Alvar Aalto Model 401 Lounge Chair in Bouclé Finland circa 1938 No 2

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Alvar Aalto Model 401 Lounge Chair in Bouclé Finland circa 1938 No 2

About the Item

Alvar Aalto Model 401 lounge chair in Bouclé Finland Circa 1938 No: 2 Alvar Aalto Model 401 lounge chair Finland Circa 1938, the cantilevered birch ’S' shaped frame upholstered in white Bouclé upholstery, early original version pre added 'ears' to the sides of the backrest, manufactured by Oy Huonekalu- ja Rakennustyötehdas Ab, Turku, Finland, the company is known particularly as producer of Alvar Aalto designed furniture, the base of the legs are stamped 552, reserve now. Biography: Alvar Aalto (Finnish 1898-1976) In contrast with the functionalism of the International Style (as well the neoclassicism put forward by the Nazi and Soviet regimes), Alvar Aalto brought a refreshing breath of humanism to modern design: "True architecture exists only where man stands in the centre," he wrote. Aalto designed furniture in stack-laminated plywood composed of Finnish birch, which was cost-effective and lent warmth to his interiors. Aalto also revived Finnish glass design with his entries in the various Karhula-Iitala glassworks competitions throughout the 1930s. Artek is a Finnish furniture company. It was founded in December 1935 by architect Alvar Aalto and his wife Aino Aalto, visual arts promoter Maire Gullichsen and art historian Nils-Gustav Hahl. The founders chose a non-Finnish name, the neologism Artek was meant to manifest the desire to combine art and technology. In 1936 he won first place for a collection of colourful, wavy vases in various sizes titled Eskimoerindens skinnbuxa (The Eskimo Woman’s Leather Breeches). The vases were an immediate success and the most popular size, now known as the "Savoy" vase, is still in production today. Aalto's freeform designs, in harmony with human needs and nature, anticipated the organic modernism of the 1950s and 1960s; in particular, his innovations in bent plywood had a major impact on designers such as Charles and Ray Eames. Summery: Mid century Circa 1938 Alvar Aalto Oy Huonekalu- ja Rakennustyötehdas Ab, Turku, Finland Cantilever chair Bouclé Model 41 Stamped to base 552 Original Investment Practical & beautiful Condition report: The chair is offered in excellent condition having been fully restored, the material is new Bouclé. Dimensions: Width: 24.5” / 62cm Depth: 32” / 81cm Height: 34" / 86cm Seat height: 15" / 38cm.

Creator:
Alvar Aalto (Designer)
Dimensions:
Height: 34 in (86.36 cm)Width: 24.5 in (62.23 cm)Depth: 32 in (81.28 cm)
Style:
Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Birch,Bouclé
Place of Origin:
Finland
Period:
1930-1939
Date of Manufacture:
1938
Condition:
Reupholstered. Refinished. Wear consistent with age and use. Excellent.
Seller Location:
Longdon, GB
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU1832324064212

Shop All Alvar Aalto

Alvar Aalto

An architect and designer, Alvar Aalto deserves an immense share of the credit for bringing Scandinavian modernism to a prominent place in the global arena. In both his buildings and in his vintage furniture — which ranges from chairs, tables and lighting to table- and glassware — Aalto’s sensitivity to the natural world and to organic forms and materials tempered the hardness of rationalist design.

Relatively few Aalto buildings exist outside Finland. (Just four exist in the United States, and only one — the sinuous 1945 Baker House dormitory at M.I.T. — is easily visited.) International attention came to Aalto, whose surname translates to English as “wave,” primarily through his furnishings.

Instead of the tubular metal framing favored by the Bauhaus designers and Le Corbusier, Aalto insisted on wood. His aesthetic is best represented by the Paimio armchair, developed in 1930 as part of his overall design of a Finnish tuberculosis sanatorium. Comfortable, yet light enough to be easily moved by patients, the chair’s frame is composed of two laminated birch loops; the seat and back are formed from a single sheet of plywood that scrolls under at the headrest and beneath the knees, creating a sort of pillow effect. Aalto’s use of plywood had enormous influence on Charles and Ray Eames, Arne Jacobsen, Marcel Breuer and others who later came to the material.

Concerned with keeping up standards of quality in the production of his designs, Aalto formed the still-extant company Artek in 1935, along with his wife, Aino Aalto, whose glass designs were made by the firm. In the latter medium, in 1936 the Aaltos together created the iconic, undulating Savoy vase, so-called for the luxe Helsinki restaurant for which the piece was designed.

Artek also produced Aalto pendants and other lighting designs, many of which — such as the Angel’s Wing floor lamp and the Beehive pendant — incorporate a signature Aalto detail: shades made of concentric enameled-metal rings graduated down in diameter. The effect of the technique is essential Alvar Aalto: at once precise, simple, and somehow poetic.

Find a collection of vintage Alvar Aalto stools, vases, dining tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.