"B35" Armchair

Marcel Breuer|Gebrüder Thonet GmbH

1928–29 · Tubular steel, wood, and canvas · Modern and Contemporary Art

Following the success of his "Wassily" chair, Breuer continued to experiment with tubular steel furniture. He partnered with the German manufacturer Thonet, designing a number of chairs, stools, and ottomans made from this lightweight, traditionally industrial material. In the "B35" armchair, Breuer employed seemingly continuous steel runners as the chair's frame. The seat and back were upholstered in simple canvas, and the armrests padded with lacquered wood. Both the seat and armrests are dramatically cantilevered without vertical supports, emphasizing both the tensile strength and the slenderness of the tubular steel construction. Like Breuer's "Wassily" chair, the "B35" was not a direct product of the Bauhaus; it does, however, clearly conform to Bauhaus principles of design and construction, with its modern, stripped-down form made from industrial materials not typically used in furniture at this time.

Artist

Marcel Breuer|Gebrüder Thonet GmbH

Date

1928–29

Medium

Tubular steel, wood, and canvas

Department

Modern and Contemporary Art

Credit line

Purchase, Theodore R. Gamble Jr. Gift, in honor of his mother, Mrs. Theodore Robert Gamble, 1985