Hans Wegner

Hans J. Wegner (Danish, 1914–2007) was a renowned furniture designer associated with Organic Functionalism. Born in southern Denmark, Wegner apprenticed as a cabinetmaker, and later attended the Danish School of Arts and Crafts and the Architectural Academy in Copenhagen. In 1940, Wegner began a collaboration with Arne Jacobsen and Erik Møller to build and design furniture for the Århus City Hall. Also in 1940, Wegner worked with the seminal modern designer Johannes Hansen. In 1942, Wegner sold a piece of furniture to the then Copenhagen Industrial Art Museum (now the Design Museum Denmark). A year later, Wegner opened his own design studio, and, in 1944, he designed his first China Chair in a series inspired by the thrones of Chinese emperors. The most famous chair in this series, the Wishbone Chair, was mass produced by Carl Hansen & Sons. Like many of his furniture pieces, the chair was characterized by traditional joinery techniques and sculpted elements. Wegner was also known for his use of traditional construction in the creation of upholstered pieces, and often worked in several materials, including wood, plywood, metal, caning, and papercord, always with an emphasis on functionality. Wegner received a number of awards and honors throughout his career. These include an appointment as an honorary member of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and an honorary doctorate from the Royal College of Art in London. He was also the first recipient of the Lunning Prize and received the 8th International Design Award in Osaka, Japan. His works have been shown major institutions around the world, such as The Museum of Modern Art in New York and Die Neue Sammlung in Munich.Wegner died in Denmark in 2007.