Arne Wahl Iversen Rosewood Dining Chairs

Danish furniture designer Arne Wahl Iversen created a range of sculptural storage cabinets, secretary desks, armchairs and dressers in teak, rosewood and other durable woods that reflect the pared-back elegance and prioritization of function that are so often attributes of the finest examples of vintage Scandinavian modern furniture.

Born in Nyborg, Iversen learned the craft of furniture making from his father, who operated a modest furniture business near the family home. Iversen apprenticed as a cabinetmaker and later enrolled in the Odense Technical School to study furniture design. In 1949, Iversen attend the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, in Copenhagen. It was there he studied under legendary furniture designer Kaare Klint. Widely recognized as the father of modern Danish furniture, Klint helped found the furniture design school at the academy and mentored such esteemed cabinetmakers and furniture designers as Børge Mogensen, Hans Wegner and Ole Wanscher. Iversen was in good hands.

Upon finishing school, Iversen opened his own furniture shop in Nyborg. Soon after, his work immediately impressed Swedish furniture maker and IKEA founder Ingvar Kamprad.

At the time, the popularity of modern Danish furniture was gaining steam around the world — it was in the postwar era that American tastemakers sold the citizenry on the appeal of Scandinavian design and its emphasis on the principles of traditional craftsmanship. Copenhagen native Finn Juhl had shown his work in the United States in 1950 and created a Danish modern line for Michigan’s Baker Furniture in 1951 (the company produced his award-winning Chieftain chair for a short time). Kamprad was eager for Iversen to create modern Danish furniture for IKEA, but their collaboration didn't last very long. Iversen decided to work independently on his own designs.

Initially, Iversen's furniture was mainly sold in Denmark, but by the end of the 1960s, he had expanded his sales to the rest of Europe and in America. Though he designed for many manufacturers, he created his most popular works for Komfort and Vinde Møbelfabrik. Iversen continued to design furniture until he retired in the mid-1980s. 

Find vintage Arne Wahl Iversen chairs, cabinets, console tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.

No matter what your dream dining experience looks like, there is a wide-ranging variety of vintage, new and antique dining room chairs on 1stDibs. Find upholstered dining room chairs, wood dining room chairs and more to outfit any space designated for a good meal, be it in your home or in the great outdoors.

In the early 18th century, most dining room tables and other furniture was designed to look masculine. In America, dining rooms weren’t even much of a concept until the late 1700s, when a space set aside specifically for dining became a part of the construction of homes for the wealthy. Dining room chairs of the era were likely made of walnut or oak. In Europe, neoclassical dining chairs emerged during the 1750s owing to nostalgia for classical antiquity, while the curving chair crests of Queen Anne furniture in the United States preceded the artistically bold seat backs that characterized the Chippendale chairs that followed. If there weren't enough dining chairs at suppertime in the American colonies, men were prioritized and women stood.

In the dining rooms of today, however, there is enough space for everyone to have a seat at the table. Modern styles introduce innovative design choices that play with shape and style. Icons of mid-century modern dining room chairs are plentiful: With its distinctive bentwood back, there is the DCW dining chair by Charles and Ray Eames, while Hans Wegner's timeless classic, the Wishbone chair, remains relevant and elegant decades after its debut. Stefano Giovannoni's White Rabbit dining chairs, in their lovable polyethylene biomorphism, reinvent what dining can look like.

Today's wide range of dining room chairs also means that they can now be styled in different ways, bringing functionality and fun to any sumptuous dining space. No longer do tables have to be accompanied by a matching set of seats. Skillfully mixing and matching colors and designs allows you to showcase your personality without sacrificing the cohesion of a given space.

By furnishing your dining room with cozy chairs — vintage, antique or otherwise — family time can extend far beyond mealtime. The plush upholstery of Victorian-style dining room chairs is perfect for game nights that stretch from dinner to midnight snack. Outdoor tables and dining chairs can also present an excellent opportunity for bonding and eating — what goes better with a delicious meal than fresh air, anyway?

Whether you prefer your chairs streamlined and stackable or ornate and one of a kind, the offerings on 1stDibs will elevate your mealtime and beyond.