20th Century Danish Set of Three Vintage Teak Side Chairs by Hans J. Wegner
About the Item
- Creator:Fritz Hansen (Manufacturer),Hans J. Wegner (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 29 in (73.66 cm)Width: 21 in (53.34 cm)Depth: 18 in (45.72 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 3
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1955
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:West Palm Beach, FL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1622212723011
Hans J. Wegner
Best known for his chairs and other 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 Hans Wegner’s best chair designs 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.
Find vintage Hans Wegner lounge chairs, armchairs, daybeds and other furniture for sale on 1stDibs.
Fritz Hansen
When the Copenhagen-based furniture maker Fritz Hansen opened for business more than 140 years ago, the company — which today styles itself The Republic of Fritz Hansen — adhered to the traditional, time-honored Danish values of craftsmanship in woodworking and joinery. Yet thanks to the postwar innovations of Arne Jacobsen and others, Fritz Hansen would become the country’s leader in Scandinavian modern design using new, forward-looking materials and methods.
Fritz Hansen started his company in 1872, specializing in the manufacture of small furniture parts. In 1915, the firm became the first in Denmark to make chairs using steam-bent wood (a technique most familiar from birch used in the ubiquitous café chairs by Austrian maker Thonet). At the time, Fritz Hansen was best known for seating that featured curved legs and curlicue splats and referenced 18th-century Chippendale designs.
In the next few decades, the company promoted simple, plain chairs with slatted backs and cane or rush seats designed by such proto-modernist masters as Kaare Klint and Søren Hansen. Still, the most aesthetically striking piece Fritz Hansen produced in the first half of the 20th century was arguably the China chair of 1944 by Hans Wegner — and that piece, with its yoke-shaped bentwood back- and armrest, was based on seating manufactured in China during the Ming dynasty. (Wegner was moved by portraits he’d seen of Danish merchants in the Chinese chairs.)
Everything changed in 1952 with Arne Jacobsen’s Ant chair. The collaboration between the architect and Fritz Hansen officially originated in 1934 — that year, Jacobsen created his inaugural piece for the manufacturer, the solid beechwood Bellevue chair for a restaurant commission. The Ant chair, however, was the breakthrough.
With assistance from his then-apprentice Verner Panton, Jacobsen designed the Ant chair for the cafeteria of a Danish healthcare company called Novo Nordisk. The chair was composed of a seat and backrest formed from a single piece of molded plywood attached, in its original iteration, to three tubular metal legs. Its silhouette suggests the shape of the insect’s body, and the lightweight, stackable chair and its biomorphic form became an international hit.
Jacobsen followed with more plywood successes, such as the Grand Prix chair of 1957. The following year he designed the SAS Royal Hotel in Copenhagen and its furnishings, including the Egg chair and the Swan chair. Those two upholstered pieces, with their lush, organic frames made of fiberglass-reinforced polyurethane, have become the two chairs most emblematic of mid-20th-century cool. Moreover, the Egg and Swan led Fritz Hansen to fully embrace new man-made materials, like foam, plastic and steel wire used to realize the avant-garde creations of later generations of designers with whom the firm collaborated, such as Piet Hein, Jørn Utzon (the architect of the Sydney Opera House) and Verner Panton. If the Fritz Hansen of 1872 would not now recognize his company, today’s connoisseurs certainly do.
