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Alvar Aalto Pair of ‘Tank’ 1936 Armchairs in Zebra for Artek

Name: Alvar Aalto Pair of ‘Tank’ 1936 Armchairs in Zebra for Artek
Brand: Alvar Aalto
Price: 12700.38 USD
Availability: InStock

About the Item

Alvar 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 upholstery and natural lacquered armrests. Other configurations on request. As voluminous as it is comfortable, Armchair 400 was created by Alvar Aalto in 1936 for an exhibition at the Milan Triennale, where it was promptly awarded a prize. The chair owes its nickname “Tank” to its distinctive wide and sturdy armrests made of form-bent birch lamella and to its robust upholstery. The springy cantilevered frame offers a flexible, comfortable seat. A favourite since the 1930s, Armchair 400 remains effortlessly modern and can be upholstered in any material. About Alvar Aalto Recognised today as one of the great masters of modern architecture, Alvar Aalto (1898-1976) was born in Kuortane, Finland. During a long and prolific career, Aalto designed buildings for almost all key public institutions, as well as standardised housing and private homes. One of the co-founders of Artek, Aalto left a legacy with lasting resonance. Aalto’s architecture is distinctively Finnish, strongly individual, and marked by a warm humanity. His buildings derive their aesthetic character from their dynamic relationship with their natural surroundings, their human scale, superbly executed details, unique treatment of materials, and ingenious use of lighting. Aalto began designing furnishings as a natural extension of his architectural thinking. His first modern piece of furniture was created in 1931-32 for the tuberculosis sanatorium in Paimio, Finland. Artek was set up in 1935 to market and sell his and his wife Aino’s furniture, lighting, and textiles, particularly on international markets. About Artek Artek was founded in Helsinki in 1935 by four young idealists: Alvar and Aino Aalto, Maire Gullichsen, and Nils-Gustav Hahl. Their goal was “to sell furniture and to promote a modern culture of living by exhibitions and other educational means.” In keeping with the radical spirit of its founders, Artek today remains an innovative player in the world of modern design, developing new products at the intersection of design, architecture, and art. The Artek collection consists of furniture, lighting, and accessories designed by Finnish masters and leading international designers. It stands for clarity, functionality, and poetic simplicity.

Creator:

Alvar Aalto (Designer)

Dimensions:

Height: 25.6 in (65 cm)Width: 30.32 in (77 cm)Depth: 30.32 in (77 cm)Seat Height: 20.08 in (51 cm)

Sold As:

Set of 2

Style:

Mid-Century Modern (In the Style Of)

Materials and Techniques:

Fabric,Wood

Place of Origin:

Finland

Period:

21st Century

Date of Manufacture:

2023

Production Type:

New & Custom(Current Production)

Estimated Production Time:

10-11 weeks

Condition:

Seller Location:

Tilburg, NL

Reference Number:

1stDibs: LU5892233511402

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Shop All Alvar Aalto

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.