Mid-Century Modern Danish Wall Clock by Fritz Hansen, George Nelson, Teak, 1957
About the Item
- Creator:Fritz Hansen (Artist)
- Dimensions:Height: 13.25 in (33.66 cm)Diameter: 13.25 in (33.66 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1957
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Minor fading. Wear consistent with age and use. This needs re-wiring.
- Seller Location:Stamford, CT
- Reference Number:
Fritz Hansen
When the Copenhagen-based furniture maker Fritz Hansen opened for business more than 140 years ago, the company — which today styles itself The Republic of Fritz Hansen — adhered to the traditional, time-honored Danish values of craftsmanship in woodworking and joinery. Yet thanks to the postwar innovations of Arne Jacobsen and others, Fritz Hansen would become the country’s leader in Scandinavian modern design using new, forward-looking materials and methods.
Fritz Hansen started his company in 1872, specializing in the manufacture of small furniture parts. In 1915, the firm became the first in Denmark to make chairs using steam-bent wood (a technique most familiar from birch used in the ubiquitous café chairs by Austrian maker Thonet). At the time, Fritz Hansen was best known for seating that featured curved legs and curlicue splats and referenced 18th-century Chippendale designs.
In the next few decades, the company promoted simple, plain chairs with slatted backs and cane or rush seats designed by such proto-modernist masters as Kaare Klint and Søren Hansen. Still, the most aesthetically striking piece Fritz Hansen produced in the first half of the 20th century was arguably the China chair of 1944 by Hans Wegner — and that piece, with its yoke-shaped bentwood back- and armrest, was based on seating manufactured in China during the Ming dynasty. (Wegner was moved by portraits he’d seen of Danish merchants in the Chinese chairs.)
Everything changed in 1952 with Arne Jacobsen’s Ant chair. The collaboration between the architect and Fritz Hansen officially originated in 1934 — that year, Jacobsen created his inaugural piece for the manufacturer, the solid beechwood Bellevue chair for a restaurant commission. The Ant chair, however, was the breakthrough.
With assistance from his then-apprentice Verner Panton, Jacobsen designed the Ant chair for the cafeteria of a Danish healthcare company called Novo Nordisk. The chair was composed of a seat and backrest formed from a single piece of molded plywood attached, in its original iteration, to three tubular metal legs. Its silhouette suggests the shape of the insect’s body, and the lightweight, stackable chair and its biomorphic form became an international hit.
Jacobsen followed with more plywood successes, such as the Grand Prix chair of 1957. The following year he designed the SAS Royal Hotel in Copenhagen and its furnishings, including the Egg chair and the Swan chair. Those two upholstered pieces, with their lush, organic frames made of fiberglass-reinforced polyurethane, have become the two chairs most emblematic of mid-20th-century cool. Moreover, the Egg and Swan led Fritz Hansen to fully embrace new man-made materials, like foam, plastic and steel wire used to realize the avant-garde creations of later generations of designers with whom the firm collaborated, such as Piet Hein, Jørn Utzon (the architect of the Sydney Opera House) and Verner Panton. If the Fritz Hansen of 1872 would not now recognize his company, today’s connoisseurs certainly do.
Find a collection of vintage Fritz Hansen tables, lounge chairs, sofas and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Stamford, CT
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 1 day of delivery.
- Mid-Century Modern Kite Wall Clock by George Nelson, Howard Miller, Vitra LabelBy Howard Miller, George NelsonLocated in Stamford, CTMid-Century Modern kite wall clock by George Nelson, Howard Miller, Vitra Label George Nelson (American, 1908-1986) Group of Table and Wall Clocks for Howard Miller, Vitra Design Museum, Poland/Germany, designed 1949-1954 Vitra Design Museum labels, With battery-operated mechanisms The Kite clock...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Wall Clocks
MaterialsMetal, Enamel
- Kirsch Hamilton, American Mid-Century Modern Prisma Aluminum Aurora Clock, 1970sBy Kirsch/HamiltonLocated in Stamford, CTAmerican Mid-Century Modern Prisma aluminum aurora clock, Kirsch Hamilton, 1970s. A vintage 1970s Aurora clock. These stunning clocks are in the collection of the Museum of Modern A...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Table Clocks and Desk Clocks
MaterialsAluminum
- Compatible Pair Danish Cabinetmaker Wingback Lounge Chairs, Fritz Hansen StyleBy Fritz HansenLocated in Stamford, CTCompatible Pair Danish Cabinetmaker Wingback Lounge Chairs, Fritz Hansen Style Pair of similar cabinetmaker lounge chairs of the mid-century p...Category
Vintage 1940s Danish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsVelvet, Oak
- Danish Cabinetmaker Wingback / Lounge Chair, Scroll Arm, Fritz Hansen StyleBy Fritz HansenLocated in Stamford, CTDanish Cabinetmaker Wingback / Lounge Chair, Scroll Arm, Fritz Hansen Style Green velvet wingback lounge chair designed and produced in Denmark, ...Category
