Continuing our mid-century modernism series, we take a look at the iconic Egg chair, which was designed by Danish architect Arne Jacobsen in 1958 for the former SAS Royal Hotel in Copenhagen.
Characterised by an oval, upholstered main body supported by a steel insert and a four-pronged aluminium tilt and swivel base, the Egg has been manufactured by Danish furniture brand Fritz Hansen since its inception.
Jacobsen first sculpted the Egg out of hard polyurethane foam instead of shaping it around a traditional wooden or steel frame ? an unconventional furniture manufacturing process for its time, positioning the chair as a historic achievement. It was subsequently upholstered in textile and leather variants.
Arne Jacobsen designed the Egg chair in 1958. Top and above: photos courtesy of Fritz Hansen Jacobsen was the first designer to realise its full potential, according to Arne Jacobsen Design I/S ? an organisation founded to preserve the architect's legacy ? with Fritz Hansen securing the rights for the foam-based method in the mid-1950s.
The distinctively cocooning chair is considered one of the defining product designs by Jacobsen, who practised as an architect and designer until he died in 1971.
The architect conceived the original Egg in his garage, experimenting with wire, plaster and clay to devise the chair's recognisable scooped shape. It is often said that Jacobsen's inspiration was the 1948 Womb chair, designed by his contemporary, architect Eero Saarinen.
It was ...