Mid-Century Modern Danish Folke Ohlsson DUX 3-Seat Sofa on Walnut Base, 1960s
View Similar Items
Mid-Century Modern Danish Folke Ohlsson DUX 3-Seat Sofa on Walnut Base, 1960s
About the Item
- Creator:Dux of Sweden (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 29 in (73.66 cm)Width: 73 in (185.42 cm)Depth: 30 in (76.2 cm)Seat Height: 17 in (43.18 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1960s
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Keego Harbor, MI
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU2715319865392
Dux of Sweden
Today, Swedish manufacturer DUX’s most popular furniture lines — as well as the furnishings created by its first president, Folke Ohlsson — are synonymous with the work that vintage mid-century modern design obsessives love. Also important, the brand is known for some of the most commonplace means of furniture shipping and production in the modern era.
In Sweden, Studio Ljungs Industrier AB is the large family-owned parent company of Duxiana (in America, DUX). Initially a purveyor of bedding that is today celebrated for its ergonomically guided designs, Ljungs Industrier was founded by entrepreneur (and chocolate maker) Efraim Ljung in 1926. In 1950, Folke Ohlsson, then leading Ljungs Industrier’s design team, decamped to the States to explore how he could expand DUX’s business, which at that point included a wide range of furniture. Ohlsson established a DUX office not long after he arrived in California, first in San Francisco and later in Burlingame.
On the West Coast, the booming postwar American market was eager to embrace DUX’s affordable and practical bedroom furnishings, tables, armchairs and other seating. Characterized by sleek walnut and teak frames and low-slung silhouettes, the brand’s designs were emblematic of a generation of Scandinavian modernism that had gained popularity owing to visionaries such as product designer and architect Greta Magnusson-Grossman, who arrived in California from Sweden a decade prior to Ohlsson, and Finn Juhl, who created a Danish modern line for Michigan’s Baker Furniture Company in 1951.
DUX frequently collaborated with top-tier furniture design talent — among them Bruno Mathsson, Edward Wormley and Alf Svensson, a chief designer in the Malmö, Sweden, office of Ljungs Industrier — expanding the brand’s portfolio and establishing credibility as a design source. Ohlsson’s own designs, such as his comfortable leather lounges and wool-upholstered reclining rocking chairs, continue to be among the brand’s most desirable — and most imitated — however.
In 1949, DUX put into practice an idea that Ohlsson patented for the so-called “knock-down,” or “KD,” chair, a term referencing easy, flat-pack assembly. It saved DUX space in warehouses and money on transportation and was a concept that would provide inspiration to hundreds of subsequent companies — most notably fellow Swedish brand IKEA.
Today, vintage DUX sofas and dining chairs are valuable collector’s items. Find this coveted seating and other authentic DUX furniture on 1stDibs.
More From This Seller
View All20th Century Unknown Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Stainless Steel
Mid-20th Century Unknown Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Stainless Steel
Late 20th Century Italian Sofas
Chrome
Vintage 1960s Mid-Century Modern Barware
Teak
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Pedestals
Marble
Vintage 1960s Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal
You May Also Like
Mid-20th Century Swedish Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Wood
Vintage 1960s American Scandinavian Modern Sofas
Upholstery, Walnut
Vintage 1960s Swedish Scandinavian Modern Sofas
Wool, Teak
Vintage 1960s Swedish Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Leather
Vintage 1960s Scandinavian Scandinavian Modern Sofas
Upholstery, Teak
Vintage 1960s Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Teak
