Pair of Postmodern Wooden Easy Chairs or Bench with Graphic Fabric by Thonet
View Similar Items
Pair of Postmodern Wooden Easy Chairs or Bench with Graphic Fabric by Thonet
About the Item
- Creator:Thonet (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 31.11 in (79 cm)Width: 22.84 in (58 cm)Depth: 22.84 in (58 cm)Seat Height: 16.15 in (41 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 2
- Style:Post-Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:1980-1989
- Date of Manufacture:Unknown
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Frames in good condition; fabric shows wear.
- Seller Location:Doornspijk, NL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1251216381042
Thonet
For more than 180 years, Thonet — or Gebrüder Thonet — has produced elegant and durable tables and cabinets as well as chairs, stools and other seating that wholly blur the lines between art and design. Widely known as a trailblazer in the use of bentwood in furniture, the European manufacturer has reimagined the places in which we gather.
Noted for his skill in parquetry, German-Austrian company founder Michael Thonet received an invitation from Austrian Chancellor Prince Metternich to contribute Neo-Rococo interiors to the Liechtenstein City Palace in Vienna. The Boppard-born Thonet had honed his carpentry skills in his father’s workshop, where he carried out experiments with plywood and modified the Biedermeier chairs that populated the studio.
Thonet’s work for the chancellor raised his profile, and the cabinetmaker gained international recognition, including at London’s Great Exhibition of 1851, which featured works created by members of the Arts and Crafts movement as well as industrial products of the day. Thonet showed a range of furniture at the fair and won the bronze medal for his bentwood chairs. He incorporated his family’s company, the Thonet Brothers, with his sons in 1853.
Bentwood furniture dates as far back as the Middle Ages, but it is the 19th-century cabinetmaker Thonet who is most often associated with this now-classic technique. Thonet in 1856 patented a method for bending solid wood through the use of steam, and from there, the bentwood look skyrocketed to furniture fame. The works of renowned mid-century modern designers such as Alvar Aalto, Arne Jacobsen, and Charles and Ray Eames that put this technological advancement to use would not be as extensive or celebrated were it not for the efforts of the pioneering Thonet.
Considered the world’s oldest mass-produced chair, Michael Thonet’s ubiquitous Chair No. 14 demonstrated that his patented bentwood technology made it possible to efficiently produce furniture on an industrial scale. Now known as the 214, it won the German Sustainability Award Design for 2021, a recognition of the company’s commitment to environmentally responsible production.
Often called the Coffee House chair — the company’s first substantial order was for a Viennese coffeehouse — the No. 14 remains an icon. Thonet originally designed the chair in 1859, and it is considered the starting point for modern furniture.
The bentwood process opened doors — there were investments in machinery and new industrial processes, and the business began mass-producing furniture. By the end of the 1850s, there were additional Thonet workshops in Eastern Europe and hundreds of employees. Michael Thonet’s reputation attracted the attention of notable architects including Otto Wagner, Marcel Breuer and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.
The No. 14 was followed by the No. 18, or the Bistro chair, in 1867, and the 209, or the Architect’s chair, of which Le Corbusier was a fan. (The influential Swiss-French architect and designer used Thonet furniture in his Pavillon de l’Esprit Nouveau at the 1925 International Exposition of Decorative Arts in Paris.)
Thonet’s chair designs also appeared in artwork by Toulouse-Lautrec, John Sloan and Henri Matisse in his Interior with a Violin Case. The noteworthy Thonet rocking chair remains a marvel of construction — in the middle of the 19th century, Michael produced a series of rockers in which the different curved parts were integrated into fluid, sinuous wholes. Thanks to Thonet, the humble rocker acquired something unexpected: style. It was captured in the paintings of Pablo Picasso, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and James Tissot.
Thonet is currently split into global divisions. Thonet Industries U.S.A. was acquired in 1987 by Shelby Williams and joined the CF Group in 1999, while the Thonet brand in Germany is owned by Thonet GmbH.
Find a collection of antique Thonet furniture on 1stDibs.
