Shell Chair

The son of a shoemaker, Hans Wegner was trained as a cabinetmaker and architect. He studied at Copenhagen’s School of Arts and Crafts, which led to a job with Arne Jacobsen, designer of the Egg™ Chair, creating furniture for the new Århus City Hall. Wegner started his own design office, and in 1949, his light, sculptural forms caught the eye of the folks at Carl Hansen & Son. For the next 58 years, Wegner designed memorable, comfortable, stunning furniture for the Hansen company, which continues to produce his fully licensed works today. Regarded as the “chair-maker of chair-makers,” the Danish designer created more than 400 chairs in his lifetime.

Wegner preferred to work in solid wood, but occasionally he explored the use of bent plywood, and for that we are very thankful. Sometimes called the “smiling chair,” his Shell Chair (1963) achieves a floating lightness due to its wing-like seat and the arching curves of its tapered legs. And while it stands on only three legs, this chair has an absolute stability that could only be achieved by someone with Wegner’s expertise in cabinetmaking and architecture. Wegner’s belief that a chair “should be beautiful from all sides and angles” is especially evident with his Shell Chair. This comfortable masterpiece is a marvel of grace and beauty. Made in Denmark.