"CH-28" Easy Chair in Oak by Hans J. Wegner, Carl Hansen & Søn, Denmark, 1950s
View Similar Items
"CH-28" Easy Chair in Oak by Hans J. Wegner, Carl Hansen & Søn, Denmark, 1950s
About the Item
- Creator:Hans J. Wegner (Designer),Carl Hansen & Søn (Manufacturer)
- Design:
- Dimensions:Height: 30.32 in (77 cm)Width: 29.14 in (74 cm)Depth: 24.81 in (63 cm)Seat Height: 12.21 in (31 cm)
- Style:Scandinavian Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s-1960s
- Condition:Reupholstered. Wear consistent with age and use. New black leather upholstery done by professional upholsterer.
- Seller Location:Hägersten, SE
- Reference Number:Seller: CH28 wegner sawbuck1stDibs: LU2121325395412
Sawbuck Chair
Danish designer Hans J. Wegner (1914–2007) got his start as a 14-year-old apprentice to Danish master cabinetmaker H.F. Stahlberg, and that lifelong dedication to the art of woodworking can be seen in his 1952 CH29P chair. Nicknamed the Sawbuck chair, its legs recall the sawbuck, or sawhorse, workbenches used by carpenters but reimagined for a modern design that combines clean lines and comfort.
Known as the “Master of the Chair,” Wegner would create over 500 variations on seating across his career, his practice leading the way in the style and attention to quality that would define Danish modern design in the 1950s and ’60s. Each chair he introduced — the Flag Halyard chair, the Round chair and many more — balanced aesthetics and function, often comprising just a few simple components as part of his “continuous process of purification” in his designs.
The Sawbuck chair followed a 1951 lounge chair that also had tapered legs and a large H-shape frame that swayed back against a short H-shape frame. The 1952 model refined this idea. Wegner added cutout details on two sides of its back and placed an emphasis on ergonomics by widening its upholstered seat at the front. Paired with the concave backrest, the Sawbuck chair accommodates a variety of sitting postures while still being a sculptural object.
Carl Hansen & Søn, the Danish furniture company with which Wegner collaborated on many of his designs, took the Sawbuck chair out of production in the 1970s. Two decades later, at the encouragement of Wegner’s family, it was relaunched in a variety of wood types and upholstery options to fit into contemporary interiors as an update to the elegant original design.
Hans J. Wegner
Best known for his chairs and 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 Wegner’s best chair designs, seen in dealer listings below, 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.
- Pair of shelves in oak RY21 by Hans J. Wegner, Denmark, 1950sBy Ry Møbler, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Hägersten, SEPair of shelves model RY21 designed by Hans J. Wegner. Produced in Denmark by RY Møbler during the 1950s. Made from solid oiled oak. The back pieces have not been screwed through whi...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Shelves
MaterialsOak
- Set of nine shelves in oak, RY21 by Hans J. Wegner, Denmark, 1950sBy Ry Møbler, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Hägersten, SESet of nine shelves model RY21 designed by Hans J. Wegner. Produced in Denmark by RY Møbler during the 1950s. Made from solid oiled oak. The back pieces have not been screwed through...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Shelves
MaterialsOak
- Pair of large shelves in oak RY21 by Hans J. Wegner, Denmark, 1950sBy Ry Møbler, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Hägersten, SEPair of shelves model RY21 designed by Hans J. Wegner. Produced in Denmark by RY Møbler during the 1950s. Made from solid oiled oak. The back pieces have not been screwed through whi...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Shelves
MaterialsOak
- Wicker Easy Chair by Sven Staaf, Staaf & Almgren, Sweden, 1950sBy Sven StaafLocated in Hägersten, SEEasy chair attributed to Sven Staaf. Produced by Staaf & Almgren, circa 1954 in Sweden. Made from handwoven wicker on a black lacquered metal frame. Very go...Category
Vintage 1950s Swedish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Oak and cane sideboard RY20 by Hans J. Wegner, RY Møbler, 1950sBy Ry Møbler, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Hägersten, SEHigh board or double cabinet model RY20 designed by Hans J. Wegner. Produced in Denmark by RY Møbler, this example stamped February 1962. Made rom oak with contrasting cane on the upper sliding doors. Inside of the cabinet in light maple. Nice details and attention to wood grain on all surfaces. Very good vintage condition with light age related wear and patina. Hans Jørgensen Wegner was a Danish architect and furniture designer, well-known both in Denmark and internationally. He designed over 500 different chairs, including the Wishbone Chair (the "Y chair"), which today is considered a design icon. The chair is a magnificent example of Wegner's design, with its wooden frame and laced seat. Other examples of iconic chairs designed by Wegner are The Smiling Chair...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Sideboards
MaterialsCane, Maple, Oak
- Swedish Lounge Chairs by Hans Harald Molander for Nordiska Kompaniet, NK 1950sBy Hans Harald Molander, NK (Nordiska Kompaniet)Located in Hägersten, SERare lounge chairs designed by Hans Harald Molander. Produced by Nordiska Kompaniet during the 1950s. Made from black lacquered steel and upholstered seats. Reupholstered with wool f...Category
Vintage 1950s Swedish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Hans J. Wegner "CH28" Lounge Chair in Patinated Oak, Carl Hansen & Sons, 1950sBy Carl Hansen & Søn, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Odense, DKEarly production Hans J. Wegner "CH28" lounge chair in patinated oak and dark green vintage upholstery. This example is from the early 1950s and has the most amazing patina and wood ...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsOak
- Hans Wegner Easy Chairs Model CH-28 by Carl Hansen & Søn in DenmarkBy Hans J. WegnerLocated in Limhamn, Skåne länA pair of rare easy chairs model CH-28 designed by Hans Wegner. Produced by Carl Hansen & Søn in Denmark.Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Oak
- Hans Wegner Easy Chairs Model CH-28 Produced by Carl Hansen & Søn in DenmarkBy Hans J. WegnerLocated in Limhamn, Skåne länRare pair of easy chairs model CH-28 designed by Hans Wegner. Produced by Carl Hansen & Søn in Denmark.Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Oak
- Early Hans Wegner for Carl Hansen & Son Lounge Chairs, CH-22 in OakBy Carl Hansen & Søn, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Los Angeles, CAWegner designed the CH22 lounge chair in 1950 for the ‘Købestævnet’ exhibition in Denmark. The chair features Wegner’s characteristically shaped armrests and a paper cord seat in wha...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsPapercord, Oak
- CH07 Shell Chair by Hans J Wegner for Carl Hansen & SonBy Hans J. Wegner, Carl Hansen & SønLocated in Little Burstead, EssexWhen Hans J. Wegner designed this chair in 1963 it was a little too radical for the public and it was sold in very low numbers, and because of this when the world became aware of the...Category
1990s Danish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Oak, Walnut, Plywood
- Hans J. Wegner 'CH45' Rocking Chair for Carl Hansen & Son in Oak LacquerBy Carl Hansen & Søn, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Glendale, CAHans J. Wegner 'CH45' Rocking Chair for Carl Hansen & Son in Oak Lacquer. The story of Danish Modern begins in 1908 when Carl Hansen opened his first workshop. His firm commitment t...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsPapercord, Oak
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.