Much like a fine wine or the Mona Lisa, some things just get better with age…much like this classic oak bentwood & cane Josef Hoffman Prague 811 armchair by Stendig for Thonet! Talk about the ability to withstand the hands of time!! This Josef Hoffman chair was designed in 1925 but remains a current and fabulous design today. It is comprised of a gorgeous bentwood oak and cane frame, slender rounded arms, and slightly flared legs. Can’t you just imagine it behind your home office desk or at the vanity in your bedroom? Want to add a little splash of Bauhaus style to your living room? We have the perfect side or accent chair for that!! You can be sure it will complement your home with timeless and historical excellence, whatever your style!!

Josef Hoffman was one of Austria’s most important architects and designers and was central to the development of art and design in . He grew up with three sisters and was nicknamed Pepo. His father was the town mayor and a successful businessman. He was a founding member of the Vienna Secession, a radical anti- historicist movement, and together with Koloman Moser created the Wiener Werkstatte cooperative workshop. A highly individualistic architect and designer, Hoffmann’s work combined the simplicity of craft production with a refined aesthetic ornament. Between 1901 and 1905, he designed four villas in Vienna and a sanatorium in Brussels that was called “Stoclet House”, for which he developed a “cubistic” language of form, with an emphasis on straight, unadorned lines. In 1905, he established the Kunstschau with painter Gustav Klimt and, two years later, founded the Deutscher Werkbund. Hoffmann worked well into his 80s, continuing to use the geometric motifs that influenced the art deco style of the 1920s. In 1928 his work appeared in the Art in Industry exhibition held at Macy’s in , where it exerted a strong influence on American designer Donald Deskey. Hoffmann is one of the seminal figures in the modern decorative arts movement of the first half of the 20th century.

Stendig was totally the brainchild and passion of Charles W. Stendig. You cannot write or talk about Stendig without explaining Charles. He was a pioneer of import goods in the mid- century. After serving in WWII as a paratrooper, he studied business with emphasis on international trade at NYU and City College of New York. Afterward first working for Raymor, another pioneering distribution company, for about two years, departing to start his own business: Stendig. He opened his first showroom in 1956 in midtown Manhattan. He is credited for sparking America’s interest in furniture from , , , and . He imported from the likes of Thonet, Asko, and De Sede; and from iconic designers including , Josef Hoffmann, Eero Aarnio, Tapio Wirkkala, Marcel Breuer, Jonathan De Pas, Donato D’Urbino, Paolo Lomazzi, Carlo Mollino, Carlo Scarpa, and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni to name just a few. By the late 1960’s, Stendig had showrooms in , Los Angeles and San Francisco with a large headquarters in NYC. They were exciting and good times but short lived. The business was a challenge and when an offer was made by Burlington Industries to purchase, Charles agreed. He stayed on till 1976 to oversee and then retired. I have searched the internet to no avail to find out if a Stendig division is still in operation. But I can only find the Stendig Calendar, the only calendar in MoMA’s collection, which was designed for Stendig by Mossimo Vignelli, still offered. But I am having a hard time deciding who is creating and offering it. I do know Burlington Industries was bankrupt by 2001, purchased in 2003, merged with Cone Mills in 2004 and subsequently into ITG or International Textile Group. But the Stendig name reins as an icon of high style mid-century offerings.

Thonet was founded by Michael Thonet. Michael was born in 1796 and was apprenticed by his father to a cabinetmaker. Shortly after he married, Michael opened his one-man cabinetmaking shop creating furniture and cabinetry in the traditional manner by carving the needed parts and then joining them together. In 1830 he began experimenting with bending wood into curved shapes and thus began a successful furniture company that has remained continually in operation for nearly 200 years. Thonet’s early work was very Biedermeier in style and not made for the common man. Gradually his designs became more Art Nouveau. In 1951 his chairs for the Crystal Palace at the World’s Fair won a prize medal and by the late 1950s he began to make his first “consumer” chair. In 1875, a year before Michael’s death, Thonet’s five factories made 620,000 chairs. Then in 1876 after his death the company became Gebruder Thonet. But all was not roses. In 1869 the Thonet patents lapsed and by 1893 there were 52 bentwood companies in Europe. However, Thonet persevered. They branched out. They merged. They added designs by Le Corbusier and Breuer and alternative materials such as tubular chrome in place of bentwood to their offerings. Business boomed and waned through the years and there was even a Thonet revival, so to speak, beginning in the 1940s on into the mid-20th century. Till today, in the 21st century, Thonet is still a furniture company to be reckoned with almost 200 years later. We are in love with this iconic masterpiece designed by Josef Hoffman and if you are too, you need to make it yours!

