Mid-20th Century Chairs

Brutalist chairs, maple, Europe 1960s Beautiful and naturalistic chairs made in Europe in the 1960s. These pieces have a strong decorative element, the double backrests of these pi...

Set of six dining chairs, solid pine, Europe, 1960s Sculpted dining chairs in expressively grained pine. Multiple features characterize the scul...

Adrien Audoux and Frida Minet, side chairs, oak, straw, iron, France, 1950s This sculptural side chair was created by the French designer couple Adrien Audoux and Frida Minet. The t...

This so-called “deck or cruise chair” is not only visually arresting, but also interesting thanks to its historical use. Folding chairs have been used as seating in the Mediterranean...

Rare set of six dining chairs model OD-49 designed by Erik Buck. Produced by Oddense maskinsnedkeri A/S in Denmark.

Brutalist chairs, maple, Europe 1960s Beautiful and naturalistic chairs made in Europe in the 1960s. The backrest of these pieces consists of a large piece of maple wood. Another s...

Set di sei sedie in noce modello 1001, disegnate nel 1960 da Gianfranco Frattini e prodotte da Cassina. Recano le etichette originali, le sedute sono state restaurate usando un bel s...

Elegant pair of armchairs with bent ply arms and a flat metal connection between the seat and back that acts like a spring.

This circa 1950s ornately crafted tête e tête with carved exotic details and soft furry sheepskin are a testament to William Westenhaver's modern rustic cr...

Set of five pairs of brass Chiavari chairs. Every pair features different size and Baroque backrest shapes. Four pair with green velvet seating, one pair with violet velvet cover. Si...

Adrien Audoux and Frida Minet, side chairs, oak, straw, iron, France, 1950s This sculptural side chair was created by the French designer couple Adrien Audoux and Frida Minet. The t...

Brutalist chair and stool, maple, Europe 1960s Beautiful and naturalistic chair and stool made in Europe in the 1960s. The backrest of this piece consists of a large piece of maple...

These artistic chairs have a sculptural look that is often refereed to as an “oyster”. From Finn Juhl’s “France chair” to Seymour “James” Weiner’s “Oyster” chair, this style has been...

Arne Jacobsen for Fritz Hansen, 'Butterfly' or 3107 chairs, plywood, steel, Denmark, design 1955 Set of iconic multifunctional chairs by master designer Arne Jacobsen. These chair...

Set of foldable chairs, chrome-plated metal and plywood, The Netherlands, circa. 1930 This set of midcentury Dutch School chairs would be a great choice for your project if you are ...

Mid-century designers were eager to break free from the aesthetics of the past and experiment with new forms, and techniques. At the same time, especially in Europe, the modernist design movement was often based on traditional styles and techniques, such as turned chairs. Turned chairs — sometimes called thrown chairs or spindle chairs — represent a style of Elizabethan or Jacobean turned furniture that had a vogue in the late 16th and early 17th century. The technique was carried on to the 20th century and was widespread in Europe as well, where craftsmen created durable pieces for various interiors and purposes. In turned furniture, the individual wooden spindles of the piece were made by shaping them with chisels and gouges while they were being spun, or turned between the centre points of a lathe. The construction of this pair is evocative of the more robust Arts and Crafts Movement, featuring subtle decorative elements such as the finials atop the backs. The sphere-shaped finials aren’t the only ornamentations on the design; the shape of the two splats on the back, the carved stretchers and carving on the feet are all decorative features that make this pair visually arresting. In later turned chairs, like this pair, rush seats were common. Here, the seats are woven around the frames with a light colour that beautifully contrasts to the dark, patinated wood. The partnership of the two natural materials is very effective as well; the wood and rush pair...

Guillerme et Chambron for Votre Maison, set of twelve dining chairs, oak, France, 1960s. Set of twelve elegant and robust dining chairs in solid oak by Guillerme and Chambron. These...

Turned chairs — sometimes called thrown chairs or spindle chairs — represent a style of Elizabethan or Jacobean turned furniture that had a vogue in late 16th and early 17th century England, New England and Holland. The technique was carried on to the 20th century and was widespread in Europe as well, where craftsmen created durable pieces for various interiors and purposes. These chairs were designed by French designer, Charles Dudouyt, who originally created this pair of small carved chairs as ‘fireside’ chairs, hence the “chaises basses...

Roland Rainer, dining chairs, stained beech, lacquered beech, Austria, 1950s These dining chairs have a minimalistic design, distinguished by an open construction style with emphasi...

Set of six dining chairs, oak, wicker braided straw, Italy, 1950s Delicate Italian dining chairs with comfortable seats in wicker straw braided in a geometric pattern. Four tapered,...

Wood and leather Measures: H. 77 x L. 50.5 x P. 63.5 cm H. 30.31 x L. 19.88 x D. 25 inches Intended for the secretariat and various administrative buildings, Chandigarh, India.

Eero Saarinen for Knoll International, set of four model 72 chairs, in chrome and leather fabric, United States, 1948. Set of four organic shaped chairs designed by Eero Saarinen. ...

