The Danish-born Jens Risom brought the Scandinavian modern design sensibility to a wide audience in the United States. As the first designer for Knoll Inc., Risom introduced American buyers to the region’s enduring design values of simplicity, grace and craftsmanship.
Risom trained in furniture making at the Copenhagen School of Industrial Arts and Design under Ole Wanscher, alongside classmates Hans Wegner and Børge Mogensen. In 1939, a year after graduating from business school, Risom decided to move to the U.S.
While working for an interior designer in New York in 1941, he met Hans Knoll, and the businessman and the designer hit it off. They brought out their first line the next year, despite wartime materials restrictions. The signature piece — now a design icon — was a lounge chair with a striking, undulant birch frame and a seat made of webbed sub-military grade parachute straps. Risom was drafted into the army, and served as a translator under General George Patton. When he returned from the war, Risom clashed over furniture design ideals with his business partner’s new bride, Florence Knoll, the pioneering mid-century modernist who was schooled in the Bauhaus method, which favored furniture with strict, geometric metal frames. Risom then started his own company, Jens Risom Design.
In the course of his long career, Risom developed a stylistic vocabulary that was a reflection of the life of the man himself: his furniture has Danish warmth coupled with an American air of crisp efficiency. Vintage Risom chairs are almost instantly recognizable — the arms and seat backs are set at a distinctive angle that seems to invite people to sit back and relax, yet they know they can hop up in an instant, ready to go.
As you will see on these pages, Jens Risom is one of the great men of American modern design who made furniture that is unique and timeless.
Find a collection of vintage Jens Risom furniture on 1stDibs that includes lounge chairs, desks, coffee tables and more.
Vintage Classic Armless Chairs by Jens Risom, 1950's
By Jens Risom
Located in St.Petersburg, FL
A pair of classic slipper or armless chairs by Jens Risom-original, vintage 1950's production. Walnut frames have a beautiful patina, newly reupholstered in Brunschwig & Fils linen, ...
Upholstery, Walnut
Jens Risom 'Vostra' Lounge Chair with Ottoman in Canvas Webbing
By Walter Knoll, Jens Risom
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Jens Risom for Walter Knoll, 'Vostra' chair with ottoman, beech, canvas, brass, United States, design 1941, production 1950s An elegant lounge chair with ottoman featuring exquisite...
Brass
$1,760Sale Price|20% Off
One Vintage Jens Risom for Knoll Lounge Chairs
By Knoll, Jens Risom
Located in Pasadena, TX
One mid-century modern armless lounge chair designed by Jens Risom for Knoll originally in 1946. This early design has a hard maple frame with new linen upholstery.
Fabric, Maple
Jens Risom 'Vostra' Lounge Chair in Canvas Webbing
By Jens Risom, Walter Knoll
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Jens Risom for Walter Knoll, 'Vostra' chair, beech, canvas, brass, United States, design 1941, production 1950s An elegant lounge chair featuring exquisite canvas webbing, this piec...
Brass
$5,860 / set
Pair of Jens Risom Scoop Chairs for Hans Knoll
By Jens Risom
Located in San Francisco, CA
Pair of Jens Risom scoop chairs for Hans Knoll A pair of very early Knoll post war design scoop chairs by Jens Risom. Each has been completely restored in a luxurious Sandra Jordan ...
Alpaca
Pair of Jens Risom Slipper Lounge Chairs with Charcoal Tweed and Aluminum Frames
By Jens Risom
Located in Dallas, TX
A striking pair of 1960s classic slipper lounge chairs designed by Jens Risom, showcasing his signature blend of sculptural elegance and modernist restraint. These chairs feature new...
Aluminum
Jens Risom Pair of 'Vostra' Lounge Chairs with Ottoman in Canvas Webbing
By Walter Knoll, Jens Risom
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Jens Risom for Walter Knoll, pair of 'Vostra' chairs with ottoman, beech, canvas, brass, United States, design 1941, production 1950s An elegant lounge chair with ottoman featuring ...
Brass
Jens Risom for Knoll Mid Century Slipper Chair
By Knoll, Jens Risom
Located in Franklin Park, IL
Jens Risom for Knoll Mid Century Slipper Chair This chair measures: 24 wide x 29.5 deep x 30.75 high, with a seat height/chair clearance of 15.5 inches Good Vintage Condition - Min...
