International Decorative Art

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Stokke Armchair

Stokke Armchair

Design Date
1965

Designer
Jens Quistgaard (1919–2008, Danish)

Manufacturer
Nissen Traevarefabrik, Langå, Denmark

Media
Brazilian rosewood, chrome-plated steel and cloth upholstery

Dimensions
28 1/2 x 26 x 26 1/2 inches

Jens Harald Quistgaard, the son of a sculptor, learned wood carving at an early age and began his career designing silverware and flatware. This Stokke (stick) Armchair was inspired by colonial safari chairs used in the field, which were collapsible and portable, as is this chair. The chair is held together not by screws, brackets or joints, but by internal tension. Tapered wooden poles fit into the metal bars and the back and seat hold the parts together. It can be assembled without any tools in a matter of minutes, like the safari chairs of old. The organic lines of this chair and use of wood typify Danish Functionalism, a design movement in the 1960s that focused on functionality over all else. The design is also reminiscent of the sails of a ship, with its design based on structural tension.

ON VIEW in Modern Gallery 7

Markings
unmarked

Credit Line
Collection Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art

Accession Number
2012.0757

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