1950s Van Keppel style dining furniture  

Picture please
I would love to see some photos of the furniture you are describing. A pictures worth a thousand words 🙂

1950s Van Keppel style dining furniture
Hello Straylight,
After reading so many of the forums, I am honored by the fact that you have replied to me. My mother recently passed away and, since we are such a sentimental lot, we have divided her furniture among the siblings to keep in memory of our parents who we loved so much. As such, I received the shelving unit/credenza unit from the Van Keppel like dining set. I am planning on taking photos of it soon, however, it may take a week or two. We do know that in the very early fifties, my parents purchased their furniture at a store named Koos Brothers in northern New Jersey. Along with these pieces, they also purchased Robsjohn Gibbings/Widdicomb and the Tomlinson Sophisticate line of furniture designed by Michael Taylor. Unlike the latter, we have never known the maker of the California style dining room set and our only desire in trying to find out the manufacturer is out of our love and interest in design. Believe me, I have been researching this set for years with no luck. As a result, I am now going to the experts. I hope that once I post the pictures, you and your peers may be able to help me. Thank you!

1950s Van Keppel style dining furniture/server photos ID
I have now added photos of the server unit I received. I hope that someone will be able to ID the manufacturer/line for me. Thank you!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/allthingsstig/?saved=1

52-53?
Just looking at the construction of this piece of furniture I would have made a guess that it was from the 60's or later...
Sorry to say that it does not strike any bells with me.

Whatever it is,
I like it. Do I understand that there are other pieces of the same style or construction ?

1950s Van Keppel style dining furniture
Besides this piece, there is a round dining room table with the same slatted wood top and black metal legs and six armless black tubular chairs. My sister has the table and chairs hence why I have no pictures. I can only estimate the years they were produced. I remember it in our dining room when I was five years old (1959) but was told later on by my mother that they purchased it when I was born. Maybe her recollection wasn't exact.

These pieces are likely...
These pieces are likely Arthur Umanoff, and they will not be tubing, but solid rod legs. If its tubing it could still be Umanoff, but probably later, like 70s. The designs are really fun to look at and worth keeping.

1950s Van Keppel Style Dining Furniture
Thank you for your reply. I would love it if this was indeed an Umanoff but, after so much research, I have yet to make that or any other connection. I have been looking online for years with no success. I continually see the same pieces designed by him and others but never this piece or the table and chairs my sister inherited. Who knows? Maybe someday a son or daughter of the designer will stumble across this and finally enlighten me. Until then, it sits upstairs showcasing my Tapio Wirkkala collection.

I think it's
a delightful piece, whoever it's by. I wasn't aware of this strain of wood-and-metal modernism -- highly functional, modestly constructivist, with a nice contrast of the two materials (black rod and tube, not the usual chrome).

1950s Van Keppel furniture still searching
Hello! A number of months ago I posted pictures of a table/buffet from the 50s hoping to find out who the manufacturer/designer was. The table has been in my family since I can remember. Since I have yet to find any information regarding my beloved table, do any of you feel that my taking pictures of the feet can help? Throughout my search, I have come to realize that certain manufacturers used specific feet for their product. Is this a stupid question? As always, thank you for your input!

Conover
Look at the designs of Luther Conover.

Barcalo
There were hundreds of companies knocking out iron pieces in the 50's and contrary to what you see on sites like 1stdibs and ebay, they weren't all designed by Paul McCobb, VKG or Luther Conover.
Take for instance, this Barcalo piece...

1950s Van Keppel Style. Dining furniture
Based on one of my helpful replies suggesting that I look at furniture designed by Luther Conover, I did some tracking and was able to find and speak with Luther Conover's son, Luke. I had an extremely nice conversation with him and he was able to confirm that my piece was not made by his father. Although disappointing, it has at least narrowed my search a little. I can understand why it could appear that my table was designed by Mr. Conover if one googles, "Luther Conover mid century modern" and then search for images. A picture of a Luther Conover architect's desk comes up in images that closely resembles the styling of my piece. I have always known that Ebay is certainly not a great place for accurate provenance of a piece, but it gave me a temporary glimmer of hope until dashed by Mr. Conover. My search continues.
By the way, I am truly thankful for all of the constructive sugestions I have been receiving.

1950s Van Keppel Style...
Thank you for the Barcalo picture. After receiving it, I did what little research I could regarding this furniture line. Even though Barcalo first started out as a tool designer/manufacturer, they later went on to produce furniture-most notably the Barcalounger. The best I can tell with such limited information, Jet Magazine highlighted a line of Barcalo furniture in one of their magazines entitled the Ebonaire line. The picture posted of the table/bench (It could be ordered with cushions) was part of that line. Unfortunately, I was only able to find a handful of pictures showing a limited part of that line. Based on what I can tell, however, the pieces don't quite match up with my table. While researching my table, I am starting to seriously look at construction and parts utilized. As such, I don't believe that my table is part of the Ebonaire family. I really wish that there was some sort of list of california style furniture manufacturers that I could get my hands on.