Kaare Klint for Rud Rasmussen Set of Four 'Red Chairs' in Original Leather

Kaare Klint for Rud Rasmussen, set of four dining chairs 'The Red Chair', model 3758, original patinated leather, mahogany, Denmark, designed 1927, manufactured 1930s.

Set of four dining chairs, designed by Kaare Klint in 1927 and manufactured by Rudolf Radmussen. These iconic chairs were initially designed for the lecture hall of the Danish Art and Design Museum. Later on, they were also presented at the World Exposition in Barcelona, where the design won the grand prix medal in 1929. The chairs are therefore also called 'Barcelona Chair'.

Kaare Klint designed the chairs with an historic reference in mind. The form was influenced by an 18th century English design Classic: The Chippendale chair. Klint used the perfect proportions of these chairs but streamlined them, so the design would be stripped of unnecessary decoration. With this landmark functionalist design, Kaare Klint searched for the essence of form and shape, leaving all superfluous ornaments behind. Klint stood with his 'Red Chair' at the very beginning of the highly influential Danish design movement. This chair can therefore be considered as a key design in the oeuvre of Klint, but also for Danish furniture making in general.

Kaare Klint (1888-1954), born in 1988 in Frederiksburg, Denmark, was a Danish architect and furniture designer. From a young age, Klint was immersed in architecture. His father was the well-known architect Peder Vilhelm Jensen-Klint, who is mainly known for designing the Grundtvigs church in Copenhagen. After studying at the P.S. Krøyer’s Art School from 1907, Klint made his debut as a designer. That year, the Association of Furniture Manufacturers in Copenhagen announced that they would hold a competition for designer furniture. Klint submitted, together with Ivar Bentsen, under a code name and together they received first price. In 1924, Klint helped establishing the Department of Furniture Design at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. As associate professor, and later professor, he inspired some of the greatest and most well-known Danish designers, including Hans J. Wegner and Arne Jacobsen. Klint worked and thought along a few strong principles being the importance of former styles. He believed that the only way forward was to have a deep knowledge of craftsmanship. One of his other core principles was to research functionality and have an outstanding sense of proportion, space and the human body. Overall, Klint drew inspiration from the Shakers, Chippendale and Biedermeier. Kaare Klint's style from the 20s and 30s has had a lot of influence on other designers in both Europe and the United States. Amongst others Børge Mogensen, Finn Juhl and Poul Kjærholm have taken influence from Klint. Therefore, Kaare Klint can be seen as the father of Danish mid-century design.

Please note that this set still has its original leather with visible patina and signs of wear and use. Furthermore, one chair needs restoration due to the broken wooden frame underneath the seat. Reupholstery and restoration is possible before shipping by our experienced craftsman and -women in our own in-house restoration atelier. With high attention for the original, they make sure every piece retains its value and is ready for the many years to come. We kindly ask you to contact our design experts for further information about the endless possibilities our restoration and upholstery atelier has to offer. Of course, a locally organized reupholstery and restoration is possible as well.

The mahogany type of this piece does not require an export license.

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