J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
While the first name that comes to mind when thinking of bentwood furniture might be Thonet (maker of the iconic Thonet No. 14 chair or “bistro chair”), Michael Thonet and his subsequent studio, the Gebrüder Thonet (Thonet Brothers), had a strong competitor in 19th-century Vienna: Jacob & Josef Kohn (also referred to as J. & J. Kohn). Mundus-Kohn was the name given to a short-lived company owing to an early 20th-century merger between J. & J. Kohn and Mundus, a Viennese firm that Rudolf Weill & Co.'s Leopold Pilzer founded in 1907.
Founded in 1849 by a father and son with the motto “Be one step ahead,” Jacob & Josef Kohn created modern furniture for indoors and out from Austrian beech. At the turn of the 20th century, after establishing itself with mastery of everything from chairs to coatracks and even doll furniture, J. & J. Kohn began working closely with the Wiener Werkstätte, the artisan cooperative cofounded by Austrian architect and designer Josef Hoffmann (Gustav Klimt and Koloman Moser were also members). Through this partnership, J. & J. Kohn produced an array of furniture in bentwood, cane and upholstery, which it sold through showrooms across Europe and North America. Its designs throughout the first decade of the 20th century reflect the Art Nouveau movement that was quickly gaining traction across Europe.
Price wars and mergers ensued during the First World War. Changes in the organizational structure of Thonet included a merger with Viennese company Mundus in the early 20th century, which followed Mundus’s becoming a majority stakeholder in J. & J. Kohn — these mergers yielded the formation of Mundus-Kohn and later, in 1922–23, Thonet-Mundus.
The new conglomerate went on to produce examples of its bentwood furniture in keeping with the modern style of the Vienna Secession. While Thonet rebuilt, rebranded and expanded in the United States and elsewhere after World War II, J. & J. Kohn never produced furniture under that name again.
Find antique Mundus-Kohn furniture on 1stDibs.
1960s Croatian Art Nouveau Vintage J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Cane, Beech
1930s Luxembourgish Mid-Century Modern Vintage J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Bentwood
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Vienna Secession J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Bentwood
1930s Austrian Vintage J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Bentwood
Mid-20th Century French Chippendale J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Early 20th Century Austrian Vienna Secession J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Beech, Bentwood
Early 20th Century Czech Vienna Secession J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Cane, Bentwood
Mid-20th Century Polish Mid-Century Modern J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Bentwood, Wood
Early 20th Century Czech Mid-Century Modern J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Bentwood
1920s Austrian Vienna Secession Vintage J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Fabric, Beech, Bentwood
20th Century Austrian Vienna Secession J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Cane, Beech, Bentwood
21st Century and Contemporary French Mid-Century Modern J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Rattan, Teak
1960s Polish Mid-Century Modern Vintage J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Cane, Wood, Bentwood
1890s Austrian Victorian Antique J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Beech
1960s Croatian Art Deco Vintage J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Cane, Beech
1960s Croatian Art Deco Vintage J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Cane, Beech
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Upholstery, Bentwood
1930s Austrian Vienna Secession Vintage J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Beech
Mid-20th Century Austrian Vienna Secession J & J Kohn & Mundus Furniture
Wood