Scandinavian Cognac Leather and Chrome Birgitta Armchair by Bruno Mathsson
View Similar Items
Scandinavian Cognac Leather and Chrome Birgitta Armchair by Bruno Mathsson
About the Item
- Creator:Bruno Mathsson (Designer),Dux of Sweden (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 31.5 in (80 cm)Width: 25.99 in (66 cm)Depth: 25.2 in (64 cm)Seat Height: 17.33 in (44 cm)
- Style:Scandinavian Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1960s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. leather with some patina-see photos.
- Seller Location:Vienna, AT
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU105067743253
Bruno Mathsson
As the descendant of four generations of Swedish master cabinetmakers, Bruno Mathsson was born to design furniture. Mathsson was known as a methodical perfectionist who made usefulness the fundamental attribute of his works, yet he was also a ceaseless experimenter, who constantly searched for improvements in form, materials and methods of making.
Like the Finnish designer Alvar Aalto, Mathsson was one of the first Scandinavians to embrace undulating, biomorphic forms in furniture. His early pieces such as the Eva and Pernilla series of chairs incorporate dramatically flowing bent beechwood frames, making them some of the most instantly recognizable works of 20th-century design. Mathsson was also a pioneer of ergonomics — he is said to have based the contours of his chairs on the impression his body made when he sat in a snow bank — and used supple, accommodating woven webbing for seats. His concern for practicality is shown by pieces such as the Maria table. An elegant design with gate legs and hinged leaves, the table measures more than nine feet long when fully extended, but folds down to just nine inches in thickness.
From the mid-1940s through the 1950s, Mathsson focused on architecture, designing and building houses with insulated, triple-glazed window walls and heated floors — construction that flew in the face of traditional wood-clad Swedish residential design, and consequently met with some skepticism. He returned to furniture in the 1960s, employing an entirely new suite of materials: Stainless-steel framing and mesh seats feature in pieces like the Jetson chair; with the mathematician Piet Hein, Mathsson designed the Super-Elliptical table, which has a laminate top and four-part tubular steel legs that sprout like flower stems from a single base.
Bruno Mathsson’s stylistic flexibility as a designer, as you will see from the works on 1stDibs, make him a creator whose pieces meet all tastes and needs.
Dux of Sweden
Today, Swedish manufacturer DUX’s most popular furniture lines — as well as the furnishings created by its first president, Folke Ohlsson — are synonymous with the work that vintage mid-century modern design obsessives love. Also important, the brand is known for some of the most commonplace means of furniture shipping and production in the modern era.
In Sweden, Studio Ljungs Industrier AB is the large family-owned parent company of Duxiana (in America, DUX). Initially a purveyor of bedding that is today celebrated for its ergonomically guided designs, Ljungs Industrier was founded by entrepreneur (and chocolate maker) Efraim Ljung in 1926. In 1950, Folke Ohlsson, then leading Ljungs Industrier’s design team, decamped to the States to explore how he could expand DUX’s business, which at that point included a wide range of furniture. Ohlsson established a DUX office not long after he arrived in California, first in San Francisco and later in Burlingame.
On the West Coast, the booming postwar American market was eager to embrace DUX’s affordable and practical bedroom furnishings, tables, armchairs and other seating. Characterized by sleek walnut and teak frames and low-slung silhouettes, the brand’s designs were emblematic of a generation of Scandinavian modernism that had gained popularity owing to visionaries such as product designer and architect Greta Magnusson-Grossman, who arrived in California from Sweden a decade prior to Ohlsson, and Finn Juhl, who created a Danish modern line for Michigan’s Baker Furniture Company in 1951.
DUX frequently collaborated with top-tier furniture design talent — among them Bruno Mathsson, Edward Wormley and Alf Svensson, a chief designer in the Malmö, Sweden, office of Ljungs Industrier — expanding the brand’s portfolio and establishing credibility as a design source. Ohlsson’s own designs, such as his comfortable leather lounges and wool-upholstered reclining rocking chairs, continue to be among the brand’s most desirable — and most imitated — however.
In 1949, DUX put into practice an idea that Ohlsson patented for the so-called “knock-down,” or “KD,” chair, a term referencing easy, flat-pack assembly. It saved DUX space in warehouses and money on transportation and was a concept that would provide inspiration to hundreds of subsequent companies — most notably fellow Swedish brand IKEA.
Today, vintage DUX sofas and dining chairs are valuable collector’s items. Find this coveted seating and other authentic DUX furniture on 1stDibs.
