Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Along with architect Alvar Aalto, the designer Tapio Wirkkala was Finland’s leading contributor to the Scandinavian interpretation of modernism in the mid-20th century. Prolific and innovative, Wirkkala excelled in a wide range of fields, including glass, furniture, porcelain, jewelry and tableware. The hallmark of his talent was an ability to impart a craft aesthetic based on natural forms — leaves, ice, bubbles, birds — to industrially produced designs.
A native of Helsinki, Wirkkala studied at the national School of Applied Arts and took up a career in graphic design. After serving in the Finnish army during World War II, he joined the glassmaking firm Iittala, an association that would continue to the end of his life. Wirkkala learned every aspect of glassmaking in keeping with his belief that an artist-designer should be involved in all stages of production. His best-known works for Iittala are vases and drinking vessels that resemble either carved ice or icicles. In 1956, Wirkkala began a long relationship with the porcelain maker Rosenthal, for whom he designed elegant table pieces, such as the Finlandia coffee service and the biomorphic Pollo vases.
House Beautiful magazine declared Wirkkala’s Leaf platter the “most beautiful object” of 1951. (The acclaim led to his brief employment stint with industrial designer Raymond Loewy in New York.) That platter was one of the first designs Wirkkala made using laminated sheets of plywood sanded to a smooth surface that resembles an abstract leaf. It would go on to become a motif in many Wirkkala furniture pieces — most notably in inlaid coffee tables for Asko — and in a sense these are the works most emblematic of his personal aesthetic.
Wirkkala was a traditionalist in many ways, but he had a modernist’s practical approach, incorporating his leaf-like spirals into simple, functional objects. That is the core attraction of Wirkkala’s designs: They stand out with a striking, sculptural energy yet blend in as part of a warm and comfortable decor.
Find vintage Tapio Wirkkala furniture on 1stDibs.
1950s Finnish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary American Art Deco Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
1970s German Mid-Century Modern Vintage Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Plastic
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Teak
1960s Finnish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Leather, Birch
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Steel
20th Century Finnish Mid-Century Modern Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Fabric, Bouclé, Bentwood, Birch
Mid-20th Century Norwegian Scandinavian Modern Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Chrome
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Wood
1970s Italian Post-Modern Vintage Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Chrome, Steel
1950s Finnish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Sheepskin
21st Century and Contemporary American Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Leather, Walnut
1960s Japanese Showa Vintage Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Acrylic
1950s Finnish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Metal
1950s Finnish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Tapio Wirkkala Chairs
Chrome