Price: $1,495

What a GORGEOUS set of mid-century modern chairs by Thonet!! They are comprised of Thonet’s signature long tapered bent plywood legs and are wearing a gorgeous blue chenille fabric upholstery and it’s in lovely ready-to-use condition. These chairs were made in two styles with a single connector for the backrest or double connectors…both are beautiful, but this single connector style is our personal favorite. There is an ongoing discussion among collectors and modern furniture aficionados whether this chair was designed by Bruno Weil, or BéWé as he called himself, who was principal designer at Thonet Frères in between 1928 and 1933. But we have not found a definitive answer. What we do know is this is an iconic and sought-after design as it is currently available today in Thonet’s Legacy Collection. And we believe this set to be an early version of the design. They are the perfect “go anywhere” type of chair. Perfect at a dining table or game table but versatile enough to use in any room or as extra seating if unexpected company shows up.

Thonet was founded by Michael Thonet. Michael was born in 1796 and was apprenticed by his father to a cabinetmaker. Shortly after he married, Michael opened his one-man cabinetmaking shop creating furniture and cabinetry in the traditional manner by carving the needed parts and then joining them together. In 1830 he began experimenting with bending wood into curved shapes and thus began a successful furniture company that has remained continually in operation for nearly 200 years. Thonet’s early work was very Biedermeier in style and not made for the common man. Gradually his designs became more Art Nouveau. In 1951 his chairs for the Crystal Palace at the London World’s Fair won a prize medal and by the late 1950s he began to make his first “consumer” chair. In 1875, a year before Michael’s death, Thonet’s five factories made 620,000 chairs. Then in 1876 after his death the company became Gebruder Thonet. But all was not roses. In 1869 the Thonet patents lapsed and by 1893 there were 52 bentwood companies in Europe. However, Thonet persevered. They branched out. They merged. They added designs by Le Corbusier and Breuer and alternative materials such as tubular chrome in place of bentwood to their offerings. Business boomed and waned through the years and there was even a Thonet revival, so to speak, beginning in the 1940s on into the mid-20th century. Till today, in the 21st century, Thonet is still a furniture company to be reckoned with almost 200 years later.

Don’t let this awesome set of Thonet chairs pass you by… just make them yours!!

Price: $2,995 I love this pair of reverse cantilever chairs!! They are done in the style of the renowned Bauhaus furniture designer Marcel Breuer who designed the famous Cesca chair. But we believe these to have been done in the 1970s when there was a great resurgence of the Bauhaus streamline and the Art Deco style. They are amazingly comfortable with their reverse cantilever chrome tube frames and black painted wood scoop or bucket seats with natural cane inserts. They are the perfect pair of accent chairs whether you have a mid-century modern aesthetic, industrial, modern country, rustic, Art Deco, or Hollywood Regency décor. They could be used in a living room setting, your master bedroom, home office, entry, or as host and hostess chairs in your dining room. No matter where or how you use them…you need to make them yours!

Price: $1,495 Wow! I love this piece. It could easily be a coffee table or end table. It is done in the style of the renowned Marcel Breuer’s Bauhaus Cesca chair with its bent chrome tubing frame, black painted wood top with cane and glass insert. We here at the shop believe it is circa 1970s when there was a huge resurgence of the Bauhaus and Art Deco style. Its time has come again. This table would be the perfect addition to your mid-century modern décor or look fabulous in your industrial loft, modern country home, or mixed with your Hollywood Regency treasures. Use it as a coffee table or an end table. Just make it yours!!

