Pair of iconic H-269 lounge chairs by Jindrich Halabala for UP Závody Brno 1930s

With its curvilinear silhouette, ample cushioning and cantilevered frame, the H269 chair is among the most beloved designs to come out of Czechoslovakia. Jindrich Halabala (1903–78) created the chair in the 1930s while working as head designer for the prominent state-owned manufacturing studio United Arts and Crafts Manufacture (known as UP). Constructed from bentwood, which sees wood soaked or steamed with water so that it becomes malleable enough to bend into elegant forms, the H269’s instantly recognizable exaggerated arms give way to a graceful curve that extends straight down to the cantilevered foundation. Halabala helped introduce a new age of industrial furniture design and mass production while at UP, driven by a focus on creating affordable, innovative furniture that was highly functional as well as widely available. More specifically, he helped revolutionize the modular furniture trend, using simple shapes like the “H” and “E” chairs to standardize the idea of straightforward design. Halabala remained at UP from the 1930s through the mid-’40s and worked mostly in the modernist and Art Deco modes to design chairs, sideboards, tables, sofas and lamps. To create these pieces, he often used tubular steel or bentwood, as with the H269. Like many of his European contemporaries, Halabala’s work can be found in revered museums. And every year, a student competition sponsored by Mendel University in Brno and the Technical University in Zvolen presents awards to aspiring furniture design students in his name. Modernista in the Czech Republic continues to produce the H269 today.