Valet chair model 540 designed by Hans J. Wegner for Johannes Jansen, Denmark, 1953. Teak, oak and brass. Stamped. H: 94 cm W: 51 cm D: 50 cm SH: 44.5 cm Hans J. Wegn...

Asko's present model “2464” chair charms with its curved shape. Better known as Marketta, this rare piece features a beech frame and a padded, upholstered seat. This chair makes a st...

Luigi Vaghi for Former, set of four dining chairs, stained ash, faux leather, Italy, 1960s. A characteristic 'T-chair' design; simplistic yet very strong in lines and proportions. ...

Brazil, 1954 Manufactured by Unilabor Iron tubular structure, fabric upholstery Literature: Mo´vel Brasileiro Moderno, FGV Projetos, Rio de Janeiro, 2012, p. 186-187; Nadia Simo...

Finn Juhl for Bovirke, 'reading' dining chairs, oak, teak, metal, Denmark, 1953. In 1953, Finn Juhl designed this 'Reading Chair' for Bovirke. The chair is organically shaped feat...

PK 9 dining chair by Poul Kjærholm in patinated, black leather with steel frame. circa 1960s Denmark.

Roland Rainer, dining chairs, stained beech, lacquered beech, Austria, 1950s These dining chairs have a minimalistic design, distinguished by an open construction style with emphasi...

Kurt Olsen for Slagelse Mobelvaerk, set of four '223' dining or armchairs, fabric, teak, Denmark, 1960s Set of four dining or armchairs designed by Kurt Olsen in the 1960s. These ...

An "Oxford" arm chair in white leather upholstery with a high back and a cast aluminum 5 point base with casters. Height adjustable +/- 5".

Armchair ‘The Red Chair’ Model 3758A designed by Kaare Klint for Rud. Rasmussen, Denmark, 1930s. Mahogany, leather upholstery, and brass. This example was produced after 1930. The design detailing of this magnificent chair...

Dining chairs, oak, straw wicker, Denmark, 1960s This collection comprises an extensive array of rustic Danish church chairs, constructed from du...

Armchair model 4488 designed by Kaare Klint for Rud. Rasmussen, Denmark, 1930s. Mahogany, ebony, cane, and black horsehair upholstery with cognac leather piping. Klint thought...

Erik Karlström, side chair, chromed steel, leather, Sweden, 1960s. Elegant and modern dining chair with unusual shaped backrest designed by Erik Karlst...

Stools or footstools, fiberglass, coated steel, Europe, 1960s This stool embodies a minimalist aesthetic, characterized by its straightforward design with streamlined contours and...

A rare lounge chair designed by Paul McCobb for Directional.

Rare set of 4 chairs designed by Gunnar Asplund. Produced by Iwan B. Giertz in Flen, Sweden.

This is an exceptionally well crafted pair of asian inspired slipper chairs, newly upholstered in a cashmere velvet with bleached wood accents. Circa 1940s, these chairs reflect the ...

Stool model 927 designed by Josef Frank for Svenskt Tenn, Sweden, 1950s. Mahogany and rattan. Measures: H: 43 cm W: 43 cm D: 28 cm Josef Frank was a true European, he was also a pioneer of what would become classic 20th century Swedish design and the “Scandinavian Design Style”. Austrian- born Frank started his design career as an architect after having trained at the Technische Hochschule in Vienna between 1903 and 1910. After his training he went on to teach at Kunstgewerbeschule (The Viennese School of Arts and crafts) where he developed and espoused the new school of modernist thinking towards Architecture and Design that was coming to fruition in Vienna at the time. He also went on to lead the Vienna Werkbund throughout the 1920s. This was a truly progressive group of Architects and Designers who set about improving the daily lives of Austrian people through modernist design and architecture in partnership with Arts and Crafts ideals and construction. Frank’s leadership of the Werkbund had already cemented his place at the forefront of European design. Frank’s time in Vienna was typified by his design for the “Die Wohnung” exhibition of the Deutscher Werkbund in Stuttgart, 1927 where he exhibited along side his contemporaries at the forefront of design, such as the likes of Le Corbusier and Walter Gropius. Here he showed a specially designed pair of flat-roofed reinforced concrete houses in what is now seen as a typical modernist style. What separated Frank’s house from the other 32 houses of the exhibition was the interior and furniture inside the building. It was described as “Neo-Classical” and filled with an eclectic mix of period pieces, modern design and pieces designed by Frank himself that seemed to cross the two worlds. This was a complete opposite direction to that which his fellow Architects were travelling in with their pared back and angular aesthetics. Frank said of his own work: “The house is not a work of art, simply a place where one lives,” and by this reasoning Frank rejected the regimental mechanisation of the living space that his contemporaries believed in, instead he set about creating congenial and spontaneous interiors. Frank’s practice saw him placing the bright colours and the soft forms of nature back into the furnishings and interiors that he thought modernism sorely mist. Frank, along with Oskar Walch set up Haus und Garten in Vienna in 1925. This was Frank’s first commercial foray into furniture and home furnishings and the company went on to become the most influential furnishing house in Vienna with a riotous depth of colour and interesting shapes becoming the trademark of their design. However this success was to come to an end with rise of Nazism in Vienna in the early 1930’s. Frank was Jewish, and he and his wife Anna decided they would leave Vienna for her motherland: Sweden, in 1933. Frank continued to design for Haus and Garten, visiting Vienna occasionally and designing the pieces that would continue to be the company’s best sellers long after Frank was forced to hand the company over in 1938 after the Third Reich annexation of Austria. When Josef and Anna had moved to Sweden Frank had struck up a working relationship with Design shop owner Estrid Ericson. Ericson was the proprietor of Svenskt Tenn that at this point was a successful interiors shop in Stockholm with the royal warrant of appointment to the Swedish Royal Household. In 1935 Frank had become the chief designer for Svenskt Tenn and had set about putting all of his creative effort into his designs for the company. At the World Expositions in Paris in 1937 and New York in 1939 the world saw for the first time the wealth of products that Frank had been working on, ranging from candlesticks to cabinets, there was not a domestic object that Frank had not subjected to his colourful, comfortable and organic style of Modernism. Frank’s new school of Modernism championed ideas such as chairs having a freeing, open back and that “If one desires the room to be comfortable…all pieces of furniture should allow for a free view of the separating line between the floor and the wall. A cabinet without legs breaks this line and thus reduces the feeling of space.” A world-wide audience tired of classic Modernism’s furniture with solid planes and aggressive forms leapt upon these ideas and Franks natural and bright designs for Svenskt Tenn became internationally desired. Frank created over 2000 designs for Svenskt Tenn and his products continue to be the core of their brand. Frank’s rejections of tubular metal and heavy lacquers within his furniture have insured his unique light form of Modernism continues to influence and flourish today. His natural toned mahogany and walnut pieces along with his tactile leather covered and brightly shaded lighting still bring the forms of nature back into the home. Original Frank pieces are now increasingly rare, highly desirable and are the epitome of “Scandinavian Design”. Renowned Designer and Academic Isle Crawford...

Pair of dining chairs, oak, straw wicker, Denmark, 1960s This collection comprises an extensive array of rustic Danish church chairs, constructed...

Pair of "T Chairs" in stainless steel with brown leather sling seats and backs by Katavolos, Littell and Kelley for Laverne International, American 1950's. New hand-stitched leather ...

Pair of teak and leather occasional chairs by Ejner Larsen and Aksel Bender Madsen for Willy Beck. Replaced cream colored leather. Chairs bei...

Set of six dining chairs model 2027 designed by Josef Frank for Svenskt Tenn, Sweden, 1950s. Mahogany, leather and brass. Josef Frank developed his characteristic style combining e...

Tito Agnoli for Molteni, set of four 'Fiorenza' dining chairs, walnut, leather, Italy, 1968 These chairs are an excellent example of Italian Mid-Century design. The back is slightly...

Vico Magistretti for Cassina, set of eight dining chairs, model '122', walnut, velvet, 1967 This Italian set designed by Vico Magistretti features a remarkable sculpted back that is...

Set of two Model 420 side chairs by Harry Bertoia for Knoll. Early edition with white metal frame and black seat pad.

A set of four Edward Wormley for Dunbar high back dining chairs with mahogany bases. Fully restored and reupholstered.

A side chair with a warm-toned undulating laminated teak seat on a chromed steel base.

Armchairs, ash, fabric, Italy, 1960s. Sturdy Italian armchairs in solid ash and beige checkered pattern upholstery. The x-shaped design elevates the overall elegancy of this rustic...

Pair of dining chairs, beech, straw, France, 1960s. Pair of beautiful French dining chairs executed in beech and straw. The design of these chairs is interesting because of the slee...

A pair of armchairs designed by Kurt Östervig for Brande Möbelindustri, Denmark, 1960s. Rosewood and leather. Dimensions: H: 7...

Johannes Andersen for Uldum Møbelfabrik, set of six dining chairs model ‘Juliane’, teak, fabric, Denmark, 1960s This set of dining chairs is designed by Danish designer Johannes And...

Among the many excellent European Mid-Century Modern designs, some were well-known for their flair for the dramatic, which becomes evident upon looking at this set of six accent chai...

Uno & Östen Kristiansson for Luxus of Sweden, pair of stools. leather, teak, France, 1950s Elegant in line and practical to use, these stools by Uno & Östen Kristiansson are exempla...

Pair of soda fountain wrought iron ice cream parlor chairs. The frame is painted in a dark green and good condition and some surface disco...

Set of six model PK9 dining chairs designed by Poul Kjaerholm for E Kold Christensen, Denmark, 1960s. Leather and steel. Stamped. Dimensions: H: 75.5 cm / 2' 1/2" W: 56 cm / 1' 8"...

Yrjö Kukkapuro for Haimi, set of six dining chairs model ‘415A’, black leather, fiberglass, aluminum, Finland 1960s These organic shaped dining chairs were designed by the Finnish ...