Find a collection of vintage Fritz Hansen tables, lounge chairs, sofas and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: West Palm Beach, FL
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- 20th Century Danish Set of Three Carl Hansen & Søn Y Chairs by Hans J. WegnerBy Carl Hansen & Søn, Hans J. WegnerLocated in West Palm Beach, FLA light-brown, vintage Mid-Century Modern Danish set of three Wishbone chairs made of hand carved Oakwood, designed by Hans J. Wegner and produced by Carl Hansen & Søn, in good condition. The Scandinavian Y-shaped, armchairs have a curved slim backrest with arched arms, supported by four rounded wooden legs. At least hundred steps are required to design, produced each side chair. The seat cover is made of original hand woven paper rope. Refurbished and hand polished. Wear consistent with age and use. Circa 1950 - 1960, Denmark, Scandinavia. Measures: seat: 18.5" H x 19" W x 19.5" D Hans Jorgensen Wegner was born in 1914 Tonder, Denmark and passed away in 2007 Denmark. He was a world-renowned Danish furniture designer. Wegen finished his apprenticeship at 17, he developed his skills from the master cabinetmaker H.F. Stahlberg. In 1951, Wegen received major design prizes, from the Lunning prize and the Grand Prix of the Milan Triennale. Carl Hansen & Søn is a family-owned Danish furniture manufacturer, founded in 1908, in Odense, Denmark by the Danish master cabinet maker Carl Hansen. The Y Chair...Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsRope, Oak, Paper
- 20th Century White French Pair of Vintage Art Deco Mahogany Dresser, Side ChairsLocated in West Palm Beach, FLA vintage pair of 20th century Art Deco French dresser chairs “in the taste of Jean Harlow”. The chairs are composed of polished mahogany and have been n...Category
Early 20th Century French Art Deco Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Upholstery, Mahogany
- 20th Century Set of Four Black Ebonized Art Deco Chairs by Jindrich HalabalaBy Jindřich HalabalaLocated in West Palm Beach, FLA set of four black ebonized Art Deco chairs made of wood with white upholstery, designed by Jindrich Halabala. Newly upholstered in good condi...Category
Early 20th Century Czech Art Deco Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Upholstery, Wood, Ebony
- 20th Century Danish Vintage Teak Coffee Table by Hans J. Wegner & Andreas TuckBy Andreas Tuck, Hans J. WegnerLocated in West Palm Beach, FLA brown, vintage Mid-Century Modern Danish coffee, sofa table made of hand crafted Teakwood, designed by Hans J. Wegner and produced by Andreas Tuck in good condition. Wear consistent with age and use. Circa 1960 Denmark, Scandinavia. Hans Jorgensen Wegner...Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
MaterialsTeak
- 20th Century Danish Set of Twelve Vintage Oak Dining Chairs by Nils & Eva KoppelBy Eva & Niles KoppellLocated in West Palm Beach, FLA vintage Mid-Century Modern Danish set of twelve dining chairs, designed by Nils and Eva Koppel for Slagelse Mobelvaerk, known for their chair mod...Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Oak, Faux Leather
- 20th Century Danish Art Deco Beechwood Armchair - Vintage Single Side ChairLocated in West Palm Beach, FLA small, vintage Art Deco Danish single armchair made of hand carved Beechwood, detailed with brass nail heads in good condition. The back rest and the arms of the Scandinavian side ...Category
Early 20th Century Danish Art Deco Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Cotton, Upholstery, Beech
- 1950s Chinese Chair by Hans Wegner for Fritz HansenBy Hans J. Wegner, Fritz HansenLocated in Sagaponack, NYThe Chinese Chair designed by Hans Wegner, manufactured by Fritz Hansen. Cherry wood frame featuring a sinuous back and arm design with a natural leather seat cushion. Designed in 19...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Chairs
MaterialsCherry
- Valet Chair by Hans J. WegnerBy Johannes Hansen, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Sagaponack, NYThe iconic Valet chair designed by Hans Wegner. Crafted in teak and oakwood with seat that swings upward to hang trousers and hidden storage for pocket contents. Conceived in 1953...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Chairs
MaterialsBrass
- Vintage Hans Wegner for C.M. Madsens 'W2' Chair in Oak; Denmark, 1950sBy C.M. Madsen, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Brooklyn, NYA lovely example of the early work of the 20th century's master of seating design, Hans J. Wegner. The sculpted oak backrest or top-rail employed here was developed as part of a fami...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Chairs
MaterialsOak
- Set of Four Teak Dining Chairs by Hans WegnerBy A.P. Stolen, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Sagaponack, NYA rare set of four (4) armless dining chairs retaining the original green oxhide upholstery.Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsTeak, Leather
- Pair of Italian Midcentury Side Chairs Hans J Wegner mannerLocated in Vigonza, Padua1950s Italian midcentury side chairs, excellent conditions. Original upholstery with red leatherette. The chairs was made in the 1950s, ...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Walnut
- Three Early 20th Century French Walnut Carved Side Chairs, circa 1900Located in San Francisco, CAThree early 20th century French walnut carved side chairs, circa 1900 Classic French walnut side chairs. Each chair is carved from solid waln...Category
Early 20th Century French French Provincial Side Chairs
MaterialsWalnut
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.