Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs

Best known for his chairs and seating pieces — though a master of many furniture types like sofas and tables — Hans Wegner was a prolific designer whose elegant, often ebullient, forms and devotion to the finest methods in joinery made "Danish Modern" a popular byword for stylish, well-made furniture in the mid-20th century.
Wegner considered himself a carpenter first and a furniture designer second. Like his peers Arne Jacobsen and Finn Juhl, Wegner believed that striking aesthetics in furniture were based on a foundation of practicality: a chair must be comfortable and sturdy before it is chic.
In keeping with that tenet, several of Wegner’s best chair designs, seen in dealer listings below, have their roots in traditional seating forms. The Peacock chair (designed in 1947) is a throne-like adaptation of the Windsor chair; pieces from the China chair series (begun in 1944) as well as the 1949 Wishbone chair, with its distinctive Y-shaped back splat, are derived from 17th-century Ming seating pieces, as is the upholstered Ox chair (1960). Wegner’s comfy Papa Bear chair (1951) is an almost surreally re-scaled English wingback chair.
Wegner’s most representative piece, the Round chair (1949), gained a footnote in political history when it was used on the TV stage of the first Kennedy-Nixon debate of 1960. That chair, along with Wegner’s more bravura designs, for example the 1963 Shell chair, with its curved surfboard-shaped seat, bring a quietly sculptural presence to a room. Wegner was a designer who revered his primary material — wood — and it shows. His wood gathers patina and character with age; every Hans Wegner piece testifies to the life it has led.
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Oak, Wool
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Papercord, Oak
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Beech, Walnut
20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Leather, Wood
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Rope
1950s Danish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Wool, Oak
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Beech
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Leather, Mahogany
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Leather
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Papercord, Oak
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Chrome
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Leather, Oak
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Teak
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Oak, Wool
1950s Danish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Oak, Teak
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Papercord, Oak
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Leather, Canvas, Beech
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Wool, Beech, Rosewood
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Steel
1960s Danish Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Teak
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Leather, Oak
2010s European Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
1960s Danish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Oak
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Steel
1950s Danish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Metal
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Oak
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Chrome
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Bouclé, Teak
1950s Danish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Oak
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Teak
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Walnut
Late 20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Oak, Walnut, Leather
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Oak
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Beech
1970s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Walnut, Leather
1950s Danish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Bouclé, Teak
2010s Danish Mid-Century Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Oak, Upholstery
20th Century Danish Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Wool, Beech
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Leather, Canvas, Beech
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Wool, Bouclé, Upholstery, Rosewood
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Leather, Rosewood
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Teak
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Steel
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Wool, Teak
1960s Danish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Oak
1970s Danish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Papercord, Beech
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Leather, Oak
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Rattan, Oak
1950s Danish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Wool, Oak
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Oak
1970s Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Walnut
Early 2000s Danish Mid-Century Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Leather, Walnut
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Papercord, Oak
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Oak
Early 2000s Danish Modern Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Oak
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Beech
1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Hans J. Wegner Lounge Chairs
Leather
Hans J. Wegner lounge chairs for sale on 1stDibs
Read More

Design Icon Ilse Crawford on Her Colorful New Hans Wegner Chairs
If anyone is brave, humble and adept enough to recolor these mid-century masterpieces, it’s Ilse Crawford. Here, she gives us the details on her five earthy paint choices and tells us how she feels about design collaborations.

The 16 Most Popular Mid-Century Modern Chairs
You know the designs, now get the stories about to how they came to be.
Creators Similar to Hans J. Wegner
- 1stDibs ExpertMarch 22, 2022Whether or not the Wegner shell chair is comfortable is largely a matter of personal preference. Wegner did design the dramatically curved seat and gently tapered back to properly support the contours of the human body. On 1stDibs, shop a range of Hans Wegner chairs.