Upholstery, Wood
Pair of New Navy Blue Wool Upholstery Lounge Slipper Chairs
By Knoll, Jens Risom
Located in Rockaway, NJ
Pair of Classic Jens Risom lounge chairs in navy blue wool upholstery. Gorgeous oiled walnut frames.
Wool, Walnut
Early Chair Attributed to Jens Risom for Knoll
By Jens Risom, Knoll
Located in South Charleston, WV
A very early chair that is attributed to Jens Risom for Knoll. The chair features a vinyl type finish that is in good condition with a few marks and light staining. The legs have ...
Lounge Chair by Florence Knoll for Knoll
By Florence Knoll, Knoll
Located in Sagaponack, NY
A lounge chair formed by an armless button-tufted upholstered seat resting on a matte steel, rectilinear architectural frame.
Steel
$10,800 / set
H 27 in W 26 in D 27 in
Pair of Milo Baughman Scoop Chairs in Ivory Bouclé with Iron Legs c. 1950s
By Milo Baughman
Located in Saint Louis, MO
This pair of Milo Baughman 1950s scoop chairs hit all the marks with gorgeous Mid Century Modern sculptural profiles, a very comfortable ergonomic design with wide seats, and new sof...
Iron
Pair of Jens Risom 666 Side Chairs for Knoll
By Jens Risom, Knoll
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Rare Jens Risom chairs made in the 1940s, model “666” of the 600 series from 1941.
Birch
Pair of Hollywood Regency Slipper Lounge Chairs
By Lorin Jackson
Located in St. Louis, MO
Pair of glamorous Hollywood Regency slipper lounge chairs in the style of Lorin Jackson for Grosfeld House. Legs will be refinished prior to shipping, custom color available. Upholst...
Upholstery
$3,360Sale Price / set|30% Off
H 31.75 in W 24 in D 26 in
Pair of Handsome Jens Risom Leather and Walnut Chairs
By Jens Risom
Located in Minneapolis, MN
Here is a very handsome pair of chairs in solid walnut and leather designed by Jens Risom and made by Marble. Each chair retains a Marble label. The pair is in good condition--the ch...
Leather, Walnut
$5,450 / set
H 29.93 in W 20.08 in D 27.56 in
Jens Risom Pair of 'Vostra' Lounge Chairs with Ottoman in Canvas Webbing
By Walter Knoll, Jens Risom
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Jens Risom for Walter Knoll, pair of 'Vostra' chairs with ottoman, beech, canvas, brass, United States, design 1941, production 1950s An elegant lounge chair with ottoman featuring ...
Brass
Pair of Vintage Walnut Lounge Chairs by Jens Risom Design
By Jens Risom
Located in Brooklyn, NY
This stunning pair of Mid-Century Modern arm chairs by Jens Risom Design feature extremely thick padded seating, a floating style backrest, and sculpted arm rests. A sturdy walnut fr...
Upholstery, Walnut
$3,900 / set
H 30.5 in W 23.75 in D 25 in
Pair of Vintage Modern Barcelona Style Slipper Lounge Chairs
By Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A stunning midcentury design with heavy flat bar chrome bases and tufted upholstery. The "X" shaped sides and angled seats ensure maximum comfort without sacrificing style. This eleg...
Chrome
$5,440Sale Price|20% Off
H 29.5 in W 27 in D 26 in
Pair of Vintage Midcentury Restored Jens Risom Lounge Chairs
By Jens Risom
Located in Pasadena, TX
Jens Risom`s career has spanned nearly sixty years. He began his study of design in the Copenhagen workshop of Kaare Klint in 1935 and joined Ernst Kuhn`s architectural office in 1938, where he designed furniture and interiors. In 1939, Risom emigrated to the U.S. and in 1941 designed the first chair manufactured by Knoll. Risom described the chair as "very basic, very simple, inexpensive, easy to make." The chair was constructed with a birch wood frame and, because of wartime materials constraints, cheap but strong army surplus...
Cowhide, Walnut
Jens Risom Big Chair and Ottoman by Ralph Pucci
By Jens Risom
Located in San Francisco, CA
Jens Risom design "Big Chair" and ottoman reissue by Ralph Pucci International. Large and impressive lounge chair with an equally oversized ottoman...
