Cocktail Chair, Thonet, Vienna, 1950s
About the Item
- Creator:Thonet (Maker)
- Dimensions:Height: 30.12 in (76.5 cm)Width: 18.9 in (48 cm)Depth: 18.9 in (48 cm)Seat Height: 16.93 in (43 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Wolfurt, AT
- Reference Number:
Thonet
For more than 180 years, Thonet — or Gebrüder Thonet — has produced elegant and durable tables and cabinets as well as chairs, stools and other seating that wholly blur the lines between art and design. Widely known as a trailblazer in the use of bentwood in furniture, the European manufacturer has reimagined the places in which we gather.
Noted for his skill in parquetry, German-Austrian company founder Michael Thonet received an invitation from Austrian Chancellor Prince Metternich to contribute Neo-Rococo interiors to the Liechtenstein City Palace in Vienna. The Boppard-born Thonet had honed his carpentry skills in his father’s workshop, where he carried out experiments with plywood and modified the Biedermeier chairs that populated the studio.
Thonet’s work for the chancellor raised his profile, and the cabinetmaker gained international recognition, including at London’s Great Exhibition of 1851, which featured works created by members of the Arts and Crafts movement as well as industrial products of the day. Thonet showed a range of furniture at the fair and won the bronze medal for his bentwood chairs. He incorporated his family’s company, the Thonet Brothers, with his sons in 1853.
Bentwood furniture dates as far back as the Middle Ages, but it is the 19th-century cabinetmaker Thonet who is most often associated with this now-classic technique. Thonet in 1856 patented a method for bending solid wood through the use of steam, and from there, the bentwood look skyrocketed to furniture fame. The works of renowned mid-century modern designers such as Alvar Aalto, Arne Jacobsen, and Charles and Ray Eames that put this technological advancement to use would not be as extensive or celebrated were it not for the efforts of the pioneering Thonet.
Considered the world’s oldest mass-produced chair, Michael Thonet’s ubiquitous Chair No. 14 demonstrated that his patented bentwood technology made it possible to efficiently produce furniture on an industrial scale. Now known as the 214, it won the German Sustainability Award Design for 2021, a recognition of the company’s commitment to environmentally responsible production.
Often called the Coffee House chair — the company’s first substantial order was for a Viennese coffeehouse — the No. 14 remains an icon. Thonet originally designed the chair in 1859, and it is considered the starting point for modern furniture.
The bentwood process opened doors — there were investments in machinery and new industrial processes, and the business began mass-producing furniture. By the end of the 1850s, there were additional Thonet workshops in Eastern Europe and hundreds of employees. Michael Thonet’s reputation attracted the attention of notable architects including Otto Wagner, Marcel Breuer and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.
The No. 14 was followed by the No. 18, or the Bistro chair, in 1867, and the 209, or the Architect’s chair, of which Le Corbusier was a fan. (The influential Swiss-French architect and designer used Thonet furniture in his Pavillon de l’Esprit Nouveau at the 1925 International Exposition of Decorative Arts in Paris.)
Thonet’s chair designs also appeared in artwork by Toulouse-Lautrec, John Sloan and Henri Matisse in his Interior with a Violin Case. The noteworthy Thonet rocking chair remains a marvel of construction — in the middle of the 19th century, Michael produced a series of rockers in which the different curved parts were integrated into fluid, sinuous wholes. Thanks to Thonet, the humble rocker acquired something unexpected: style. It was captured in the paintings of Pablo Picasso, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and James Tissot.
Thonet is currently split into global divisions. Thonet Industries U.S.A. was acquired in 1987 by Shelby Williams and joined the CF Group in 1999, while the Thonet brand in Germany is owned by Thonet GmbH.
Find a collection of antique Thonet furniture on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Wolfurt, Austria
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 7 days of delivery.
- Set of Five Chairs by Thonet, ViennaBy ThonetLocated in Wolfurt, ATThis set of five Thonet chairs. The chairs was made by Thonet in 1984 of dark lacquered wood and grey seat and back with silver upholstery nails. A new cover is necessary, otherwise ...Category
Vintage 1980s Austrian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsWood, Leather
- German 1950s cocktail chairLocated in Wolfurt, ATThis cocktail chair was made in Germany in the 1950s. It consists of pretty, well-preserved original vinyl upholstery and beech wood was used as material for the frame.Category
Vintage 1950s German Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsFaux Leather, Beech
- Set of 2 Italian Armchairs, Designed by Nino Zoncada, Italy, 1950sBy Nino ZoncadaLocated in Wolfurt, ATTwo armchairs, designed by Nino Zondada, Italy, 1950s. The armchairs are upholstered with vinyl leather and feature classical metal bases with brass elements for a two tone look. The...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsBrass, Steel
- Vintage Cocktail Chair in a Beautiful Original Vinyl Cover, Germany, 1950sLocated in Wolfurt, ATThe relatively small cocktail chair covered with a firm vinyl cover, the seams of which are stabilised by a white piping strip. The backrest is not only de...Category
Vintage 1950s German Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsFaux Leather, Wood
- Italian Lounge Chairs, 1950s, Set of 2Located in Wolfurt, ATSet of two elegant Italian modernism armchairs with wood turned legs and original upholstery.Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Bentwood
- Armchair, Design by Nino Zoncada, Italy, 1950sBy Nino ZoncadaLocated in Wolfurt, ATChair, design by Nino Zoncada, Italy, 1950s. The chair has the original cover with leather piping.Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Club Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Wood
- Italian Mid Century Big Beech and Vienna Straw Thonet Style Chairs, 1950sBy ThonetLocated in MIlano, ITItalian Mid-Century Modern larghe beech and Vienna straw Thonet style chairs with armrests, 1950s Large chairs or small armchairs with armrests in...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsStraw, Beech
- Thonet 209 Cane Bentwood Chairs After Thonet 209, 1950sBy ThonetLocated in Mombuey, ZamoraThey are in very good condition, ready to use. Very good structure and seat shaft. The chairs after Thonet is from the years 1950s The 6 chairs are in very good condition, ready to...Category
Mid-20th Century Czech Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsCane, Bentwood
- Vintage Cinema Chair from Thonet, 1950sBy ThonetLocated in Kojetice, CZThis folding cinema chair was produced by Thonet in former Czechoslovakia during the 1930s-1950s. The chair is stable and can be placed anywhere. It is completely made of wood (partl...Category
Mid-20th Century Czech Industrial Chairs
MaterialsWood, Bentwood, Plywood
- ZMG Thonet Beech wood Folding chairs 1950sBy ThonetLocated in Den Haag, NLVery nice set of Beech wood folding chairs ,comes width Wicker seats . set of four of Vintage Mid-Century ZMG Radomsko The chairs made by Poli...Category
Vintage 1950s Polish Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsBeech
- Wrought Iron Chairs from the 1950s Casa e GiardinoLocated in bari, ITSet of four wrought iron chairs Italian home and garden production mid-1950s, The four chairs are intentionally left with their antique patina.Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsWrought Iron
- Pierre Jeanneret Senate Chair in Cowhide, 1950s ChandigarghBy Pierre JeanneretLocated in Los Angeles, CAStunning teak Senate chair fully reupholstered in a cappuccino cowhide designed by Pierre Jeanneret for Chandigargh. Plush seat resting on two "V Legs" with a generous armrest which ...Category
Vintage 1950s Indian Chairs
MaterialsCowhide, Teak