- Scandinavian Modern Mod. 57 Teak and Papercord Armchair by Niels Otto MollerBy J.L. Møllers Møbelfabrik, Niels Otto MøllerLocated in Vienna, ATThis Scandinavian Modern Mod. 57 teak dining armchair was designed by Niels Otto Moller 1959 and manufactured by his own company: J.L. Moller Mobelfabrik in Denmark, in the 1960s. T...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsPapercord, Teak
$2,140 Sale Price30% Off - Austrian Midcentury Walnut and red Leather Dining Armchairs by Oswald HaerdtlBy Oswald HaerdtlLocated in Vienna, ATThis elegant and comfortable Set of eight Dining Armchairs was designed by the Austrian architect and designer Oswald Haerdtl and manufactured in the 1950s in Vienna. The sculpted Chairs are made of Walnut and brass and have red leather seats and give evidence of excellent craftsmanship. The matching Dining Table...Category
Vintage 1950s Austrian Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBrass
- Portex Armchair by Peter Hvidt and Orla Molgaard-NielsenBy Hvidt & Mølgaard, ThonetLocated in Vienna, ATEarly Scandinavian Modern beech armchair with plywood seat and back. Usually produced by Fritz Hansen, this one manufactured by Thonet who produced them as well for some yearsCategory
Vintage 1940s Danish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsBeech, Plywood
- Pair of Chromed Tubular Steel and New Blue Mohair Cantilever Art Deco ArmchairsBy Mücke & MelderLocated in Vienna, ATPair of cantilever Art Deco armchairs in tubular steel with new dark blue mohair fabric covers. The original design of the FN 21 Famos model was made by Mücke & Melder in 1930. The armrests are made of stained beech. Mucke Melder began producing furniture in nickel-plated and chromed steel in 1928. The first type was a spring chair designed by A. Lurcat for the Thonet company, whose designs he often used under licence. Arnošt Beck created her own design for it. This pair of Art Deco- Bauhaus cantilever...Category
Vintage 1930s Czech Art Deco Lounge Chairs
MaterialsChrome
- Scandinavian Elm Lounge Chair with New Soft Orange Kvadrat Wool FabricBy Nanna DitzelLocated in Vienna, ATLight and elegantly shaped Danish modern lounge chair. It´s shape is very close to the nursing chair by Nanna Ditzel. The curved shell is professionally re-upholstered in a soft oran...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsBrass
$1,834 Sale Price40% Off - Scandinavian Svend Skipper Mini Bear Teak Lounge Chair with New Red FabricBy Skipper Mobler, Svend SkipperLocated in Vienna, ATThis charming Scandinavian Modern armchair echoes the design of Hans Wegners famous Papa Bear chair as a smaller version. It is designed by Svend Skipper and produced in Denmark 1960...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Teak
$2,358 Sale Price40% Off
- Scandinavian Midcentury Leather Sofa "Eva" by Bruno MathssonBy Firma Karl Mathsson, Bruno MathssonLocated in Karlstad, SERare “Eva” three-seat sofa by Bruno Mathsson, with a wreathed leather seat on a beech bentwood frame. Perfect patinated naturally colored leather. Manufactured in 1966 by Firma Karl ...Category
20th Century Swedish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsLeather, Beech
- Pair of Pernilla Armchairs by Bruno Mathsson for Dux, 1969By Dux of Sweden, Bruno MathssonLocated in Barcelona, ESPair of Pernilla armchairs designed in 1969 by Bruno Mathsson for Dux, Sweden. Curved beech wood structure with canvas, leather strips and original f...Category
Vintage 1970s Swedish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsLeather, Fabric, Canvas, Beech
- Scandinavian Chaise Longue "Pernilla 3" by Bruno MathssonBy Firma Karl Mathsson, Bruno MathssonLocated in Karlstad, SEGorgeous chaise lounge Pernilla 3, designed by Bruno Mathsson for Karl Andersson & Söner, Sweden. Condition: Good original condition with light patina. No damage to the webbing, and...Category
20th Century Swedish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsBirch
- 'Pernilla' Armchair Designed by Bruno MathssonBy Firma Karl Mathsson, Bruno MathssonLocated in Brescia, ITIconic 'Pernilla' armchair designed by Bruno Mathsson for Karl Mathsson AB in Värnamo, Sweden in the 1940s. The frame is made of birch wood and the seat of canvas with crossed str...Category
Vintage 1940s Swedish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsCanvas, Birch
- 'Pernilla' Armchair and Footstool Designed by Bruno MathssonBy Firma Karl Mathsson, Bruno MathssonLocated in Brescia, ITIconic 'Pernilla' armchair and footstool designed by Bruno Mathsson for Karl Mathsson AB in Värnamo, Sweden in the 1940s. The frame is made of birch wood and the seat of canvas wi...Category
Vintage 1940s Swedish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsCanvas, Birch
- Scandinavian Lounge Chair "Pernilla 1" by Bruno Mathsson, 1940sBy Firma Karl Mathsson, Bruno MathssonLocated in Karlstad, SEGorgeous lounge chair and ottoman "Pernilla 1", designed by Bruno Mathsson for Karl Andersson & Söner, Sweden. This rare version with red paper cord webbing and reading stand was mos...Category
20th Century Swedish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsBirch