Geoffrey Harcourt On Sale

When it came to creating his visually pleasing armchairs, lounge chairs and office chairs, designer Geoffrey Harcourt stuck to his design dictum: “First the person, then the chair.” The result? Mid-century modern furniture that was not only ergonomic and comfortable but artistic in form.

Born in 1935 in London, Harcourt’s artistic leanings began at an early age. In his youth, he attended the High Wycombe Technical School, followed by the High Wycombe School of Art, where he obtained a national diploma in design and a place to study at the Royal College of Art. After graduating in 1960, Harcourt left the United Kingdom. for Chicago, where he worked in industrial design until 1961. Then, he went to Copenhagen and worked with designer Jacob Jensen.

In 1962, Harcourt returned to the U.K. and began designing his first series of open-armed chairs for the Dutch furniture manufacturing company Artifort. His Space Age 042 Series lounge chair, designed in 1963, was an immediate success and launched Artifort into the international furniture market — like  Olivier Mourgue’s low-slung Djinn chair, Harcourt’s seat was also prominently featured in Stanley Kubrick’s film 2001: A Space Odyssey. 

Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Harcourt designed several other notable pieces for Artifort. These included his “500 Series” lounge chairs in 1967, the F140 swivel chair in 1970, and the undulating “Cleopatra” chaise longue also in 1970.

In addition to Artifort, Harcourt designed for several other furniture companies such as Dynamite Nobel, Mines and West, Trau of Turin, Hands of Wycombe and Steelcase Strafor. In his 70s, Harcourt retired from furniture design to focus on painting. 

Harcourt’s furniture pieces have been exhibited in museums and galleries around the world, including the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Design Council in London and Glasgow, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam and the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague. In 1978, he was awarded the title of Royal Designer for Industry by the Royal Society of Arts.  

On 1stDibs, discover a range of vintage Geoffrey Harcourt lounge chairs and other seating.

With entire areas of our homes reserved for “sitting rooms,” the value of quality antique and vintage seating cannot be overstated.

Fortunately, the design of side chairs, armchairs and other lounge furniture — since what were, quite literally, the early perches of our ancestors — has evolved considerably.

Among the earliest standard seating furniture were stools. Egyptian stools, for example, designed for one person with no seat back, were x-shaped and typically folded to be tucked away. These rudimentary chairs informed the design of Greek and Roman stools, all of which were a long way from Sori Yanagi's Butterfly stool or Alvar Aalto's Stool 60. In the 18th century and earlier, seats with backs and armrests were largely reserved for high nobility.

The seating of today is more inclusive but the style and placement of chairs can still make a statement. Antique desk chairs and armchairs designed in the style of Louis XV, which eventually included painted furniture and were often made of rare woods, feature prominently curved legs as well as Chinese themes and varied ornaments. Much like the thrones of fairy tales and the regency, elegant lounges crafted in the Louis XV style convey wealth and prestige. In the kitchen, the dining chair placed at the head of the table is typically reserved for the head of the household or a revered guest.

Of course, with luxurious vintage or antique furnishings, every chair can seem like the best seat in the house. Whether your preference is stretching out on a plush sofa, such as the Serpentine, designed by Vladimir Kagan, or cozying up in a vintage wingback chair, there is likely to be a comfy classic or contemporary gem for you on 1stDibs.

With respect to the latest obsessions in design, cane seating has been cropping up everywhere, from sleek armchairs to lounge chairs, while bouclé fabric, a staple of modern furniture design, can be seen in mid-century modern, Scandinavian modern and Hollywood Regency furniture styles.

Admirers of the sophisticated craftsmanship and dark woods frequently associated with mid-century modern seating can find timeless furnishings in our expansive collection of lounge chairs, dining chairs and other items — whether they’re vintage editions or alluring official reproductions of iconic designs from the likes of Hans Wegner or from Charles and Ray Eames. Shop our inventory of Egg chairs, designed in 1958 by Arne Jacobsen, the Florence Knoll lounge chair and more.

No matter your style, the collection of unique chairs, sofas and other seating on 1stDibs is surely worthy of a standing ovation.