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Risom Lounge Chair
Iconic Designs

Risom Lounge Chair

About the Design

Debuting in 1943, the Risom lounge chair was among the first pieces of furniture commissioned and produced by legendary manufacturer Knoll. It was the work of Jens Risom (1916–2016), who had only just moved from his native Denmark to the United States in 1939.

Risom was by then a graduate of business school and had studied under Danish architect and designer Kaare Klint at Copenhagen's School of Industrial Arts and Design (Hans Wegner, whose many iconic creations include the Wishbone chair, was among his classmates). In New York City, Risom found work as an interior designer before embarking on a freelance career as a furniture maker and textile designer when he met Hans Knoll, who was mere months into his venture and needed inventory. In the first Knoll catalogue, 15 of the 25 pieces listed were Risom designs, and the Risom lounge chair would follow a year later.

Owing to the rationing of materials during World War II, Risom turned to surplus parachute straps for use in the construction of his chair, binding the woven straps to a curving birchwood frame. The design was immediately popular for office interiors and is recognized as pivotal to the introduction of understated Danish modernism to the States.

Today, Knoll continues to manufacture the simple but strong Risom lounge chair, and it is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Risom Lounge Chair

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1950s Rare Set Vostra Chairs Numbered & Original Fabric by Jens Risom for Knoll.
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Jens Risom Mid Century Walnut Lounge Chairs - Pair
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Jens Risom Mid Century Walnut Lounge Chairs - Pair Each lounge chair measures: 26 wide x 27 deep x 32 high, with a seat height of 16.25 and arm height/chair clearance 21.25 inches ...
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Jens Risom Mid Century Walnut and Cane Playboy Chairs - Pair
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Jens Risom Mid Century Walnut and Cane Playboy Chairs - Pair Each chair measures: 22.5 wide x 23 deep x 32.25 high, with a seat height of 18.5 and arm height/chair clearance 26.5 in...
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Jens Risom Mid Century Model U430 Walnut Lounge Chair
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Located in Countryside, IL
Jens Risom Mid Century Model U430 Walnut Lounge Chair This lounge chair measures: 26 wide x 29 deep x 29.75 high, with a seat height of 15 and arm height/chair clearance 23.25 inche...
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Jens Risom Mid Century Walnut Lounge Chair
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Jens Risom midcentury walnut lounge chair. This chair measures: 23.25 wide x 24 deep x 31 high, with a seat height of 17.5 and arm h...
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Jens Risom Lounge Chair for Knoll International
By Jens Risom
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Jens Risom, Vostra Easy Lounge Chair, Design 1941 for Walter Knoll, Germany
By Walter Knoll, Jens Risom, Knoll
Located in Munster, NRW
Jens Risom for Walter Knoll - Easychair Vostra, 1941 Design from 1941 - model of the 50s, beech frame. This Easychair comes from the private property of an art dealer in Cologne,...
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Jens Risom Pair of "No. 654" Chairs, Knoll Internationnal, USA, 1940s
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Pair of lounge chairs designed by Jens Risom in 1941. Jens Risom’s designs were the first pieces conceived for and manufactured by Knoll in the USA. Due to wartime material restrictions, the lounge chair was originally constructed of simple maple frames and discarded parachute webbing. Described as good, honest furniture design, the collection helped establish Knoll as an early source of modern design in...
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More Jens Risom Designs
Risom Lounge Chair
Risom Lounge Chair
Average Price
$3,353
Number Available
8
Risom Lounge Chair
Materials
Wood, Fabric, Upholstery, Walnut
Styles
Mid Century Modern
Debuting in 1943, the Risom lounge chair was among the first pieces of furniture commissioned and produced by legendary manufacturer Knoll. It was the work of Jens Risom (1916–2016), who had only just moved from his native Denmark to the United States in 1939.Risom was by then a graduate of business school and had studied under Danish architect and designer Kaare Klint at Copenhagen's School of Industrial Arts and Design (Hans Wegner, whose many iconic creations include the Wishbone chair, wa...
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