Chair Djinn and Ottoman by Olivier Mourgue Edited by Airborne, circa 1968
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Chair Djinn and Ottoman by Olivier Mourgue Edited by Airborne, circa 1968
About the Item
- Creator:Olivier Mourgue (Designer)
- Attributed to:Airborne (Manufacturer)
- Design:
- Dimensions:Height: 27.17 in (69 cm)Width: 27.56 in (70 cm)Depth: 25.99 in (66 cm)Seat Height: 13.39 in (34 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1968
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Paris, FR
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU992715565891
Djinn Chair
The Djinn chair appeared so futuristic when it debuted in 1964 that red versions were used as space station seating in Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey. Created by French designer Olivier Mourgue (b. 1939), the low-slung lounge chair — named for the shapeshifting djinn, or spirits, that appear in the Koran — has an undulating seat that appears as if it were folded from a single piece of material. The illusion is an effect of its assembly, which sees curved tubular steel covered with urethane foam and jersey fabric. Despite its imposing presence, the chair is lightweight.
“The good object is very movable and displaceable; inventions and creations are light,” Mourgue wrote in an essay for the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s 1983 exhibition “Design Since 1945.” “It was in this spirit that I constructed my ‘Djinn’ seats.”
Not long after the Djinn chair made its debut, most designers would use plastic instead of metal frames to build similarly flowing forms; Mourgue in the 1960s was pushing the structural limits of available materials. Released by the French manufacturer Airborne International, the chair was part of a Djinn series that included an equally sculptural chaise longue and footstool.
The chairs came in bold variations such as red, yellow, blue and green, with the idea that the jersey could be zipped off and changed seasonally or to meet shifting tastes. Because the material and foam tend to deteriorate over time, vintage versions are likely to require restoration. Mourgue said in 1965 that “things should have a short life,” yet in more than 50 years since its debut, his Djinn chair remains a popular vision of a space-age future.
- ‘Djinn’ Easy Chairs and Ottoman by Olivier Mourgue for AirborneBy Olivier MourgueLocated in ŁÓDŹ, PL'Djinn' easy chair and ottoman by Olivier Mourgue for Airborne International, France, 1964-1965. Made of a tubular steel frame with rubber singles, foam and woolen fabric. The set is after fully renovation with the original specifications with use of the highest quality foam and rubber. It is again upholstered in a luxurious woolen "plush" fabric from Belgium. The chair stands on stainless steel slides to protect the chair and fabric. In excellent condition. Both are original pieces from the 1960s. This set is the same as the red chairs used in the movie "2001: A Space Odyssey" by Stanley Kubrick. Those pieces are a part of Center de Pompidou and the New York's MoMA collection. This epic set of modernism from the Mid-20th Century is as beautiful as it is comfortable and will surely become a delightful piece of furniture in your home. Condition: This “Djinn” set is in perfect condition, after fully renovation process, has new stripes, foam and was reupholstered in luxurious woolen fabric from Belgium. Chair dimensions: Width 70 cm / 27.56 in. Depth 76.2 cm / 30 in. Height Seat Height 67 cm / 26.37 in. 39.37 cm / 15.5 in. Ottoman dimensions: Width 72 cm / 28.34 in. Depth 58 / 22.83 in. Height 40 cm / 15.74 in. About the Designer: Olivier Mourgue (French, born 1939) is a French artist and industrial designer. Best known for his design of the Djinn line of furniture, Mourgue's aesthetic is characterized by brightly colored jersey fabric stretched over structural steel frames that are filled with polyether foam, creating a unified, futuristic, alien-like modular form. Born in Paris, France in 1939, he began his career with an innovative design for a chaise lounge in 1964, after which he expanded his original furniture line to include loveseats, stools, and anthropomorphic chairs. Despite also producing paintings and drawings, his career was ultimately dedicated to industrial design, and provided a quintessential aesthetic of 1960s Modernist furniture...Category
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