Alvar Aalto 40s 403 Hallway Chair
About the Item
- Creator:Alvar Aalto (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 30.71 in (78 cm)Width: 21.66 in (55 cm)Depth: 24.81 in (63 cm)
- Style:Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1940
- Condition:Reupholstered. Refinished. Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:東御市, JP
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU8054234797742
Alvar Aalto
An architect and designer, Alvar Aalto deserves an immense share of the credit for bringing Scandinavian modernism to a prominent place in the global arena. In both his buildings and in his vintage furniture — which ranges from chairs, tables and lighting to table- and glassware — Aalto’s sensitivity to the natural world and to organic forms and materials tempered the hardness of rationalist design.
Relatively few Aalto buildings exist outside Finland. (Just four exist in the United States, and only one — the sinuous 1945 Baker House dormitory at M.I.T. — is easily visited.) International attention came to Aalto, whose surname translates to English as “wave,” primarily through his furnishings.
Instead of the tubular metal framing favored by the Bauhaus designers and Le Corbusier, Aalto insisted on wood. His aesthetic is best represented by the Paimio armchair, developed in 1930 as part of his overall design of a Finnish tuberculosis sanatorium. Comfortable, yet light enough to be easily moved by patients, the chair’s frame is composed of two laminated birch loops; the seat and back are formed from a single sheet of plywood that scrolls under at the headrest and beneath the knees, creating a sort of pillow effect. Aalto’s use of plywood had enormous influence on Charles and Ray Eames, Arne Jacobsen, Marcel Breuer and others who later came to the material.
Concerned with keeping up standards of quality in the production of his designs, Aalto formed the still-extant company Artek in 1935, along with his wife, Aino Aalto, whose glass designs were made by the firm. In the latter medium, in 1936 the Aaltos together created the iconic, undulating Savoy vase, so-called for the luxe Helsinki restaurant for which the piece was designed.
Artek also produced Aalto pendants and other lighting designs, many of which — such as the Angel’s Wing floor lamp and the Beehive pendant — incorporate a signature Aalto detail: shades made of concentric enameled-metal rings graduated down in diameter. The effect of the technique is essential Alvar Aalto: at once precise, simple, and somehow poetic.
Find a collection of vintage Alvar Aalto stools, vases, dining tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Nagano, Japan
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 14 days of delivery.
- Alvar Aalto 40s 406 ChairBy Alvar AaltoLocated in 東御市, JP40s 406 chari.upholstery by jute webbing. early production.Category
Vintage 1940s Finnish Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Birch
- 30's alvar aalto 403 hallway chair painted whiteBy Alvar AaltoLocated in 東御市, JPThe early 403 was characterized by making the best use of the flexibility of the pre-wood, without the bearing surface on the cross. This is an individual that has been painted in...Category
Vintage 1930s Finnish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsBirch
- alvar aalto chair69 natural 1930'sBy Alvar AaltoLocated in 東御市, JPDesigned by Alvar Aalto. This chair 69 was manufactured in the 1930s. It has a structure that seems to be an early product that is not found in current products. The paint film from ...Category
Vintage 1930s Finnish Modern Chairs
MaterialsBirch
- alvar aalto chair69 natural hedemora 1940'sBy Alvar AaltoLocated in 東御市, JPDesigned by Alvar Aalto. This chair 69 was manufactured in the 1940s. It is from the era when it was manufactured in Hedemora, Sweden. It has a structure manufactured with hedemora f...Category
Vintage 1940s Swedish Modern Chairs
MaterialsBirch
- alvar aalto chair68 Painted White 1950'sBy Alvar AaltoLocated in 東御市, JPDesigned by Alvar Aalto. This is chair 68 . White paint is applied all over. This chair was manufactured in the 1950s.Category
Vintage 1950s Finnish Modern Chairs
MaterialsBirch
- alvar aalto chair69 natural hedemora 1940'sBy Alvar AaltoLocated in 東御市, JPDesigned by Alvar Aalto. This chair 69 was manufactured in the 1940s. It is from the era when it was manufactured in Hedemora, Sweden. It has a structure manufactured with hedemora f...Category
Vintage 1940s Swedish Modern Chairs
MaterialsBirch
- Vintage Pair Hallway 403 Chairs by Alvar AaltoBy Alvar AaltoLocated in Pasadena, TXHugo Alvar Henrik Aalto was born at Kuortane, Finland, February 3, 1898. He received his diploma in architecture from the Helsinki Institute of Technology in 1921. There were few com...Category
Vintage 1930s Finnish Art Deco Lounge Chairs
MaterialsBirch
- Early Vintage Alvar Aalto Hallway Chair Model 403By Finmar, Alvar AaltoLocated in London, GBA stunning and iconic early vintage Alvar Aalto Hallway chair model 403. This was originally designed in 1929, this model is early and dates from a...Category
Vintage 1930s Finnish Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsWood
- Alvar Aalto Hallway Chair, Model No.403, Finmar 1930'sBy Alvar AaltoLocated in London, GBAn early and exceptionally rare Alvar Aalto Hallway chair, which was originally designed for the Paimio Sanitorium. Bent ply seating rests on...Category
Vintage 1930s Finnish Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsBentwood
- Vintage Pair of Hallway 403 Chairs by Alvar AaltoBy Alvar AaltoLocated in Pasadena, TXHugo Alvar Henrik Aalto was born at Kuortane, Finland, February 3, 1898. He received his diploma in architecture from the Helsinki Institute of Technology in 1921. There were few com...Category
Vintage 1930s Finnish Art Deco Lounge Chairs
MaterialsBirch
- Early Alvar Aalto 'Hallway' Chair 'Model 403' for FinmarBy Alvar Aalto, FinmarLocated in Los Angeles, CAFinmar Model 403 'Hallway' chairs designed by Alvar Aalto and produced from 1930 through 1950 in Finland. The chair features a honey toned birch wood with bent plywood seat and backr...Category
Mid-20th Century Finnish Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsBirch, Plywood
- Vintage Model 403 Hallway Chair by Alvar Aalto for Artek, Set of 2By Alvar AaltoLocated in Cape Town, WCThe Model 403, or Hallway Chair, is a stackable chair originally designed for a Finnish medical centre in 1932. Finnish modernism finds its structural motif in the form of the Model ...Category
Mid-20th Century Finnish Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsBirch, Plywood
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
The Very Modern Love Story of Mid-Century Design Duo Alvar and Aino Aalto
A power couple before the term existed, the influential pair made work that still resonates today.
What Makes Scandinavian Modernism and Nordic Design So Irresistible?
Andrew Duncanson, founder of the Stockholm- and London-based gallery Modernity, weighs in on the masters of mid-century furniture and decorative arts.