Cowhorn set by Hans J. Wegner
View Similar Items
Cowhorn set by Hans J. Wegner
About the Item
- Creator:Hans J. Wegner (Designer),Johannes Hansen (Cabinetmaker)
- Dimensions:Height: 29 in (73.66 cm)Width: 23 in (58.42 cm)Depth: 16.5 in (41.91 cm)Seat Height: 16 in (40.64 cm)
- Style:Scandinavian Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Sagaponack, NY
- Reference Number:Seller: 23601stDibs: LU8903807536
Hans J. Wegner
Best known for his chairs and other seating pieces — though a master of many furniture types like sofas and tables — Hans Wegner was a prolific designer whose elegant, often ebullient, forms and devotion to the finest methods in joinery made "Danish Modern" a popular byword for stylish, well-made furniture in the mid-20th century.
Wegner considered himself a carpenter first and a furniture designer second. Like his peers Arne Jacobsen and Finn Juhl, Wegner believed that striking aesthetics in furniture were based on a foundation of practicality: a chair must be comfortable and sturdy before it is chic.
In keeping with that tenet, several of Hans Wegner’s best chair designs have their roots in traditional seating forms. The Peacock chair (designed in 1947) is a throne-like adaptation of the Windsor chair; pieces from the China chair series (begun in 1944) as well as the 1949 Wishbone chair, with its distinctive Y-shaped back splat, are derived from 17th-century Ming seating pieces, as is the upholstered Ox chair (1960). Wegner’s comfy Papa Bear chair (1951) is an almost surreally re-scaled English wingback chair.
Wegner’s most representative piece, the Round chair (1949), gained a footnote in political history when it was used on the TV stage of the first Kennedy-Nixon debate of 1960. That chair, along with Wegner’s more bravura designs — for example, the 1963 Shell chair, with its curved surfboard-shaped seat — bring a quietly sculptural presence to a room.
Wegner was a designer who revered his primary material — wood — and it shows. His wood gathers patina and character with age; every Hans Wegner piece testifies to the life it has led.
Find vintage Hans Wegner lounge chairs, armchairs, daybeds and other furniture for sale on 1stDibs.
Johannes Hansen
Danish master cabinetmaker Johannes Hansen is best known for a celebrated partnership with legendary Scandinavian modernist designer Hans Wegner that lasted half a century. The sophisticated and sculptural chairs, tables and cabinets that Wegner designed and Hansen built earned Wegner worldwide acclaim, and brought meaningful business opportunities to Hansen and his modest workshop.
Hansen was born in 1886 and apprenticed as a cabinetmaker in his early years, opening a workshop and showroom in Copenhagen. In 1927, he helped establish the annual Copenhagen Cabinetmakers’ Guild Exhibition. Later, at the age of 55, Hansen began working with Danish furniture designer Hans J. Wegner, then only 26. With Wegner creating and Hansen executing on his partner’s complex designs, they developed furniture to sell in Hansen's showroom. A business relationship of this type was common in 20th-century Danish furniture making, and Hansen and Wegner enjoyed a prolific and renowned collaboration.
Wegner’s career began in cabinetry before he transitioned to furniture design in the 1940s. He is among the most celebrated figures for collectors of mid-century modern and Scandinavian works of the era. One of the first well-known entries for the Cabinetmakers’ Guild Exhibitions authored by Wegner and built by Hansen was the 1942 Lattice chair, a red Cuban mahogany dining room chair with an upholstered leather seat. The Peacock chair, an iconic design that followed in 1947, was the pair's take on a traditional English Windsor chair. It featured flattened spindles along the back resembling the feathers of a peacock tail — it wasn’t exactly an emblem of the pared-back functionality prioritized by Kaare Klint, Wegner’s former instructor at Copenhagen’s Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts.
Wegner would go on to design nearly 500 chairs over the course of his life — among them are the Wishbone chair, the Papa Bear chair and the Round chair. The latter, which is often simply called “The Chair,” was manufactured by Hansen and made its debut at the Guild Exhibition in 1949. It was declared “the most beautiful chair in the world” by Interiors magazine a year later, and a pair of the iconic seats appeared on the first nationally televised presidential debate in the United States in 1960.
