Wright Auction

A Barrel lounge chair and Tri-symmetric coffee table were the inaugural pieces of the present collection, acquired by the original owner's mother to furnish her daughter's studio apartment in Brooklyn Heights. Fresh from Harvard Medical School in 1953 and one of the first cohorts of women to graduate from the esteemed institution, she would later go on to establish her own psychiatry practice. In 1954, she married, and the young couple purchased a Midcentury Modern home in suburban New Jersey. Kagan was asked to furnish the home, and after examining the layout in person (and requesting that a wall be removed, which couldn't be done), proposed a selection of designs for the space. In addition to the original Barrel chair and coffee table, a mahogany buffet was ordered with a matching dining set, a headboard, dresser, and nightstands for the bedrooms, and finally, a curved two-piece sofa. After many years, and with the addition of children and pets, the sofa reached its limit. However, the remaining designs remained in the family's collection, witnessing celebrations and life's many milestones for nearly 70 years.