- Mid-Century Modern "620" Easy Chair by Dieter Rams for VitsoeBy Dieter Rams, VitsoeLocated in Doornspijk, NLThe seating system Dieter Rams designed in 1962 for Vitsoe is just as timeless as his famous Shelving System. The modular principle allows for extreme flexibility. This chair has b...Category
Mid-20th Century German Mid-Century Modern Club Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Fiberglass
- Modernist LC2 Easy Chair by Le Corbusier and Charlotte Perriand for CassinaBy Pierre Jeanneret, Le Corbusier, Cassina, Charlotte PerriandLocated in Doornspijk, NLArmchair LC2 Petit Modèle with polished chrome frame and separate very deep blue leather cushions, LCX leather, the more exclusive version. The LC2 was desi...Category
Early 20th Century French Modern Armchairs
MaterialsChrome
$4,604 Sale Price20% Off - Mid-Century Modern Chair FM08 with Loose Cushions by Cees Braakman for PastoeBy Pastoe, Cees BraakmanLocated in Doornspijk, NLThis easy chair was designed by Cees Braakman in the 1950s for famous Dutch furniture manufacturer Pastoe. Its shell is covered in black vinyl, standing on four elegantly shaped blac...Category
Mid-20th Century Dutch Mid-Century Modern Club Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Postmodern Style Pair of Murano Glass Bulls with Checkered PatternLocated in Doornspijk, NLEye-catching pair of bulls in fighting position. They are made of Murano glass and carry a checkered black and white pattern. This pair of bulls has different dimensions: the small ...Category
Late 20th Century Italian Post-Modern Animal Sculptures
MaterialsMurano Glass
- Postmodern Console or Side Table Made of Mirrored GlassLocated in Doornspijk, NLThis console or side table has a remarkable presence due to the fact that it mostly consists of mirrored glass. It embellishes every object displayed on it by doubling its images and...Category
Vintage 1980s Dutch Post-Modern Console Tables
MaterialsMirror
- Postmodern Geometrically Shaped Pair of Vases Designed by Dorothé Van AgthovenLocated in Doornspijk, NLPair of geometrically shaped ceramic vases with 'built-in' handle. Very easy on the eye. The vases have been designed by Dorothé van Agthoven for...Category
Vintage 1980s Dutch Post-Modern Vases
MaterialsCeramic
- 20th Century Black French Art Deco Pair of Vintage Birchwood Club ChairsLocated in West Palm Beach, FLA vintage French pair of stunning Art Deco club chairs with black linen upholstery. The frame is made of hand crafted tinted Birchwood, in good condition. Minor stain on one of the c...Category
Early 20th Century French Art Deco Club Chairs
MaterialsLinen, Upholstery, Beech
- Nobiliary Dining Chair of Thonet from Wiener WerkstaetteBy ThonetLocated in Mariano Del Friuli, GORare chair of the Wiener Werkstaette considered the prototype of the successive variants on Design by the architect. Gustav Sigel. The rectangular sections and geometric motifs of th...Category
Antique Early 1900s Austrian Art Nouveau Chairs
MaterialsBentwood
- Suspended Seating, Modern Thick Leather Sling Chair in BlackBy Joanina and David PastollLocated in Johannesburg, ZAStripped away from all excess, this hanging chair has a circular frame with the seat made of leather hanging loose within it, to create a sleek, sexy, and oh so comfortable experienc...Category
2010s Modern Corner Chairs
MaterialsSteel
$1,935 Sale Price / item10% Off - Thonet Chair Model 47, by Michael Thonet for Thonet, circa 1911By Michael ThonetLocated in Dusseldorf, DERare very early model 47 chair from Thonet with a bent beechwood frame and beautiful perforated seat detailing, circa 1911. Design by Michael Thonet. Dimensions: Seat height 46.5...Category
Early 20th Century Czech Other Chairs
MaterialsBentwood, Beech
$700 Sale Price32% Off - Armchair Brown Leather by Vincent Le Bourdon HandmadeBy Vincent LebourdonLocated in MONTROZIER, FRThis furniture, composed of two armchairs (here proposed) and a sofa, was designed by Vincent Lebourdon for a Parisian living room to offer several use...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Club Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Fabric, Wool
- Pair of Club Tub Lounge Chairs by Joan Burgasser/Anton Lorenz for ThonetBy ThonetLocated in Belmont, MAPair of "Club Tub" lounge chairs by Joan Burgasser/Anton Lorenz for Thonet.Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsChrome
$1,440 Sale Price / set20% Off