Sibast No 9

Owing largely to the creative direction of designer Helge Sibast during the postwar years, Danish manufacturer Sibast is internationally revered today for a wide range of sleek vintage Scandinavian modern furniture that includes dining chairs, desks, armchairs and other pieces. The company’s origins can be traced back to wooden furnishings created in a modest cabinetmaker’s workshop.  

Sibast was established by cabinetmaker Peder Olsen Sibast in 1908 as a small carpentry shop in rural Denmark. Peder's son Helge was born that year and began apprenticing alongside his father at a young age. In the 1940s, when the elder Sibast passed away, Helge assumed a management role at the company alongside his siblings, Ole and Emma.

Helge was tasked with leading design, production and product development at a time when what we now call mid-century modernist furniture design was gaining popularity with American consumers and elsewhere, and his own designs reflected a focus on craftsmanship and an emphasis on clean lines as well as the use of organic materials in their construction. Sibast also enlisted the talents of other renowned Danish modernists including Piet Hein, Arne Vodder and Grete Jalk. Vodder designed many of the brand’s armchairs, dining tables and dining chairs that were exported to the United States throughout the ‘50s and ‘60s.

In 1953, the company introduced two of Helge Sibast's most celebrated creations — the Sibast No. 7 and No. 8 chairs. The popular Sibast No. 7 dining chair is noted for its floating backrest and expressive form. With its sturdy Y-frame, the unassuming Sibast No. 8 was a worldwide hit when it debuted, and its simple and functional mid-century modern appeal made it an instant classic. In the 1960s, Sibast chairs were even purchased for interiors at the White House.

The Sibast family sold the company in 1984 but retained the copyrights to Helge's designs. In 2012, Helge's grandson Ditlev and his wife Anna relaunched the Sibast furniture company. The brand’s offerings include many of Helge's original creations alongside new designs that adhere to the company's long-held tradition of creating sculptural, innovative and functional furniture.

Find vintage Helge Sibast chairs, dining chairs and tables 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.