Vintage 1940s Danish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsVelvet, Oak
- Crystal Face and Pendulum Clock Made by Ansonia Clock of New YorkBy Ansonia Clock CompanyLocated in Stamford, CTCrystal face and pendulum clock made by Ansonia Clock of New York. Bronze case in all beveled glass surround.Category
Vintage 1960s American Classical Table Clocks and Desk Clocks
MaterialsBrass
- Mid-Century Modern George Nelson Style Partners / Executive Desk, RosewoodBy George Nelson, Herman MillerLocated in Stamford, CTMid-Century Modern George Nelson Style Partners / Executive Desk, Rosewood/Walnut Fully Refinished. Fully refinshed American designer partners desk in a gorgeous walnut or rosewoo...Category
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsChrome
- Fritz Hansen & George Nelson Stool Seat Wall ClockBy Fritz Hansen, Howard Miller, George NelsonLocated in Brooklyn, NYVintage 1950s George Nelson ball clock for George Nelson and Associates and Howard Miller. This clock was designed with Irving Harper in 1949, and was the first among several iconic clock...Category
20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Wall Clocks
MaterialsBrass
- Danish Mid Century Modern Teak And Brass Pendulum Wall Clock By BrixonBy Junghans Uhren GmbHLocated in San Carlos, CA🕰️ Elevate Your Space with Vintage Elegance! 🕰️ Discover the Timeless Charm of Danish Mid-Century Modern Design! Introducing our stunning Danish mid-century modern vintage teak w...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Mid-Century Modern Wall Clocks
MaterialsBrass
- Rare Mid Century Modern George Nelson Orange Ball Clock Model 4755By George NelsonLocated in Plainview, NYAn original George Nelson ( 1908- 1986) Mid Century Modern Ball Clock model 4755. This iconic clock features a distinctive and modern design with a mid-century aesthetic. The centr...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Wall Clocks
MaterialsMetal
- Danish Mid-Century Modern Pine and Brass Wall ClockLocated in Den Haag, NLDanish Mid-Century Modern pine and brass wall clock. Original new old stock item.Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Mid-Century Modern Wall Clocks
MaterialsPine
- George Nelson Mid Century Ball Clock in Brass and WoodBy George NelsonLocated in Weesp, NLInterestingly, while nearly all of the designs that came out of George’s studio were attributed to him, many were actually designed by him and his team. Some were even designed solely by someone else working at the studio. Nelson famously recounted the story of how the Ball Clock came to life in an interview decades after it’s release: “It was one of the really funny evenings. Noguchi came by, Bucky Fuller came by, and here was Irving, and here was I, and Noguchi - who can’t keep his hands off anything - he saw we were working on clocks and started making doodles. Then Bucky sort of brushed Isamu aside. He said, ‘This is a good way to do a clock’ and made some utterly absurd thing. Everybody was taking a crack at this, pushing each other aside and making scribbles. At some point we left – we were suddenly all tired, and we’d had a little bit too much to drink – and the next morning I came back, and here was this roll of paper, and Irving and I looked at it, and somewhere in this roll, there was a ball clock. I don’t know to this day who cooked it up.” Nevertheless, whoever it was that came up with George Nelson’s designs, it’s almost certain that they would never have come to fruition if it wasn’t for George’s vision and forward-thinking approach. Can you tell me more about his clocks? George’s clocks were one of his most impressive bodies of work. In total, he and his team designed over 130 clocks in just three decades. While it is widely accepted that Irving Harper was the lead designer for the Howard Miller Clock Company at George Nelson Associates, the collection arose after two insightful observations from George: one, that people no longer used the numbers to tell the time; and two, that since most people now used their wristwatch to tell the time, interior clocks were now free to become more decorative in nature. The clocks were designed and released in batches of 8 and were initially only given numbers for names. The Sunflower Clock was simply ‘Clock 2261’, the Flock of Butterflies Clock was 'Clock 2226’, and so on. The Ball was the first clock designed by George and his team and it was followed shortly after by the Star, Sunburst, Spindle, Asterisk, Turbine, Flock of Butterflies, Eye and others. The clocks were purposefully abstract and were designed to complement the modernist furniture emerging at the time. As well as wall clocks, George’s studio also produced a series of desk clocks during that time, most notably the bubble-shaped Night Desk...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Wall Clocks
MaterialsBrass
- Howard Miller Iconic Clock by George NelsonBy Howard MillerLocated in Riverdale, NYIconic and classic Howard Miller ball clock from the 1950's by George Nelson. Wonderful Atomic style with a central clock motif with 50's styl...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Wall Clocks
MaterialsMetal