Although Scandinavian design is considered the pinnacle of modernity today, and Hans Wegner's iconic designs grace the cover of major interiors magazines, his fame was actually launched in America. In 1959 the most famous men in the world - Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy - used his "The Chair" during their televised presidential debate. From then on, Wegner's designs would reach international heights and change the course of furniture design forever.
Born in 1914 in Tonder, a small town in southern Denmark, Hans Wegner revolutionized the world of seating. While still young, Hans Wegner already knew what he wanted to do with his life. Passionate about woodworking, he spent his adolescence discovering the secrets of the craft, thanks to the help of a German craftsman who helped him make objects. At the age of 20, the young Danish decided to aim higher and moved to the capital, Copenhagen, to complete his training at the School of Arts and Crafts.
Heading to the east coast of Denmark, Hans Wegner made his furniture until 1943 alongside Erik Møller and Arne Jacobsen and became their assistant. For him, this first experience will prove fruitful since the two founding fathers of Danish design will give him the opportunity to express his talents by participating in the design of the new city hall of Århus.
From then on, his minimalist approach to furniture will continue to be popular, as illustrated by the many reissues of his most beautiful works and his current success at auction.
To achieve this, the furniture architect founded his own office in 1944. At this time, he already knew the importance of surrounding himself with exceptional craftsmen, like the master cabinetmaker Johannes Hansen, with whom he produced some of his top furniture, starting with the chair 501, also called The Chair, which cemented his reputation in the 1950s since it was the chair used in a televised debate between vice president Richard Nixon and Senator John F Kennedy.
Another huge success of Hans Wegner's was the Wishbone Chair (CH24), a model with ultra-clean lines, four legs, a seat and an armrest. Functional and above all, adaptable to any room in the house, the exceptional design will bring him fame and legacy since seven decades later, the Wishbone Chair continues to be produced and sold in mass around the world by the company Carl Hansen & Søn whose catalog still offers over 20 designs by the Danish designer.
A prolific creator, Hans Wegner has designed more than 450 different chairs and furniture styles throughout his life. With innovative models like the Peacock chair, the Wing Chair, the OX chairs and Papa Bear, Wegner combined modernity, lightness and simplicity in his work. He became one of the undisputed masters of Nordic design and Scandinavian style - alongside Finn Juhl, Arne Jacobsen, Poul Henningsen and Børge Mogensen. It was also common knowledge that each of the designer's furniture was constructed of the highest quality.
Thanks to a very long career, the designer was rewarded many times. Appointed honorary member of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, he was the first designer to be awarded the Lunning Prize and received the 8th International Design Award, as well as the grand prize of the Milan Triennale and the Eckersberg medal. Wegner died in 2007 at the age of 92, and many of his works are now exhibited in major museums such as the MoMA in New York and Die Neue Sammlung in Munich. His work is also successful at auction such as his crocodile cabinet from 1949, which sold for 101,000 euros in 2015 at a sale in Paris.