Adrian Pearsall "Brutalist Goop" Etageres, Shelving, Circa Late 1960's

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Priced per etagere, this matched set of Adrian Pearsall shelving units is a remarkable nod to the brutalist design movement … Read more Priced per etagere, this matched set of Adrian Pearsall shelving units is a remarkable nod to the brutalist design movement of the 1960's.

This heavily sculpted, resin-over-hardwood pair is dripping with texture, rosettes, sunbursts, columns, and abstract relief work that catches light differently from every angle. Three smoked glass shelves per unit, fully removable for easy shipping, sit within a heavily textured frame that reads more like a piece of sculpture than a bookshelf.

Adrian Pearsall (1925-2011) was one of American mid-century design's most prolific and inventive furniture makers, founding Craft Associates in Pennsylvania in 1952 and going on to produce an enormous range of work spanning sleek walnut case goods to his later, wilder brutalist experiments. This "goop" series, cast in a resin-composite finish meant to mimic hand-hammered bronze, was Pearsall's own take on the brutalist movement popularized by Paul Evans, whose sculpted metal furniture for Directional inspired a wave of makers working in the same raw, textural language, including Silas Seandel, Don Shoemaker, and William Westenhaver.

This particular pair spent the last 50+ years in a single estate here in Las Vegas, and the condition and patina reflect a genuine, undisturbed provenance rather than a piece that's been moved from dealer to dealer. Finding one of these etageres is uncommon. Finding a true matched pair is rare. We also currently have the matching dining set from the same estate available, so if you're building out a full brutalist dining room or want the etageres to anchor a larger collection, that's an option worth asking about.

A striking, conversation-starting pair for anyone building a collection alongside Paul Evans, Silas Seandel, Curtis Jere, or other icons of the American brutalist movement. See less