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Friday, August 26, 2011

Ole Wanscher

Ole Wanscher (1903-1985) was born in Denmark. He studied with Kaare Klint at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen and worked with him for three years following the completion of his studies. In 1927 he set up his own office, specializing in furniture design.

Like his mentor Klint, he was influenced by classical furnishings, particularly 18th century English furniture, as well as designs from Egypt, China and Greece. One of his most famous designs is the delicate Egyptian stool.

Upon the death of Kaare Klint in 1955, Wanscher took over his position at the Royal Academy, where he remained until 1973. While there, he used his vast knowledge of furniture history to write several books on the subject.

While many of Wanscher's most beautiful pieces were made with master cabinetmaker A. J. Iverson, he also had an interest in mass production. He had a successful relationship with P. Jeppesens Møbelfabrik A/S that began in the 1950s and lasted the rest of his professional career. He also designed pieces for France and Son.

From dmk.dk and wikipedia.org


Upholstered armchair
hammersby.com

Coffee table
collectorweekly.com

Cabinet
denmark50.com

Egyptian stool
svpply.com

Dining chairs
almondhartzog.com

Bentwood rocker
bondandbowery.com

Sofa
roomculture.de

Expandable dining table and chairs
modern-furniture.de

Rosewood cabinet
1stdibs.com

Senator series chairs
scandinavianmod.comS

Sleeping sofa
amsterdammodern.com

6 comments:

  1. thank you for such a wonderful post..he is among the designers i admire the most!! who wouldnt want to own that rocker, that dining set and everything else from his portfolio

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  2. @Sudha: Isn't that rocker spectacular? I know right where I'd put it if I were lucky enough to find one.

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  3. I was scrolling through these pictures and kept thinking "ooh, I want that!" then I'd hit the next picture and think, "no! I NEED that one!" Then I got to the rocker. I really do need that! What a fantastic biography. Sounds like this gent was a real academic with a very elegant and clean style. Have I mentioned how much I love these posts? =)

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  4. @Flo: I agree that his biography is fascinating. I don't know how he could balance design work, teaching and still find time to write books too. Amazing man! And have I mentioned how much I enjoy your comments? I'm so glad you found my blog.

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  5. You know I've seen things similar to those and not been grabbed by them. You get to a certain age, a girl likes to be grabbed before she is willing to commit to taking something home. But your informative posts always grab my attention.

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  6. @DearHelenHartman: Some of his chairs are a little too traditional for me, but I have to admit to being grabbed by that orange rocker and the bottom sofa.

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