Børge Mogensen for Fredericia Stolefabrik Set of 'Spanish' Dining Chairs in Oak and Black Leather

Børge Mogensen for Fredericia Stolefabrik, set of six 'Spanish Dining Chairs' model '3238', oak, black leather, brass, Denmark, 1964

These chairs remind of the classical foldable 'director-chairs', yet this design by Danish designer Børge Mogensen (1914-1972) is from a more sturdy character. Almost as a trademark of Mogensen these chairs are executed in solid oak, with seating and back from thick black saddle leather. The lines and forms are simple, yet with the right amount of tension. The wide armrests, wood-joints and cross-connections are nice details to these dining chairs. The buckles and straps on the back give the saddle leather and even more sturdy appearance.

Børge Mogensen (1914-1972) was a Danish designer. His designs are defined by being high-quality, simple and functional. Mogensen can be seen as a democratic and idealistic designer. He aimed to solve basic problems in residential living. This meant that he designed for the middle-class and everyday use instead of for the more exclusive costumer. Contrary to his contemporaries in other countries such as Le Corbusier, Mogensen did not work with new modern materials such as steel and glass. Instead, he chose to work with tested materials such as leather and wood. Being trained by Kaare Klint, he was very focused on the human body and his ideal was to create comfortable furniture, not furniture that would end up in a museum. His designs are therefore honest, functional, simple and production friendly. Mogensen was extremely productive: hundreds of his designs went into production in his lifetime.