Upholstery, Walnut
Pair Upholstered Slipper Chairs With Painted Frames
Located in Charlottesville, VA
A pair of slipper chairs with upholstered seats, backs, and skirts in a striped fabric of yellow, green, and lavender tones. Each chair has a low rectangular back within a painted fr...
Fabric, Wood, Paint
Set of Slipper Chairs by Jens Risom in Teddy Wool , C. 1950s
By Jens Risom
Located in Westport, CT
A stunning pair of sculptural slipper chairs by Danish-American designer Jens Risom, circa 1950s, fully restored by Stamford Modern. ...
Wool, Walnut
Mid Century Risom for Knoll Vostra Slipper Chair c 1940/50's
By Jens Risom, Knoll
Located in New York, NY
Classic Mid Century armless slipper chair, known as the Vostra chair, designed by Jens Risom for Knoll circa 1940/50's. This example is structurally soun...
Upholstery, Wood
Rare Slipper Chairs by Jens Risom for Risom, Inc. C. 1950s
By Jens Risom
Located in Westport, CT
Experience the epitome of mid-century modern elegance with our fully restored walnut slipper chairs from the 1950s, a timeless creation by Jens Risom for Risom, Inc. Meticulously ref...
Linen, Walnut
Sold
H 30 in W 21 in D 26 in
Rare Vintage Upholstered Jens Risom Vostra Easy Chair for Knoll Associates, NYC
By Jens Risom
Located in Morristown, NJ
A 1940s Jens Risom for Knoll Associates Inc. Vostra Easy chair upholstered in a cream, golden and blue damask fabric. Unconventional and memorable, it was the epitome of a new depart...
Steel
Classic Slipper Chairs by Jens Risom in Bouclé, C. 1950s
By Jens Risom
Located in Westport, CT
An impeccably restored pair of mid-century modern chairs, a timeless testament to design excellence. Originally conceived by the iconic Jens Risom in the 1950s, these chairs have bee...
Bouclé, Walnut
Pair of Jens Risom Slipper Chairs, 1950's
By Jens Risom
Located in Round Rock, TX
Offered is a wonderful pair of slipper chairs designed by Jens Risom. Featuring sleek, solid walnut frames that appear to cradle the newly upholstered seats. We would call the fabr...
Upholstery, Walnut
Jens Risom Lounge Chairs, a Pair
By Jens Risom
Located in Raleigh, NC
Sleek lounge chairs from Jens Risom newly upholstered in a luxurious boucle atop walnut frames. A classic mid century modern look to this pair.
Walnut
Sold
H 31 in W 23 in D 30 in
Pair of Bouclé Slipper Chairs Designed by Jens Risom for H.G. Knoll Associates
By Knoll, Jens Risom
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Jens Risom for H.G. Knoll Associates armless slipper chairs composed of upholstered seats supported by walnut bases (first appearing in the 1942 Knoll catalog). There is a slight d...
Bouclé, Walnut
Mid-Century Modern Slipper Lounge Chair by Jens Risom for Knoll
By Jens Risom, Knoll
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A classic strapped slipper lounge chair designed by Jens Risom and produced by Knoll. The chair features blonde wood framing with dark gray straps. Very clean and ready to use.
Fabric, Wood
Sold
H 30 in W 30 in D 31 in
Jens Risom Lounge Chair Model U416, Midcentury Low Slipper in Walnut + Boucle
By Jens Risom, Florence Knoll
Located in Decatur, GA
Early Jens Risom low lounge chair in solid American black walnut and a creamy white boucle. Oversized and stout with clean modern lines, a generously deep seat and a curved back. Sub...
Bouclé, Walnut
Classic Slipper Chairs by Jens Risom in Mohair, circa 1950s
By Jens Risom
Located in Westport, CT
A set of slipper chairs designed by Jens Risom, circa 1950s. Fully restored down to its frame, fitted with hand-cut high-density foam and spring system. Newly upholstered in charc...
Mohair, Walnut
Vintage Classic Armless Chairs by Jens Risom, 1950's
By Jens Risom
Located in St.Petersburg, FL
A pair of classic slipper or armless chairs by Jens Risom-original, vintage 1950's production. Walnut frames have a beautiful patina, newly reupholstered in beige velvet. These chair...
Upholstery, Walnut