Alvar Aalto Tank Chair with Zebra Pattern Upholstery
View Similar Items
Alvar Aalto Tank Chair with Zebra Pattern Upholstery
About the Item
- Creator:Alvar Aalto (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 25 in (63.5 cm)Width: 29.5 in (74.93 cm)Depth: 31 in (78.74 cm)Seat Height: 15 in (38.1 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (In the Style Of)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:1980-1989
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1980s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Some light scratching/ dings to wooden frame. Some light fraying to upholstery. Was professionally cleaned, but shows some signs of wear.
- Seller Location:Bridport, CT
- Reference Number:Seller: Limelight Collections1stDibs: LU90113536252
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.
- Fabulous Pair Zebra Print Alvar Aalto 400 Tank Chair by Artek Mid-CenturyBy Alvar AaltoLocated in Pemberton, NJFabulous pair of Alvar Aalto zebra print Tank chairs. This pair is circa 80s and are in very nice vintage condition. The armchair 400, designed by Al...Category
Vintage 1980s Finnish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Birch
- Alvar Aalto 400 ‘Tank’ 1936 Armchair in Zebra for ArtekBy Alvar AaltoLocated in Tilburg, NLAlvar Aalto 400 ‘Tank’ armchair for Artek. Designed in 1936. New, current production. Please note: price is for a 'Tank' armchair in Zebra upholstery and nat...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Finnish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsLeather, Fabric, Wood
- Alvar Aalto Pair of ‘Tank’ 1936 Armchairs in Zebra for ArtekBy Alvar AaltoLocated in Tilburg, NLAlvar Aalto pair of 400 ‘Tank’ armchair for Artek. Designed in 1936. New, current production. Please note: the price is for 2 chairs with Artek Zebra uphol...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Finnish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Wood
- Alvar Aalto Lounge ChairBy ICF Group, Alvar AaltoLocated in Philadelphia, PAAlvar Aalto Linen and Beech Lounge Chair in very good original condition! 2nd one available with more wear showing on the seat area of the linen. Later photos are showing the 2nd c...Category
1990s Finnish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsCotton, Beech
$1,600 / item - Alvar Aalto 40s 403 Hallway ChairBy Alvar AaltoLocated in 東御市, JP40s 403 hallway chair. Upholstery by Kvadrat canvas.Category
Vintage 1940s Finnish Modern Club Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Birch
$3,360 Sale Price20% Off - Alvar Aalto 36 ChairBy O.Y.Huonekalu, Alvar AaltoLocated in Epperstone, NottinghamshireEarly Alvar Aalto 36/401 chair designed in 1933 and made by O.y. Huonekalu – Ja Rakennustyotehdas AB, Turku, Finland. Beautiful example of this special chair...Category
Mid-20th Century Finnish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsFabric
$4,535
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.