After Hansen died in 1961, his son, Poul Hansen, took over the business and continued working with Wegner. The company closed in the 1990s, but today, Hansen and Wegner's collaborative legacy endures in collections around the world.
Find vintage Johannes Hansen furniture on 1stDibs.
- 'Bullhorn' Chair by Hans WegnerBy Johannes Hansen, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Sagaponack, NYAn oak 'Bullhorn' chair with oak splines and upholstered seat retaining the original black leather.Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsOak
- Set of Four Stacking Armchairs by Hans Wegner & Johannes HansenBy Hans J. Wegner, Johannes HansenLocated in Sagaponack, NYA set of four stacking armchairs with cream webbed seats in beechwood.Category
Late 20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsOak
- Set of Six Stacking Armchairs by Hans Wegner & Johannes HansenBy Hans J. Wegner, Johannes HansenLocated in Sagaponack, NYA set of six stackable beech armchairs with black woven chairs.Category
Vintage 1970s Danish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsOak
- Teak Conference Chair by Hans J. WegnerBy Johannes Hansen, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Sagaponack, NYA handcrafted and elegant armchair devoid of extraneous detailing, having an exposed solid teak frame and a gently curved seat and back in leather upholstery.Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsTeak, Leather
- 1970s Danish Round Chair by Hans J. Wegner for Johannes HansenBy Hans J. Wegner, Johannes HansenLocated in Sagaponack, NYAn oak "round" chair retaining the original upholstery with impressed stamp, "Johannes Hansen COPENHAGEN DENMARK".Category
Vintage 1970s Danish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Oak
- 1960s Danish Teak Dining Chair by Hans J. Wegner for Johannes HansenBy Hans J. Wegner, Johannes HansenLocated in Sagaponack, NYAn elegant handcrafted dining chair, having an exposed teak frame and leather upholstery.Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Teak
- Hans Wegner Cowhorn Armchairs Model JH-505 by Cabinetmaker Johannes HansenBy Hans J. WegnerLocated in Limhamn, Skåne länVery rare set of 4 Cowhorn armchairs model JH-505 designed by Hans Wegner. Produced by cabinetmaker Johannes Hansen in Denmark.Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsLeather, Teak
- Hans J Wegner Round ChairBy Hans J. Wegner, Johannes HansenLocated in Brooklyn, NYThree available, inquire within. Known simply as "The Chair," this iconic armchair was designed by Hans J. Wegner in 1949. Patinaed Danish oak frame has been gently restored, and the...Category
20th Century Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsOak
$6,000 / item - Set of Four Armchairs by Hans J. WegnerBy Johannes HansenLocated in Copenhagen, DKModel JH 513 - Set of four armchairs in solid teak with new textile from Hermés Paris (Ophlaine Carchemire Orage). Cabinetmaker Johannes Hansen.Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsTeak
$8,896 / set - Hans J. Wegner Round ChairBy Hans J. Wegner, Johannes HansenLocated in Brooklyn, NYAn original model JH-503 round armchair in teak and leather, designed by Hans J. Wegner for Johannes Hanse. Sculptural teak frame has been gently polished and retains lovely patina. ...Category
Mid-20th Century Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsTeak
- Hans J. Wegner Set of Six Chairs in Teak for Johannes HansenBy Johannes Hansen, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Copenhagen, DKHans J. Wegner set of six chairs for Johannes Hansen. Model JH-504. Frame in Teak, seat and back in cane.Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Chairs
MaterialsCane, Teak
- Hans Wegner Oak and Cane Round ChairBy Hans J. Wegner, Johannes HansenLocated in Brooklyn, NYModel JH501 oak dining chair with cane seat, designed by Hans J. Wegner for Johannes Hansen, Denmark. This iconic Danish modern design is best known as "The ...Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsCane, Oak
$6,000 / item
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
The 21 Most Popular Mid-Century Modern Chairs
You know the designs, now get the stories about how they came to be.
Design Icon Ilse Crawford on Her Colorful New Hans Wegner Chairs
If anyone is brave, humble and adept enough to recolor these mid-century masterpieces, it’s Ilse Crawford. Here, she gives us the details on her five earthy paint choices and tells us how she feels about design collaborations.