Set of 4 EMECO Dining Chairs with Steel Frames and Blue Vinyl Upholstery
View Similar Items
Set of 4 EMECO Dining Chairs with Steel Frames and Blue Vinyl Upholstery
About the Item
- Creator:Emeco (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 32 in (81.28 cm)Width: 21 in (53.34 cm)Depth: 23 in (58.42 cm)Seat Height: 18 in (45.72 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 4
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1970s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Original, clean and ready to use showing only light cosmetic wear normal and consistent with age. Slight blemishes to vinyl.
- Seller Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU978720784042
Emeco
While they’re best known for their revolutionary Navy chair, iconic American furniture company Emeco makes a whole range of seating and other furniture — not just seaworthy chairs. The development of each product is guided by an eco-friendly ethos and pragmatic approach to design.
Emeco began to take shape during the 1940s, when the U.S. Navy needed a lightweight, fireproof chair that could withstand a torpedo blast and hold up to use by “big, burly sailors,” says Gregg Buchbinder, Emeco’s chief executive.
With experts from the Aluminum Company of America, an engineer named Wilton C. Dinges (1916–74) delivered, and the Emeco 1006 — that is, the Navy chair — an aluminum classic, was born. In order to demonstrate the chair’s sturdiness, Dinges threw it from the eighth floor of a hotel in Chicago, and when it landed, the chair bounced in lieu of breaking or bending.
The engineer secured a contract to manufacture the Navy chair beginning in 1944 at the Electrical Machine and Equipment Company (Emeco), which he’d founded a few years earlier in Hanover, Pennsylvania. In the ensuing decades, the factory’s craftsmen would stamp out by hand hundreds of thousands of Navy chairs for battleships, aircraft carriers and submarines — a process that requires more than 70 steps.
Today, the impossibly durable Navy chair, which is recyclable and made of at least 80 percent recycled aluminum, inspires knockoffs left and right and can be found in a variety of public settings, from upscale restaurants to hotels and offices. But it took time to get here.
In 1979, Gregg’s father, Jay Buchbinder, a businessman whose Long Beach, California, furniture company manufactured seating for fast food restaurants, purchased Emeco. The company hit a rough patch in the 1990s. When Gregg acquired Emeco from Jay in 1998, he took the $2 million in debt that came along with it. Fortuitously, Gregg learned that the Navy chair had taken on a new nonmilitary identity around the same time and that it was increasingly seen as sleek and retro in addition to being great submarine seating. Orders for the Navy chair were coming in from design luminaries like Ettore Sottsass, Giorgio Armani and a daring young French designer named Philippe Starck, who purchased a large number of 1006s for Ian Schrager’s Paramount hotel in New York City.
Gregg seized on Emeco’s newfound popularity, initiating a partnership with Starck, who would design the company’s Hudson Collection, a line planned for Manhattan’s Hudson Hotel that saw the Navy chair take on the form of a barstool and other pieces. He also partnered with Frank Gehry, whose Superlight chair for Emeco can be hoisted off the ground with one hand. Collaborations with Jasper Morrison, Jean Nouvel and others followed, and today, Emeco continues to build durable seating furniture from a range of recycled materials with a variety of designers.
Find authentic Emeco chairs, stools, tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- Set of Six Industrial Angle Steel and Wood ChairsBy Angle Steel Stool CompanyLocated in New York, NYNice Industrial chairs in older, but not original, red paint finish, with weathered wood seats. Oddly, one chair is a but shorter than the rest (shorter chair...Category
Antique Early 1900s American Industrial Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Set of Four Gilt Metal Dining ChairsBy John SalteriniLocated in New York, NYFour matching armless high back cafe style dining chairs. Gold tone over iron base frame, with woven metal backrests and seats. Please note we are also offering, separately, the mat...Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsIron
$2,000 / set - Decorative Set of 12 Italian Style Dining Chairs of Carved Wood and LeatherBy FlorentineLocated in New York, NYStunning set of 12 matching dining chairs, of carved gilt, and painted, wood frames with unexpected and intriguing bubble gum pink leather seats. It ...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Directoire Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Wood
- Set of 6 Rosewood Frame Dining Chairs by Founders Furniture Co.By Founders Furniture CompanyLocated in New York, NYBeautiful and rare set of 6 dining chairs, by Founders Furniture Co. as part of their Patterns 15 collection. Six armchairs each with upholstered backs and seats (upholstery as is) ....Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
- Set of 6 Bent Plywood Dining Chairs by Cherner for PlycraftBy George Mulhauser, PlycraftLocated in New York, NYRare set of six bent plywood chairs designed by Cherner for Plycraft. This set consists of four side chairs and two armchairs. The chairs are in excellent original condition, showing...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Plywood
- Set of Four Mid Century Dining Chairs by Gimson SlaterBy Gimson and Slater LtdLocated in New York, NYElegant and graceful set of 4 dining chairs made by Gimson and Slater of England, and retailed by Heals London. The chairs have elongated sculpted diamond form back supports, and lig...Category
Mid-20th Century English Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Wood
- Set of 6 Mod Cantilevered Dining Chairs w/ Black Frames and New Gray UpholsteryBy Marcel BreuerLocated in Los Angeles, CASet of 6 Mod cantilevered dining chairs with black frames and newly upholstered seats in dark grey. Seat width measures 16.75". In original co...Category
Mid-20th Century Dutch Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery
- Original Set of 4 Eames DKR-1 Dining Chairs in Blue Vinyl and White Steel, 1951By Charles and Ray EamesLocated in New York, NYCharles (1907- 1978) and Ray Eames (1912-1988) An early set of four imaginative DKR-1 chairs by Charles and Ray Eames for Herman Miller. In white powder coated and chromed steel, wi...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsChrome, Steel
- Mid Century Modern Dining Chairs with Blue Velvet Upholstery, Set of 6, 1950sLocated in Vienna, ATMid Century Modern dining chairs with blue velvet upholstery, Set of 6, 1950s This set of six Mid-Century Modern wooden dining chairs adds...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Wood
- Set of 5 Postmodern Dining Chairs with Vintage UpholsteryLocated in Freehold, NJThis set of 5 post modern dining chairs features unique high back design, black painted metal frames, vintage upholstery and tall metal legs. Di...Category
Vintage 1980s American Post-Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Dining Chair in Teak and Blue UpholsteryLocated in Waalwijk, NLDining chair, teak, fabric, Europe, 1960s. Stunning dining chair made in Europe in the 1960s featuring a striking backrest. The model is angular and modest as it is build up in mai...Category
Vintage 1960s European Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Teak
- Set of Mid-Century Modern Vinyl Dining ChairsLocated in Brooklyn, NYThis stunning set of four vintage modern dining chairs feature a solid walnut frame with unique beveled armrests. Sleek design with thick cushions and beautiful bright orange vinyl covering. The slanted legs and barrel backrest offer style and comfort in any modern interior. Manufactured by "High Point...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsWalnut
$1,800 / set
