Description
Product Information
Before the Swan Chair (***8), Arne Jacobsen’s architecture and
designs were shaped by an assumption of materials’ natural ways of
resisting. In other words, he could make them go only so far in
becoming the structures he desired. With new technologies, however,
the old rules no longer applied, and he was able to shape fluid
curves and single-piece molded shells. The Swan Chair is now made
from polyurethane foam, but at the time, Jacobsen used Styropore®
to create its continuous shape. Designed for the SAS Royal Hotel in
Copenhagen, for which Jacobsen was the architect, the chair
permitted guests to spin on its swivel base, thus becoming active
participants in the busy hotel atmosphere. A single upholsterer
hand-sews the fabric onto the frame of Swan. Original design and
licensed manufacture by Republic of Fritz Hansen. Made in
Poland.
Materials
Fiberglass-reinforced, polyurethane foam shell; satin-chromed steel
swivel; injection-molded aluminum base; fabric upholstery.
Measurements
H *9.5" W *9.*5" D *7" Seat H *5.*5"
Designer:
Arne Jacobsen Denmark (********1)
Black and white picture of Arne Jacobsen Arne Jacobsen bought a
plywood chair designed by Charles Eames and installed it in his own
studio, where it inspired one of the most commercially successful
chair models in design history. The three-legged Ant chair (***1)
sold in millions and is considered a classic today. It consists of
two simple elements: tubular steel legs and a springy seat and back
formed out of a continuous piece of plywood in a range of vivid
colors.
Jacobsen began training as a mason before studying at the Royal
Danish Academy of Arts, Copenhagen where he won a silver medal for
a chair that was then exhibited at the ***5 Exposition
Internationale des Art Decoratifs in Paris. Influenced by Le
Corbusier, Gunnar Asplund and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Jacobsen
embraced a functionalist approach from the outset. He was among the
first to introduce modernist ideas to Denmark and create industrial
furniture that built upon on its craft-based design heritage.
