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.
Peter Hvidt & Orla Mølgaard-Nielsen Teak Coffee Table by France & Daverkosen
By France & Daverkosen, Hvidt & Mølgaard
Located in Chiavari, Liguria
An elegant mid century danish coffee table designed by Peter Hvidt & Orla Mølgaard Nielsen. Produced by France & Daverkosen during the 1950s, it is made of solid teak with very disti...
Brass
France & Son solid teak extendable coffee table, Denmark, 1960s
By France & Søn
Located in Chiavari, Liguria
A danish solid teak coffee table, produced by France & Son in the Sixties. This coffee table stands out for its simple line and a mechanism that allows expanding the surface when ne...
Teak
Finn Juhl Model B065 teak extendable dining table for Bovirke, Denmark, 1950s
By Bovirke, Finn Juhl
Located in Chiavari, Liguria
There is a poise to this table that is immediately apparent. The rectangular top, with its gently rounded edges, appears to float above four tapered legs that rise to meet it through...
Teak
A solid teak Italian mid-century dining table, 1950s
Located in Chiavari, Liguria
A unique and elegant dining table crafted from solid teak, originating from Italy in the 1950s. Perfect for adorning a generous hospitality space, this table stands out for its hig...
Teak
Charlotte Perriand Brasil dining table produced by Sentou, France, 1970s
By Charlotte Perriand, Robert Sentou
Located in Chiavari, Liguria
Large Solid Mahogany Table, Brazil Model, Designed by Charlotte Perriand, Produced by Sentou, in the 1970s This large geometric table features a substantial tabletop supported by fo...
Wood
A coffee table made of wood and glass, Italy, 1950s
Located in Chiavari, Liguria
This beautiful coffee table, manufactured in Italy with walnut-stained wood and glass in the 1950s, emerges as a piece where it seems a pencil had joyously traced a rapid succession ...
Glass, Wood
Hans Wegner Coffee Table Model 'AT-10' Teak and Cane, Made in Denmark, 1950s
By Hans J. Wegner, Andreas Tuck Møbelfabrik
Located in Antwerp, BE
A midcentury design from Hans J. Wegner model AT-10 coffee table for Andreas Tuck in Denmark, 1950s. A piece of craftmanship features a solid teak top with a beautifully detailed ra...
Cane, Teak
Mid-Century Modern Teak and Cane Coffee Table by Hans J. Wegner for Andreas Tuck
By Hans J. Wegner, Andreas Tuck
Located in North Hollywood, CA
The Scandinavian AT-10 coffee table, designed by Hans J. Wegner for Andreas Tuck in the 1950s, embodies the philosophy that made Danish Modern design an enduring benchmark of craftsm...
Cane, Oak, Teak
Danish Teak Coffee Table by Hans J. Wegner, Mid-Century Modern
By Hans J. Wegner, Andreas Tuck
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A brown, vintage Mid-Century Modern Danish coffee, sofa table made of hand crafted Teakwood, designed by Hans J. Wegner and produced by Andreas Tuck in good condition. Wear consistent with age and use. Circa 1960 Denmark, Scandinavia. Hans Jorgensen Wegner...
Teak
Mid-Century Danish Coffee Table, Teak and Cane, Style of Hans Wegner
Located in Queens, NY
Mid-Century Danish Modern rectangular low coffee table with a lower tier caned shelf plus sides, standing on 4 tapered legs. (In the style of HANS WEGNER) Caning losses.
Teak
Hans J. Wegner for Andreas Tuck Coffee Table, solid oak and teak. Model AT11
By Hans J. Wegner, Andreas Tuck
Located in Esbjerg, DK
Hans J. Wegner coffee table, solid oilec teak, legs of oiled oak. Made by Andreas Tuck. Model AT11
Oak, Teak
T-11 Coffee Table by Hans J. Wegner
By Andreas Tuck, Hans J. Wegner
Located in New York, NY
Iconic Coffee Table T-11 by Hans Wegner for Andreas Tuck, Denmark. This piece has a teak top with oak legs and marked underneath. Designed in 1954 and manufactured during the 1950s t...
Oak, 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.
