Danish Armchair JH501 Hans J. Wegner Edition Johannes Hansen, Oak Cane 1950ies
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Danish Armchair JH501 Hans J. Wegner Edition Johannes Hansen, Oak Cane 1950ies
About the Item
- Creator:Hans J. Wegner (Designer),Johannes Hansen (Manufacturer)
- Design:
- Dimensions:Height: 29.93 in (76 cm)Width: 24.81 in (63 cm)Depth: 21.26 in (54 cm)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Berlin, DE
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1865328353062
Round Chair
In September of 1960, when Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy sat down for the first nationally televised presidential debate, the two candidates rested on one of the most celebrated designs of the 20th century. Often called simply “The Chair,” the Round chair is one of hundreds designed by Hans J. Wegner (1914–2007). As he once said, “The good chair is a task one is never completely done with.”
Nicknamed the “Master of the Chair,” influential Danish designer Wegner inventively used natural materials in his work and, in particular, experimented with different types of wood instead of the industrial materials favored by 20th-century European modernism.
In his highly functional pieces with their timeless silhouettes, Wegner celebrated the textures of oak, walnut, birch and others while concealing joints inside the various pieces for a seamless frame. Sometimes described as “Organic Functionality,” his approach exemplified the aesthetics of Scandinavian modern design in its reduction of an object to its essential elements while using that sparsity to elevate its materials.
The son of a cobbler, Wegner later apprenticed to a master cabinetmaker and studied at the Technical University of Denmark and the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts (then the Copenhagen School of Arts and Crafts). He opened his furniture design firm in 1943 and throughout his career centered his practice on craftsmanship and constantly reimagined the shape of the utilitarian chair.
He debuted the Round chair in 1949, first showing it at the Annual Exhibition of the Cabinetmakers’ Guild in Copenhagen. Wegner called it simply “the round one.” A semicircle of wood is balanced on its tapered legs, with either a handwoven cane or leather seat stretched between them. Its open back offers comfort for movement, an alternative to traditional straight-back chairs; its finely turned arms provide support without intruding on the sitter’s space. Incorporating 11 pieces of wood and zigzag joints to offer the appearance of a continuous semicircle of wood from the arms to the back, the Round chair’s form is minimal but showcases expert carpentry. In 1950, Interiors magazine declared it “the most beautiful chair in the world.”
Wegner took incredible care with his designs, believing that a good piece of furniture should last a lifetime. Originally manufactured by Danish furniture maker Johannes Hansen, the Round chair is now produced by Danish joinery workshop PP Møbler, which has sought to guard Wegner’s design through meticulous craftsmanship so it can continue to be enjoyed for generations.
Hans J. Wegner
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.
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- Beautiful rare armchair by Bernhard Hoettger, Worpswerde attr. , ca. 1930iesBy Hans J. WegnerLocated in Berlin, DE1930s Masterpiece: Carved Oak Chair with Timeless Craftsmanship attributed to Bernhard Hoettger, Künstlerkolonie Worpswede In the vibrant late 1930s, a remarkable oak chair emerged,...Category
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- Hans Wegner, Round Chair JH501, oak and cane, made by Johannes HansenBy Hans J. Wegner, Johannes HansenLocated in Wargrave, BerkshireKnown as The Round Chair, or simply The Chair, Hans J Wegner created the design for Johannes Hansen to display at the annual exhibition of the Copenhagen Cabinetmakers' Guild in 1949...Category
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- Pair of Chair Model JH501 by Hans J WegnerBy Johannes Hansen, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Brooklyn, NYRare pair of chair Model JH501 by Hans J Wegner, designed in 1949 and manufactured by Johannes Hansen in Denmark. This pair has wear and tear to the frame and rattan (please see ...Category
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- Pair of Hans J. Wegner Armchair "JH-501" in Oak & Rattan Cane, Danish ModernBy Hans J. Wegner, Johannes HansenLocated in Odense, DKDesigned by Hans J. Wegner in 1949 this is one of the most iconic pieces of Danish modern furniture design. Pair of rare and early model "JH-501" made by cabinetmaker Johannes Hansen...Category
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- Hans Wegner JH-515 Armchair for Johannes HansenBy Johannes Hansen, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Los Angeles, CAHans J. Wegner teak armchair c.1950s, Denmark, for Johannes Hansen. The rare model JH-515 features a black leather backrest and seat. Stamped Johannes Hansen, COPENHAGEN, DENMARK....Category
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