Danish Chairs for Sale

Danish furniture, also known as “Danish modern,” became popular when its exciting, new look was introduced in the 1920s. Soon this look became identified with modernism and all that was sleek and new. Designers became revered.

Danish chairs are characterized by clean, bent lines and a spare appearance. Several designer names are stand-outs, and the chairs they designed remain famous.

Professor Kaare Klint, an architect, is probably the first to have introduced the concepts and design principles that characterize these chairs and other furnishings. Many Danish chairs are made with wood that has been gently bent using steam. Other curves are derived from steel or chrome, and leather and glass are also often used in Danish furniture. A classic Danish easy chair, leather-covered, typifies the “mid-century” look currently so popular.

There are a number of Danish modern chairs so well-known their very names evoke the principles of Danish furniture design.

The Vienna Chair
The Vienna bentwood chair is actually a predecessor of Danish modern design. The original Konsumstuhl Nr. 14, designed by Michael Thonet, was introduced in 1859. but the curved back and open look are deeply influential on the true Danish modern chairs.

The Peacock Chair
The Peacock chair was originally designed by Hans J. Wegner. It has a classic bentwood appearance, much influenced by the Vienna chair. The vertical slats open like rays in the curved area of the back, creating the visual impression of a peacock’s tail open in its glory. It is a chair of great beauty and elegance. It is also quite comfortable, as the flat part of the vertical slats support the shoulder blades, so leaning back feels as good as it looks.

Reproductions of this chair can still be found today, because it is such a classic and so popular.

The PK22 Chair
The PK22 is an armless lounge chair. You will often find reproductions in leather or wicker, with chrome legs. It has a beautiful sweep to it. This chair was originally designed in 1955 by Poul Kjaerholm. Kjaerholm was considered a breakthrough furniture designer and his name is remembered by many lovers of the art of furniture design. A collection of Kjaerholm furniture can be viewed in the New York Museum of Modern Art.

The Egg
The Egg chair is an icon of Danish modern design. It beautifully hugs the person seated in it, and looks modernistic and striking. It is typically covered in a bold solid fabric, a modern egg floating over a cross-shaped swivel base. This chair was designed by Arne Jacobsen in 1958 for Radisson SAS hotel in Copenhagen.

Jacobsen designed many striking and famous Danish chairs, including the Swan, the Ant, and the 7. Both the Egg and the Swan were designed as couches as well. The Egg couch is no longer in production, and very few were made.