1940s Chic Black and White Modernist Side Table

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Perfectly proportioned side table in the style of Paul Frankl. Black painted cork top resting on a white painted hardwood … Read more Perfectly proportioned side table in the style of Paul Frankl. Black painted cork top resting on a white painted hardwood frame with a practical lower shelf. Also great as a tall small coffee table.

Paul T. Frankl (October 14, 1886 – March 21, 1958), an Art Deco furniture designer and maker, architect, painter and writer from Vienna, Austria, was the son of a wealthy real estate speculator.

After Frankl completed his architectural studies at the Technische Hochschule in Charlottenburg (now Technische Universität Berlin), he traveled, spending time in Berlin and Copenhagen before arriving in the United States in April 1914. He settled in New York City and brought with him an outsider's fresh perspective and an enthusiasm for forging a uniquely American design aesthetic. Frankl began as an architect and later switched to designing and painting fine art and furniture. In the years between the two world wars he, more than any other designer, helped shape the distinctive look of American modernism.

Frankl had a competitive edge over US architects who stuck to the principles of Revivalism architecture. In the 1920s Frankl embraced modernist European design ideas and found himself among a small group of Austrian and German designers , who in some cases maintained workshops and showrooms in New York City. Rena Rosenthal and Edward H. Aschermann not only sold modern interior and industrial design in New York City, they also fabricated in the city. They were joined by Winold Reiss, Ilonka Karasz, Joseph Urban, and William Lescaze, while Kem Weber established modernist interior design on the US West coast. Frankl set up his architectual parctice in New York City and was commissioned to designed film sets. As Frankl struggled financially, he had to accept commissions for interior designs. In the 1920s, Frankl introduced his celebrated skyscraper style (before turning to metal furnishings in the 1930s). Frankl opened Frankl Galleries on 48th Street, calling his company Skyscraper Furniture, which became an epicenter of American modernism, including modern textiles and wallpapers imported from Europe.

His solo art shows included New York City's Knoedler Gallery in 1931 and Los Angeles's Stendahl Gallery in 1944.

After he relocated to Los Angeles and opened a gallery on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, celebrities such as Fred Astaire, Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, Walter Huston and Alfred Hitchcock became clients. See less