Early Pedro Friedeberg Hand Chair Settee
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Early Pedro Friedeberg Hand Chair Settee
About the Item
- Creator:Pedro Friedeberg (Artist)
- Dimensions:Height: 33.75 in (85.73 cm)Width: 19.5 in (49.53 cm)Depth: 18.5 in (46.99 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 2
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1960s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Some natural separation of the wood joints from natural expansion and contraction of the solid wood. Some wear from years of light use.
- Seller Location:Dallas, TX
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU87851275806
Pedro Friedeberg
The sculptor and painter Pedro Friedeberg works in a richly detailed, Surrealist and eccentric artistic style that blends influences from neoclassical art, M.C. Escher and native Mesoamerican symbolism. He is best known for his Hand chair — a functional sculpture that is an icon of design-as-art.
Friedeberg was born in Florence to German parents and moved with his mother to Mexico at the outset of World War II. As a university student in Mexico City in the 1950s, he initially studied architecture, but his designs for fantastical buildings ran afoul of his rationalist, Bauhaus-oriented teachers.
By chance, Friedeberg’s drawings came to the attention of Mathias Goeritz, the German-born Dadaist painter and sculptor. He encouraged Friedeberg and made him a protégé. Friedeberg credits his mentor for instilling in him a fanatical attention to detail in his work. Friedeberg produced his first Hand chair in 1961, and has since created numerous iterations. He has also made several variants using other human limbs in different functional forms such as tables and clocks.
While Friedeberg’s sculptures have a gentle character that is sometimes described as spiritual, his paintings and prints are something entirely different. He employs deep perspective to create hypnotic, painstakingly rendered canvases that suggest rooms and cityscapes.
Whatever the medium, Friedeberg’s work is arresting and instantly recognizable. The Hand chair, though familiar, remains a captivating piece — both furniture and artwork — that stands apart in any interior. Examples are often priced between $20,000 and $30,000, depending on formal variations (such as a foot-shaped pedestal), material and condition. Smaller functional items such as tabletop clocks bring about $9,000. His paintings and drawings require space; they are meant to be contemplated. Prices on original examples start at about $30,000; prints generally sell in the region of $900.
As you will see on 1stDibs, the art and design of Pedro Friedeberg is singular and memorable.
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