Pretty as a Picture: Midcentury Modern Finds at Billings’ Summer Sale

The midcentury modern design aesthetic remains as popular as ever, more than 70 years after its debut. Its appealing lines, scale, organic forms, and ergonomic intentions continue to influence design today. Billings of Los Angeles, CA is presenting its 400+ lot Summer Modern Art + Design sale on June 28, 2025. The event includes a museum-quality mix of furnishings, fine and decorative arts, lighting, and other category-spanning treasures. Here are some premier highlights that caught the eye of the Auction Daily team.  

Jeffery Molter Pouf Sectional

The top lot in this auction is #4, Jeffery Molter’s Pouf sectional sofa, which has a presale estimate of USD 16,000 to $18,000. This curvy, three-part couch from around 2020 is made from mustard-colored velvet upholstery with a dark brown walnut wooden base. It was made by Stahl + Band and measures 28.5 inches high by 132 inches wide and 120 inches deep.

Stahl + Band, founded in 2016 and located in Venice, CA, is a showroom and art gallery specializing in modern, organic design. It is owned and managed by designer and entrepreneur Jeffery Molter. The organization’s name, Stahl + Band, is a nod in part to Molter’s German heritage, with the word stahl meaning steel and band meaning ribbon. These words reflect the gallery’s core values, environment, and culture.

Finn Juhl Dining Table

Tables of all sorts are well represented in this sale. Lot #15, a Finn Juhl Judas dining table, is estimated at $10,000 to $15,000. This sleek, teak example from around 1950 has an oval top that is decorated with circular brass inlays. It measures 28.75 inches high by 78 inches wide and 54.75 inches deep; the table comes with two 21.5-inch leaves to expand its top surface area. It was made by master cabinet maker Niels Vodder (Danish, 1892 – 1982) and is branded with its producer’s mark and retailer’s paper label on the underside.

Finn Juhl (Danish, 1912 – 1989) was an architect and furniture designer who played a key role in the development of the Danish midcentury modern aesthetic. He focused his efforts on chairs, tables, and couches, but Juhl also produced benches, cabinets, and bowls during his career. Most featured sculpted wooden design elements, often in teal or rosewood. His items tended to be organic in form, as well as comforting to the eye and body.

Marcenaria Baraúna Chair

Chairs and other seating are a key category in this early summer event. Lot #34, a Girafa chair by Lina Bo Bardi, Marcelo Ferraz, and Marcelo SuzukI, is estimated at $12,000 to $15,000. This elegant and well-designed piece from the 1990s indeed resembles a giraffe, given its long, prominent legs and narrow form. The chair is made from lighter spruce wood and decorated with darker, circular jacaranda inlays on the legs and backrest. It measures 36.75 inches high by 16.5 inches wide and 19 inches deep and was manufactured by the Marcenaria Baraúna workshop in São Paulo, Brazil. It is marked BARAÚNA on its underside. This chair was previously sold as lot 00113 at Sotheby’s New York Important Design: From Noguchi to Lalanne event, held on May 25, 2021.

Marcenaria Baraúna, a company that designs and produces asymmetric and geometric furnishings, was established in 1986 by three Brazilian architects. Today, the firm is a leader in contemporary Brazilian design and is recognized worldwide for its creativity and quality. An example of the Girafa chair, one of the company’s best-known and signature designs, is part of the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York.

Evelyn Ackerman Mosaic

This midcentury modern sale also includes a finely curated selection of decorative art and accessories. Lot #17, Evelyn Ackerman’s Elipses mosaic, is estimated at $8,000 to $12,000. This stunning work, primarily rendered in tan, cobalt, turquoise, green, and black glass tiles, measures 12.5 inches high by 60 inches wide. It was studio-made for ERA Industries around 1958.

American industrial designers Evelyn Ackerman (1924 – 2012) and her husband Jerome (1920 – 2019) were California-based artists and entrepreneurs who were instrumental in bringing midcentury modern design to a broad audience. Their output included ceramics, wood carvings, metalwork, mosaics, wall hangings, hardware, enamels and jewelry, and even toys. They founded ERA Industries in 1956 to produce items on a commercial scale. Manufacturing was done in Mexico; the company remained active through the 1980s.

Three-Part Cabinet

This sale comes full circle with sophisticated lighting, desks, bars, chests, bookcases, and other important furnishings. Lot #11, a three-part cabinet attributed to interior designer Frances Elkins (American, 1888 – 1953), is estimated at $5,000 to $7,000. This 1940s-era piece has one central cabinet and two side cabinets. It is made from black lacquered wood, with pink interior components. 

For more information on Billings’ Summer Modern Art + Design sale and to place a bid, visit Billings. 

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