Name: slat bench, model 4690
Brand: George Nelson & Associates

American Design 21 September 2017

The Dahlman House

Amberley Village, Ohio

Wright’s influence on Abrom Dombar is evident in his designs for the Dahlman house.

In the 1930s, brothers Abrom and Benjamin Dombar studied under Frank Lloyd Wright at the Taliesin Fellowship in Scottsdale, Arizona. Drawing inspiration from Wright’s concept of Organic Architecture, the brothers returned to Cincinnati and designed hundreds homes both together and independently. Wright’s influence on Abrom Dombar is evident in his designs for the Dahlman house which boasted sweeping planes and large spans of windows. At the time of its completion in 1952, Mr. and Mrs. Dahlman purchased various pieces to furnish their home, including works by George Nelson & Associates, Charles and Ray Eames and Hendrick Van Keppel and Taylor Green. The kitchen and bathroom were featured in period advertisements for Formica - one advertisement illustrating the home’s blush-colored kitchen also shows the Dahlman’s original dining set, offered here.

This selection of period furnishings has remained together in the home since they were purchased in the early 1950s.

The dining set illustrated in a Formica advertisement from 1953.

Lots from The Dahlman House

127

Tito Agnoli

floor lamp
estimate: $7,000–9,000

155

Oscar Torlasco

table lamp
estimate: $1,500–2,000
result: $1,905

111

Pierre Guariche

wall light
estimate: $7,000–9,000
result: $13,750

126

Angelo Lelii

rare Lucinella table lamp
estimate: $5,000–7,000
result: $5,000

164

Louis Christiaan Kalff

Z table lamp
estimate: $600–800
result: $1,016

145

Angelo Lelii

floor lamp
estimate: $1,000–1,500
result: $2,375

108

Jacques Biny

wall light, model 128
estimate: $6,000–8,000

151

Hala Zeist

Sun Series floor lamp
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $1,875

158

American

console with planter
estimate: $500–700
result: $750

159

Charles and Ray Eames

DAWs, pair
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $2,750

160

George Nelson & Associates

slat bench, model 4690
estimate: $500–700
result: $1,125

161

Charles and Ray Eames

DAWs, pair
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $3,000

162

Hendrik Van Keppel and Taylor Green

adjustable folding table
estimate: $1,500–2,000
result: $3,500

163

Charles and Ray Eames

DAWs, pair
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $3,000

164

Henry & Miller

Kraftware server
estimate: $200–300
result: $585

165

Charles and Ray Eames

DAXs, pair
estimate: $1,000–1,500
result: $938

166

George Nelson & Associates

nightstands model 4618, pair
estimate: $1,000–1,500
result: $2,000

167

George Nelson & Associates

slat bench, model 4690
estimate: $500–700
result: $1,250

168

Charles and Ray Eames

DAW
estimate: $1,000–1,500
result: $1,375

169

American

bookshelves, set of three
estimate: $700–900
result: $938

170

George Nelson & Associates

slat bench, model 4690 and television cabinet, model 4601-TV
estimate: $700–900
result: $938

171

Charles and Ray Eames

ETR
estimate: $500–700
result: $1,500

172

Charles and Ray Eames

RAR
estimate: $1,000–1,500
result: $1,063

173

George Nelson & Associates

slat bench, model 4690
estimate: $500–700
result: $1,063

174

Charles and Ray Eames

RAR
estimate: $1,000–1,500
result: $1,125

RAR
estimate: $1,000–1,500
result: $1,125

175

George Nelson & Associates

stereo cabinet, model 4743
estimate: $300–500
result: $500

George Nelson & Associates

Born in Hartford, Connecticut in 1908, George Nelson studied architecture at Yale University, teaching for a short time before the Great Depression. In 1932, he won the Rome Prize and spent the next two years studying design in Italy. Returning to the states, Nelson sold his essays to Pencil Points and became an associate editor at Architecture Forum and Fortune magazine. After reading Nelson’s innovative book Tomorrow's House, then president of Herman Miller furniture company D.J. De Pree hired Nelson as design director. Nelson launched his first collection in 1947 and transformed the struggling company into a groundbreaking leader in the field. Nelson remained at Herman Miller until the mid-1960s, and was responsible for bringing Charles and Ray Eames, Alexander Girard and Isamu Noguchi on board.

In 1947, Nelson opened his own design studio, George Nelson Associates, Inc. which at one time employed over seventy people. The company’s work within corporate settings revolutionized the concept of branding and elevated industrial design to new heights. Throughout his career, Nelson continued to write critically about design across multiple planes, teaching and consulting until his death in 1986.

Auction Results George Nelson & Associates