Mid-century furniture by Douglas Snelling (Autralia)

Douglas Burrage Snelling was an Australian architect and furniture designer who was born in England in 1916 and moved to New Zealand in 1926. As a teenager, he ran his own graphic arts and shop window design business. He later travelled to Hollywood and worked as a freelance sketch artist. He returned to New Zealand in 1938 and became a writer, broadcaster, and publicist. In 1940, he moved to Sydney and worked as a publicist and in a munitions factory during World War II.

In 1945, Snelling married NZ heiress Nancy Springhall and used her money to open a business designing shop windows and furniture. He designed chairs that featured parachute webbing and modernist design, and his furniture range was sold widely through major department stores in Australia. He also designed the case of Kriesler's iconic 'Beehive' radio.

Snelling was inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright's work during a more... trip to America with his wife. When they returned to Australia in 1948, he met architect Harry Seidler and began designing houses. He built modernist houses, apartment buildings, and office buildings, winning the 1955 House of the Year Award from Architecture and Arts magazine. less...