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all original c. 1950's finely crafted solid walnut wood finn juhl-designed boardroom "48" side chair salvaged from the president's office of a notable chicago foundry complex. the well-built mid-century modern four-legged chair consists entirely of solid walnut with the original varnished finish largely intact. the stationary armchair retains the original cognac brown leather padded and contoured seat and backrest. two matching chairs available. finn juhl was a danish architect, interior and industrial designer most known as one of the leading figures in the creation of “danish design” in the 1940s, introducing danish modern to america. juhl was born in 1912 and attended the royal Danish academy of fine arts in the early 1930s, studying under kay fisker. in 1945 juhl set up his own design practice in Copenhagen. his first work in furniture design had been a collaboration in 1937 with cabinetmaker niels vodder, which continued until 1959. his early chairs were originally produced in small numbers, emphasizing the artisanl craftwork over mass produced goods, however they were almost all reissued later in his career. in spite of initial criticism of his work, juhl’s designs began to have an impact on the style of homes abroad throughout the 40’s. in Denmark his popularity did not reach that of his peers. in 1948 edgar Kaufmann jr., leader of the department for industrial design at merchandise mart in new york, toured Scandinavia and subsequently presented juhl’s work in a large article in interiors magazine. in 1951 he participated in the good design exhibition in chicago. in connection with the show he was quoted in interiors for stating that "one cannot create happiness with beautiful objects, but one can spoil quite a lot of happiness with bad ones". the work he did for them—24 pieces including chairs, tables, storage units, sideboards and desks—represented his first successful marriage of modern mass production to his traditionally high craft standards. juhl also designed refrigerators for general electric, glassware, ceramics, a line of furniture for the baker furniture company of holland, michigan, and was the interior designer for the united nations trusteeship council chamber in new york city. in the '60s and '70s he experienced a declining interest in his designs. in the '80s and '90s the interest resurged. juhl gave a soft edge to the lines of wooden modernist chairs, favoring organic shapes which often took the wood to the limits of what was possible, making ergonomic and functional pieces. he generally used teak and other dark woods, unlike many of the other proponents of the danish modern movement who often used oak in their designs. he was influenced by the abstract sculptor jean arp and tribal art in general. one of his hallmarks was the floating back and seat which is seen in most of his chair designs, usually upholstered, in contrast to the hard wood of the bearing elements. the full back and seat, seeming to hover on their supports, start to emerge in the chairs from 1945 and 1948.measures 24 1/2 x 22 1/2 x 32 inches.
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one of two matching original and intact solid walnut wood four-legged mid century danish modern upholstered chicago foundry boardroom side chair
SKU:
UR-22016-15
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