Fritz Hansen Armchair in Beech and Seagrass, Scandinavian Modern, 1930s
View Similar Items
Fritz Hansen Armchair in Beech and Seagrass, Scandinavian Modern, 1930s
About the Item
- Creator:Fritz Hansen (Manufacturer),K. Scröder (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 27.96 in (71 cm)Width: 23.23 in (59 cm)Depth: 25.6 in (65 cm)Seat Height: 14.18 in (36 cm)
- Style:Scandinavian Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1935
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Minor fading.
- Seller Location:Odense, DK
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU3793136309292
Fritz Hansen
When the Copenhagen-based furniture maker Fritz Hansen opened for business more than 140 years ago, the company — which today styles itself The Republic of Fritz Hansen — adhered to the traditional, time-honored Danish values of craftsmanship in woodworking and joinery. Yet thanks to the postwar innovations of Arne Jacobsen and others, Fritz Hansen would become the country’s leader in Scandinavian modern design using new, forward-looking materials and methods.
Fritz Hansen started his company in 1872, specializing in the manufacture of small furniture parts. In 1915, the firm became the first in Denmark to make chairs using steam-bent wood (a technique most familiar from birch used in the ubiquitous café chairs by Austrian maker Thonet). At the time, Fritz Hansen was best known for seating that featured curved legs and curlicue splats and referenced 18th-century Chippendale designs.
In the next few decades, the company promoted simple, plain chairs with slatted backs and cane or rush seats designed by such proto-modernist masters as Kaare Klint and Søren Hansen. Still, the most aesthetically striking piece Fritz Hansen produced in the first half of the 20th century was arguably the China chair of 1944 by Hans Wegner — and that piece, with its yoke-shaped bentwood back- and armrest, was based on seating manufactured in China during the Ming dynasty. (Wegner was moved by portraits he’d seen of Danish merchants in the Chinese chairs.)
Everything changed in 1952 with Arne Jacobsen’s Ant chair. The collaboration between the architect and Fritz Hansen officially originated in 1934 — that year, Jacobsen created his inaugural piece for the manufacturer, the solid beechwood Bellevue chair for a restaurant commission. The Ant chair, however, was the breakthrough.
With assistance from his then-apprentice Verner Panton, Jacobsen designed the Ant chair for the cafeteria of a Danish healthcare company called Novo Nordisk. The chair was composed of a seat and backrest formed from a single piece of molded plywood attached, in its original iteration, to three tubular metal legs. Its silhouette suggests the shape of the insect’s body, and the lightweight, stackable chair and its biomorphic form became an international hit.
Jacobsen followed with more plywood successes, such as the Grand Prix chair of 1957. The following year he designed the SAS Royal Hotel in Copenhagen and its furnishings, including the Egg chair and the Swan chair. Those two upholstered pieces, with their lush, organic frames made of fiberglass-reinforced polyurethane, have become the two chairs most emblematic of mid-20th-century cool. Moreover, the Egg and Swan led Fritz Hansen to fully embrace new man-made materials, like foam, plastic and steel wire used to realize the avant-garde creations of later generations of designers with whom the firm collaborated, such as Piet Hein, Jørn Utzon (the architect of the Sydney Opera House) and Verner Panton. If the Fritz Hansen of 1872 would not now recognize his company, today’s connoisseurs certainly do.
