First Masterpieces

Hans J. Wegner: First Masterpieces

Five masterpieces united: CH25, CH22, CH26, CH23, and CH24 (left to right)

For more than 65 years Hans J. Wegner's legacy has shaped the philosophy of Danish furniture manufacturer Carl Hansen & Søn; for all Wegner's Masterpieces show what a long-lasting, good design can result from good cooperation and dedication to craftsmanship! In total, Hans J. Wegner designed more than 500 chairs, all with the goal of creating "just one good chair", the perfect chair. Whether he has managed to design the perfect chair is questionable - but he certainly succeeded in creating some masterpieces that today are considered genuine icons of modern Danish design. These include chairs such as the CH24, also known as the Wishbone Chair or Y Chair, or the CH25 Lounge Chair, which has been produced by Carl Hansen since its creation in 1950. Chairs such as the CH22 or CH23, however, were not consistently made, but are now available to anyone who appreciates the high quality wooden chairs and armchairs by Hans J. Wegner. Almost forgotten, but thankfully rediscovered in 2016, is the CH26, which speaks the same design language as the CH22 lounge chair, but is suitable as a dining chair. As a work the CH26 remained a draft sketch then, but is now produced entirely according to Hans J. Wegner's original drawings.

The CH25 Lounge Chair is one of Wegner's first pieces of furniture and is now faithfully produced by Carl Hansen & Søn

Today, on the occasion of the 100th birthday of the Scandinavian designer, Wegner's masterpieces are loved for their formative, timeless design - but at the time of their creation they were extremely avant-garde and innovative. It was Holger Hansen who recognised the potential of Wegner, who was still completely unknown at the time, and addressed him in order to win him over for a collaboration with Carl Hansen & Søn. The collaboration proved be a fruitful one that has left a lasting mark on the quality, craftsmanship, and creative character of the company - and continues to do so today.

Wegner's Masterpieces are today produced in Carl Hansen's factory in Gelsted, a tranquil town on the Danish island of Funen - and that naturally at the highest level craftsmanship quality. All of his early pieces show his innovative sense of ergonomics and the tangible significance of natural materials. For example, the seats of all five chairs are made of hand-woven natural cords - in the case of the CH25 requiring some 400 meters of material, from which trained weavers create the double-woven back and seat of the chair in about ten hours of work. The natural corded seats of the Hans Wegner chairs last a lifetime and can, if necessary, be re-woven, which makes the chairs a particularly attractive investment for generations.

The CH26 chair by Carl Hansen & Søn looks particularly elegant in black lacquered oak