Spade Chair - Finn Juhl
View Similar Items
Spade Chair - Finn Juhl
About the Item
- Creator:France & Søn (Manufacturer),Finn Juhl (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 27.17 in (69 cm)Width: 29.93 in (76 cm)Length: 27.17 in (69 cm)Seat Height: 16.15 in (41 cm)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1954
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Antwerpen, BE
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU3822114085331
Finn Juhl
Along with Hans Wegner, Arne Jacobsen and Børge Mogensen, Finn Juhl was one of the great masters of mid-20th-century Danish design. Juhl was the first among that group to have his work promoted overseas, bringing the character of the nation’s furnishings — and the inherent principles of grace, craftsmanship and utility on which they were based — to an international audience. A stylistic maverick, Juhl embraced expressive, free-flowing shapes in chair and sofa designs much earlier than his colleagues, yet even his quietest pieces incorporate supple, curving forms that are at once elegant and ergonomic.
As a young man, Juhl hoped to become an art historian, but his father steered him into a more practical course of study in architecture. He began designing furniture in the late 1930s, a discipline in which, despite his education, Juhl was self-taught, and quite proud of the fact. His earliest works, designed in the late 1930s, are perhaps his most idiosyncratic. The influence of contemporary art is clear in Juhl's 1939 Pelican chair: an almost Surrealist take on the classic wing chair. Critics reviled the piece, however; one said it looked like a "tired walrus." Juhl had tempered his creativity by 1945, when the Danish furniture-making firm Niels Vodder began to issue his designs. Yet his now-classic NV 45 armchair still demonstrates panache, with a seat that floats above the chair’s teak frame.
Juhl first exhibited his work in the United States in 1950, championed by Edgar Kaufmann Jr., an influential design critic and scion of America’s most prominent family of modern architecture and design patrons. (Kaufmann’s father commissioned Frank Lloyd Wright’s design of the house “Fallingwater.”) Juhl quickly won a following for such signature designs as the supremely comfortable Chieftan lounge chair, the biomorphic Baker sofa, and the Judas table, a piece ornamented with stylish inlaid silver plaquettes.
As you will see from the offerings on 1stDibs, Finn Juhl’s furniture — as well as his lighting, ceramics, tableware and accessories — has an air of relaxed sophistication and elegance that is unique in the realm of mid-20th-century design.
France & Søn
Danish manufacturer France & Søn is best known for its prolific output of elegant mid-century modern furnishings in teak and leather, yet its multinational beginnings took shape during the 1930s.
After businessman Charles William Fearnley France (1897–1972) moved from his native England to Denmark in 1936, he began to operate a small mattress factory alongside his friend Eric Daverkosen, a Danish cabinetmaker, under the name France & Daverkosen. Shortly afterward, Daverkosen passed away, and when Denmark was invaded during the Second World War, Charles was captured and sent to a prison camp in Germany. When he was released, the British entrepreneur set out to produce furniture in the early 1950s, setting up a shop in Hillerød to manufacture the kind of sleek beech and teak goods that were gaining widespread acclaim around the world. In 1957, France’s son James joined the business, and the company changed its name to reflect the addition.
Throughout the ’50s and ’60s, France & Søn produced a stunning array — and staggering quantity — of designs, with elegant modernist lounge chairs and armchairs, teak and rosewood dining tables and other furnishings by the likes of Finn Juhl, Grete Valk, Ole Wanscher, Peter Hvidt and Orla Mølgaard-Nielsen all gracing its catalogues.
Even as there was a focus on mass production at France & Søn — and the brand doesn’t quite enjoy the same renown as fellow mid-century Danish furniture makers such as Carl Hansen & Søn — Charles France believed in making quality furniture, and the company’s offerings evoke the warmth of the handcrafted work that is typically associated with Scandinavian modernism.
In the 1960s, the company was bought by Danish designer Poul Cadovius, who folded it into the operations at CADO, a company he founded during the 1950s. Surviving examples of early work from the brand as well as modern icons by the likes of Verner Panton that followed in later years continue to be in demand.
Find a collection of France & Søn furniture on 1stDibs.
- Spade Chair Designed by Finn JuhlBy Finn JuhlLocated in Stamford, CTA France and Sons chair designed by Finn Juhl. Known as the "Spade Chair". Model FD 133. this is ebonized model retains its label. Finn Juhl fi...Category
Vintage 1970s Danish Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsWood
- Model FD 133 "Spade Chair", Finn JuhlBy Finn Juhl, France & DaverkosenLocated in Neuss, NWModel FD 133 "Spade Chair" by Finn Juhl for France & Daverkosen from the 1960s. High-quality frame made of solid teak. The armchair has been reupholstered and covered with a high-qua...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Foam, Teak
- Model FD 133 "Spade Chair", Finn JuhlBy Finn Juhl, France & DaverkosenLocated in Neuss, NWModel FD 133 "Spade Chair" by Finn Juhl for France & Daverkosen from the 1960s. High-quality frame made of solid teak. The armchair has been reupholstered and covered with a high-qua...Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsTeak
- Danish Modern Teak Spade Lounge Chair by Finn Juhl for France & SønBy France & Søn, Finn JuhlLocated in North Hollywood, CADanish modern teak "spade" lounge chair design by Finn Juhl for France & Søn in Denmark, circa 1950s. These chairs are known for their comfort and beauty, but most importantly, their sculptured spade shape armrest. The chair was made of the highest quality teak giving it a mid-century look. The chair needs to be upholstered but offers you the opportunity to create the perfect chair...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsTeak
- Pair of Finn Juhl Model 133 "Spade" Teak Lounge Chairs by France & Søn 1950sBy France & Søn, Finn JuhlLocated in St. Louis, MOPair of Mid-Century Danish Modern Finn Juhl Model 133 "Spade" teak lounge chairs manufactured by France & Søn of Denmark and retailed at Illums Bol...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Teak
- Finn Juhl Model 141 Lounge ChairBy France & Søn, Finn JuhlLocated in Highland, INThis handsome easy chair by Finn Juhl for France & Sons is a rare model fd141. It shares qualities with many of his famous chairs including the Chieftain, the #45 chair, and the Dele...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Teak