1 Vintage Emeco Side Chair in Brushed Aluminum
View Similar Items
1 Vintage Emeco Side Chair in Brushed Aluminum
About the Item
- Creator:Emeco (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 34 in (86.36 cm)Width: 16.25 in (41.28 cm)Depth: 19.5 in (49.53 cm)Seat Height: 18 in (45.72 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1960s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Pasadena, TX
- Reference Number:Seller: MR118331stDibs: LU867116580482
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.
- 1 Restored Vintage Eames Aluminum Group Desk ChairBy Charles and Ray EamesLocated in Pasadena, TXCharles and Ray married in 1941 and moved to California where they continued their furniture design work with molding plywood. During the war they were commissioned by the Navy to produce molded plywood splints, stretchers and experimental glider shells. In 1946, Evans Products began producing the Eameses` molded plywood furniture. Their molded plywood chair was called "the chair of the century" by the influential architectural critic Esther McCoy. Soon production was taken over by Herman Miller, Inc ., who continues to produce the furniture in the United States to this day. Another company, Vitra International , manufactures the furniture in Europe. The Eameses continued to create new furniture designs into the 1970s. Examples include the molded plastic or fiberglass chairs from the early 1950s and the famous Lounge Chair and Ottoman from 1956. Sturdy, comfortable and elegant office furniture was created in the 1960s, as well as seating designed for Dulles and O`Hare Airports. This Tandem Sling Seating is still in use in airports around the world today. (1) Eames Aluminum Group desk chair...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Industrial Side Chairs in the Manner of Jean ProuveLocated in Pasadena, TXA pair of vintage, industrial side chairs in the manner of Jean Prouve's classic Standard chair. Chairs feature steel legs with black composite seat and back.Category
Vintage 1960s Mid-Century Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- One Charles Eames Herman Miller Aluminum Group ChairBy Charles Eames, Herman MillerLocated in Pasadena, TXOne Charles Eames Herman Miller aluminum group chair 1970s Charles and Ray Eames aluminum group side chair, EA330 office confe...Category
Vintage 1970s Mid-Century Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
- S 32 Cantilever Thonet Side ChairBy Thonet, Mart StamLocated in Pasadena, TXS 32 Cantilever Thonet side chair S 32 Cantilever chair combines the tubular steel frame with leather upholstered seat and backrest for comfort. Price for 1...Category
Late 20th Century North American Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs and De...
MaterialsChrome
$1,000 / item - Mid Century Burke Side ChairBy Burke, Inc.Located in Pasadena, TXBy Burke of Dallas Texas, iconic design and first cousin to Saarinen's tulip chairs. Starburst base with original button tufted upholstery. Details Dimensions Height: 31in Widt...Category
Mid-20th Century North American Mid-Century Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsFiberglass
- Six Kusch Walter Leeman Stackable Side ChairsBy Kusch+CoLocated in Pasadena, TXA set of six mid-century modern side chairs designed by Walter Leeman and manufactured by Kusch in Germany. Chromed steel rode frames with ebonized wood seats and backs.Category
Late 20th Century German Mid-Century Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsMetal
$2,320 Sale Price / set20% Off
- Emeco Navy Collection Brushed Aluminum Side Chair 1006, a PairBy EmecoLocated in Philadelphia, PAEmeco Navy Collection Brushed Aluminum Side Chair 1006 - A Pair. Item features aluminum construction, original labels, very nice vintage item, quality Ameri...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Mid-Century Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Emeco Navy Officer Side Chair in Grey Fabric with Brushed Aluminum FrameBy Emeco, Jasper MorrisonLocated in Hanover, PA"Jasper Morrison has given Emeco’s classic upholstered Navy Officer Collection a fresh, light and modern update. The Navy Officer Collection by Jasper Morrison features a chair, an a...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Side Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Emeco Icon Chair in Brushed Aluminum by Philippe StarckBy Emeco, Philippe StarckLocated in Hanover, PAIcon is a stacking chair cousin to the famous Starck designed Hudson chair. It has been used in hotels, bars and restaurants worldwide, as well as training centres, meeting areas and schools. Starck describes Icon as “the chair I see when I close my eyes” You can expect your Icon chair...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Emeco Kong Chair in Brushed Aluminum by Philippe StarckBy Emeco, Philippe StarckLocated in Hanover, PAStarck first designed the Kong barstool for the Chinese restaurant Kong in Paris. The one armed stool was intended to make it easy and graceful for the su...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Emeco Navy Chair in Brushed Aluminum by US NavyBy EmecoLocated in Hanover, PAFirst built for use on submarines in 1944, the Navy Chair has been in continuous Production ever since. With the famous 77 step Process, our craftsmen take ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Emeco Heritage Chair in Brushed Aluminum by Philippe StarckBy Emeco, Philippe StarckLocated in Hanover, PAHeritage is a stacking chair designed by Philippe Starck, inspired by the original 1006 Navy.The rocking version was designed for the world famous Bon restaurant in Paris. Intended a...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsAluminum