Best known for his chairs and other seating pieces — though a master of many furniture types like sofas and tables — Hans Wegner was a prolific designer whose elegant, often ebullient, forms and devotion to the finest methods in joinery made "Danish Modern" a popular byword for stylish, well-made furniture in the mid-20th century.
Wegner considered himself a carpenter first and a furniture designer second. Like his peers Arne Jacobsen and Finn Juhl, Wegner believed that striking aesthetics in furniture were based on a foundation of practicality: a chair must be comfortable and sturdy before it is chic.
In keeping with that tenet, several of Hans Wegner’s best chair designs have their roots in traditional seating forms. The Peacock chair (designed in 1947) is a throne-like adaptation of the Windsor chair; pieces from the China chair series (begun in 1944) as well as the 1949 Wishbone chair, with its distinctive Y-shaped back splat, are derived from 17th-century Ming seating pieces, as is the upholstered Ox chair (1960). Wegner’s comfy Papa Bear chair (1951) is an almost surreally re-scaled English wingback chair.
Wegner’s most representative piece, the Round chair (1949), gained a footnote in political history when it was used on the TV stage of the first Kennedy-Nixon debate of 1960. That chair, along with Wegner’s more bravura designs — for example, the 1963 Shell chair, with its curved surfboard-shaped seat — bring a quietly sculptural presence to a room.
Wegner was a designer who revered his primary material — wood — and it shows. His wood gathers patina and character with age; every Hans Wegner piece testifies to the life it has led.
Find vintage Hans Wegner lounge chairs, armchairs, daybeds and other furniture for sale on 1stDibs.
Restored 1960s Danish Mid Century Modern Teak Floating Top Nesting Tables
By Greta Magnusson Grossman
Located in Toluca Ter, CA
A newly refinished set of three floating top teak nesting tables, made in Denmark c. 1960s. Each table features a rectangular top with softly rounded corners, raised slightly above ...
Teak
Restored 1960s Danish Mid Century Modern Teak Dining Table by Knud Andersen
By Knud Andersen, J.C.A. Jensen
Located in Toluca Ter, CA
Refinished teak dining table by Knud Andersen for J.C.A. Jensen with original placard from storied Danish retailer Illums Bolighus, date stamped 1962. Features elegantly tapered rec...
Teak
Restored Danish Mid Century Modern Rosewood Nesting Tables
By Arne Wahl Iversen
Located in Toluca Ter, CA
Expertly refinished set of three rosewood nesting tables, made in Denmark in the 1970s. Often used interchangeably with end tables, this set can be placed beside a sofa or in between...
Rosewood
Mid Century Floating Top Teak Side Tables by Robsjohn-Gibbings for Widdicomb
By Widdicomb Furniture Co., T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings
Located in Toluca Ter, CA
An expertly restored pair of two-tier floating top side or end tables, produced by Widdicomb c. 1950s with design attributed to T.H. Robsjohn Gibbings. The tabletops feature an unco...
Cherry, Teak
Restored Arne Vodder Model 201 Danish Modern Teak Extension Dining Table
By Sibast, Arne Vodder
Located in Toluca Ter, CA
Arne Vodder Model 201 extendable dining or conference table in teak, produced in Denmark by Sibast Furniture c. mid 1960s. Model 201 rests on a pair of distinctive V-shaped leg asse...
Teak
Restored Arne Vodder Model 227 Dining Table in Teak, Danish Mid Century Modern
By Arne Vodder, Sibast
Located in Toluca Ter, CA
Designed by Arne Vodder in the 1960s and produced by Sibast Mobler in Denmark, the Model 227 dining table is the original transformer table, expandin...
Teak
Danish Mid-Century Modern Nesting Teak Tables, Stamped Mark
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Side tables made of teak wood produced by a Danish furniture architect around the 1960's are stamped with makers mark. Teak wood is known for its natural beauty making it a popular ...
Teak
1960s Set of Fully Restored and Refinished Danish Nesting Tables in Teak
Located in Knebel, DK
1960s set of fully restored and refinished Danish nesting tables in teak The elegant and well crafted nesting tables with their mid-century Danish-Modern slimlined design and high s...
Teak
1960s Set of Three Danish Nesting Tables by Hans Wegner in Teak and Oak
By Hans J. Wegner, Andreas Tuck
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This is a Set of Three Graduated Nesting Tables dating to the 1960s, designed by Hans Wegner for Andreas Tuck in Denmark. The tops of the tables are made with rich teak, and the fram...
Steel
Set of Nesting Tables by Severin Hansen
By Andreas Tuck, Hans J. Wegner
Located in Lejre, DK
Set of nesting tables in well patinated finished Scandinavian oak designed by Maa. Hans Jørgen Wegner for Andreas Hansen. Great condition.
Oak
Set of 3 Danish Modern Teak Nesting Tables
Located in Kensington, MD
Set of 3 Danish Modern Teak Nesting Tables Additional information: Material: Teak Featured at DC: Set of 3 graduated nesting tables in teak. Each has lighter edge band definin...
Teak
Set of Three Hans Wegner Teak Nesting Tables AT-40, 1960
By Hans J. Wegner
Located in Belmont, MA
A refined set of three Danish modern nesting tables, model AT-40, designed by Hans J. Wegner for Andreas Tuck, one of the most celebrated collaborations in Scandinavian furniture de...
Teak
You know the designs, now get the stories about how they came to be.
If anyone is brave, humble and adept enough to recolor these mid-century masterpieces, it’s Ilse Crawford. Here, she gives us the details on her five earthy paint choices and tells us how she feels about design collaborations.