Find a collection of vintage Fritz Hansen tables, lounge chairs, sofas and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- 1940s Danish "Canada" Arm Chairs in Stained Beech by Fritz HansenBy Christian E. Hansen, Fritz HansenLocated in Odense, DKA beautiful pair of original "Canada" arm chairs designed by Christian E. Hansen and manufactured at "Fritz Hansen", Copenhagen in 1940. The chairs are made from red stained beech an...Category
Vintage 1940s European Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsBeech
- Fritz Hansen Danish Modern Easy Chair in Leather and Beech, 1940sBy Fritz HansenLocated in Odense, DKBeautiful authentic Danish Modern easy chair made and designed in the 1940s at Fritz Hansen & Co., Copenhagen. The chair is upholstered in the...Category
Vintage 1940s Danish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLeather
- Pair of Armchairs in Dark Stained Pine and Seagrass Danish Cabinetmaker, 1940sBy Fritz HansenLocated in Odense, DKCharming pair of armchairs in dark stained pinewood with seats of woven seagrass. The chairs are made in Denmark in the 1930-40s and have never been refinished. The design is simplis...Category
Vintage 1940s Danish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsSeagrass, Pine
- Kaare Klint "Church" Chair in Stained Beechwood & Papercord, Fritz Hansen, 1930sBy Kaare Klint, Fritz HansenLocated in Odense, DKEarly example of Kaare Klints iconic "Church" chair designed in 1936 and manufactured by Fritz Hansen, Copenhagen. This beautifully worn piece retains the original papercord seat and...Category
Vintage 1930s Danish Scandinavian Modern Chairs
MaterialsPapercord, Beech
- 1930s Lounge Chair in Sheepskin, Otto Schulz for Boet, Scandinavian ModernBy Otto Schulz, BoetLocated in Odense, DKRare vintage lounge chair made in the 1930s at "BOET", Sweden. Designed by Swedish designer Otto Schultz. The frame is in beautifully patinated solid elm wood with the most amazing g...Category
Vintage 1930s Swedish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLambskin, Elm
- Fritz Hansen "DAN" Swivel Chair by Magnus Stephensen in Bent Beechwood, 1930sBy Fritz Hansen, Magnus StephensenLocated in Odense, DKRare and important "DAN" swivel chair in beech bentwood produced at Fritz Hansen, Copenhagen in the 1930s. The chair was designed by Magnus Stephensen and is considered an icon in th...Category
Vintage 1930s Danish Scandinavian Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsBeech
- Fritz Hansen 1669 Armchair, Brown Sheepskin, Denmark 1930s, Scandinavian ModernBy Fritz HansenLocated in Copenhagen, DKFRITZ HANSEN & MID-CENTURY MODERN A beautiful Fritz Hansen easy chair, model 1669, 1930s. Sculptural and comfortable armchair upholstered in brown sheepskin with cognac coloured bu...Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsSheepskin
- Rare Fritz Hansen Lounge Chair, Beech and Woven Seagrass, Denmark, 1940sBy Fritz HansenLocated in Copenhagen, DKFritz Hansen & Attributed. Frits Schlegel Scandinavian Modern A stunning and lounge chair in beech and seagrass made by Danish cabinetmaker Fritz Hansen in the 1940s, design attr...Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Chairs
MaterialsSeagrass, Beech
- Rare Mid-Century Modern Magnus Stephensen Armchairs for Fritz Hansen 1930sBy Magnus Stephensen, Fritz HansenLocated in Copenhagen, DKMAGNUS STEPHENSEN & FRITZ HANSEN SCANDINAVIAN MODERN A beautiful pair of armchairs by Danish architect and designer Magnus Stephensen for Fritz Hansen, Denmark 1930s. The armchair...Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsSeagrass, Beech
- Pair of Armchairs in Mahogany and Red Fabric by Fritz Hansen, 1930sBy Fritz HansenLocated in Lejre, DKThese armchairs exude timeless elegance and sophistication, with their mahogany wood construction and red fabric upholstery. They were designed by the iconic Danish furniture designe...Category
Vintage 1930s Danish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Mahogany
$2,260 Sale Price / set20% Off - Fritz Hansen, Model "Canada", A Pair of Armchairs in Beech, Danish Modern, 1939By Fritz Hansen, Christian E. HansenLocated in Odense, DKA great example of 2 Fritz Hansen armchairs "Canada" armchairs, designed by Christian E. Hansen for Fritz Hansen in the 1940s. The chairs are made from stained beech wood and with it...Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Beech
- Danish Modern Easy Chair in Leather & Lambswool, Fritz Hansen, Made in 1930sBy Viggo Boesen, Fritz HansenLocated in Odense, DKSuch a beautiful and comfortable easy chair in leather, legs made in beech. Cushion reupholstered in Shearling lambswool. Made in the style of the popular model 1669 from Fritz Hanse...Category
Early 20th Century Danish Art Deco Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLambskin, Leather, Beech
$5,565 Sale Price20% Off