Handmade products should show the hand. Good line is not enough because that can be produced industrially. Furniture should have detail and richness.
Paul Evans
Paul Evans 1931–1987
Born in Trenton, New Jersey in 1931, Paul Evans exhibited talent for design at an early age. He studied woodworking in high school and briefly attended the Philadelphia Textile Institute. Evans was awarded the Aileen O. Webb Scholarship in 1950 and studied at the prestigious Rochester Institute of Technology’s School for American Craftsmen. He would continue his studies at Cranbrook in 1952 with a focus on metalwork. In 1953 he took a position as the metal craftsman at the living museum, Old Sturbridge Village. Feeling that his creativity was being stifled, Evans left the museum in 1955 to find a more stimulating environment. He opened a showroom with fellow designer Phillip Lloyd Powell and the two began a decade long collaboration. Evans’ experiments with welded and enameled sculpture in the early 1960s caught the eye of the Directional furniture company. Directional was looking for handmade furniture with distinctive character and Evans’ new American craft designs were a perfect fit. In 1971, Evans developed the brass and chrome Cityscape line for Directional marking a departure from his earlier sculptural works. In the 1980s, working with his son Keith, an electrical engineer, he continued to experiment with new materials and design increasing minimal forms with kinetic elements. Together, they formed Zoom, Inc. in 1983 and began a relationship with the Design Institute of America. In 1987, just one day after his retirement, Evans suffered his third heart attack and died.
Auction Results Paul Evans
Paul Evans
Rare dining table
estimate: $15,000–20,000
result: $30,000
Paul Evans
Rare Sculpture Front wall-mounted cabinet
estimate: $30,000–50,000
result: $30,000
Paul Evans
coffee table
estimate: $5,000–10,000
result: $7,500
Paul Evans
Cityscape dining table
estimate: $5,000–7,000
result: $5,000
Paul Evans
dining table, model PE 24
estimate: $6,000–8,000
result: $6,250
Paul Evans
Important Sculpture Front wall-mounted cabinet
estimate: $100,000–150,000
result: $125,000
Paul Evans
occasional table
estimate: $4,500–6,500
result: $4,160
Paul Evans
Patchwork coffee table
estimate: $2,500–3,500
result: $4,375
Paul Evans
Cityscape bar cabinet from the PE 200 series
estimate: $3,500–5,500
result: $5,313
Paul Evans
Cityscape dining table, model PE 209
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $4,225
Paul Evans
Custom dining table
estimate: $10,000–15,000
result: $30,000
Paul Evans
Cityscape backgammon table, model PE 742 from the PE 700 series
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $8,320
Paul Evans
Sculpted Bronze cabinet
estimate: $10,000–15,000
result: $15,000
Paul Evans
Sculpted Bronze cabinet
estimate: $5,000–7,000
result: $10,000
Paul Evans
Cityscape wall brackets, set of three
estimate: $200–400
result: $1,750
Paul Evans
Sculpted Bronze wall unit, model PE 119
estimate: $4,000–6,000
result: $15,000
Paul Evans
cabinet, model PE 40A
estimate: $20,000–30,000
result: $22,500
Paul Evans
Patchwork desk
estimate: $3,000–4,000
result: $4,688
Paul Evans
Cityscape illuminated headboard
estimate: $2,500–3,500
result: $2,500
Paul Evans
occasional table
estimate: $5,000–7,000
result: $5,000
Paul Evans
rare pole lamp with pendant
estimate: $3,000–4,000
result: $2,750
Paul Evans
Exceptional Argente cabinet, model PE 42A
estimate: $65,000–95,000
result: $71,500
Paul Evans
Custom Sculpted Bronze console and mirror
estimate: $3,000–5,000
result: $4,688
Paul Evans
cabinet, model PE 19
estimate: $15,000–20,000
result: $20,000