramics and Italian glass.
In 1983, Mark opened Fifty/50 with partners Mark Isaacson and Ralph Cutler. This groundbreaking gallery defined collectors’ taste. At the time, modern works were still largely overlooked; Mark and his partners collected and presented the rarest and most interesting pieces, often working with the makers themselves, to create compelling exhibitions accompanied by catalogs documenting the work.
In the 1990s, Mark opened Gansevoort Gallery, where he continued to curate collections and exhibitions of lasting impact. Over the years, he established relationships with artists and their estates becoming the go to authority on the designs of Art Smith, Ilonka Karasz and Leza McVey, among others. His enthusiasm for the material extended beyond the gallery floor to the back room where lucky visitors got to flip through Mark’s impressive design reference library and discuss the importance of works with him.
A connoisseur and wealth of knowledge, Mark became a resource for prominent collections across the globe—private and public alike. He inspired a generation of collectors and dealers introducing designers and their production to an audience that continues to grow. In 2002, Mark closed Gansevoort and established 330 gallery in Hudson, New York. Now, semi-retired, Marks splits his time between New York and Florida. He still collects, curates, supports, and shepherds the scholarship of mid-century design.