Price: $1,495 Looking for a modern bench or settee for an entry hall or maybe a banquette? Look no further! This one is fabulous! Comprised of two upside down u-shaped arm/leg combinations with two individual bentwood oak suspended seats that have also been upholstered. There is a chromed steel tube connecting the pair of arms/legs. The bolts which attach the chrome tube to the oak frame is capped establishing an interesting decorative detail. This would be perfect in a contemporary setting or an industrial one. Or in a modern country to mid-century modern home.

Thonet was founded by Michael Thonet. Michael was born in 1796 and was apprenticed by his father to a cabinetmaker. Shortly after he married, Michael opened his one-man cabinetmaking shop creating furniture and cabinetry in the traditional manner by carving the needed parts and then joining them together. In 1830 he began experimenting with bending wood into curved shapes and thus began a successful furniture company that has remained continually in operation for nearly 200 years. Thonet’s early work was very Biedermeier in style and not made for the common man. Gradually his designs became more Art Nouveau. In 1951 his chairs for the Crystal Palace at the London World’s Fair won a prize medal and by the late 1950s he began to make his first “consumer” chair. In 1875, a year before Michael’s death, Thonet’s five factories made 620,000 chairs. Then in 1876 after his death the company became Gebruder Thonet. But all was not roses. In 1869 the Thonet patents lapsed and by 1893 there were 52 bentwood companies in Europe. However, Thonet persevered. They branched out. They merged. They added designs by Le Corbusier and Breuer and alternative materials such as tubular chrome in place of bentwood to their offerings. Business boomed and waned through the years and there was even a Thonet revival, so to speak, beginning in the 1940s on into the mid-20th century. Till today, in the 21st century, Thonet is still a furniture company to be reckoned with almost 200 years later.

We know you have fallen in love with this incredible piece as we did. Make it yours!

Price: $1,095

We adore this fabulous pair of mid-century modern dining or side chairs by Thonet. They are comprised of Thonet’s signature bent plywood legs in their original black finish and wear their original black Naugahyde or faux leather on the fully upholstered seats and back rest. They do have an age patina that in our opinion only adds to their beauty but you may wish to recover. This chair was made in two styles with a single connector for the backrest or double connectors. This pair has the single connector which I think is the most handsome. The vinyl is completed and adorned with age patinated nail heads. They are the perfect go anywhere extra seating just like that little black dress that hangs in your closet. Make them yours!

Price: $1,995

Modern looking rocking chairs are so difficult to come by. And this one, although not officially modern by its design year, fills that void. This rocker, or I actually mean one like it, was first designed in the 1860s by Michael Thonet. So, by the time it was imported to the US from Czechoslovakia by Charles Stendig, the design was already 100 years old! That is what I call timeless design. By 1913 the bentwood rocker represented 5% of Thonet’s sales. Our model we are offering has a more Bauhaus look than the original #7064 rocker which is illustrated in the 1904 Gebruder Thonet catalog. It has more straight lines. No curls or spirals and no turned side pieces. Although we believe it to be derived from this model. Perhaps its more modern influence was provided by Josef Hoffmann or Le Corbusier. Or maybe even Charles Stendig himself! You can be sure it will complement your modern or mid-century modern décor.

Stendig was totally the brainchild and passion of Charles W. Stendig. You cannot write or talk about Stendig without explaining Charles. He was a pioneer of import goods in the mid- century. After serving in WWII as a paratrooper, he studied business with emphasis on international trade at NYU and City College of New York. Afterward first working for Raymor, another pioneering distribution company, for about two years departing to start his own business, Stendig. He opened his first showroom in 1956 in midtown Manhattan. He is credited for sparking America’s interest in furniture from Finland, Switzerland, Italy, and Czechoslovakia. He imported from the likes of Thonet, Asko, and De Sede; and from iconic designers including Le Corbusier, Josef Hoffmann, Eero Aarnio, Tapio Wirkkala, Marcel Breuer, Jonathan De Pas, Donato D’Urbino, Paolo Lomazzi, Carlo Mollino, Carlo Scarpa, and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni to name just a few. By the late 1960’s, Stendig had showrooms in Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco with a large headquarters in NYC. They were exciting and good times but short lived. The business was a challenge and when an offer was made by Burlington Industries to purchase, Charles agreed. He stayed on till 1976 to oversee and then retired. I have searched the internet to no avail to find out if a Stendig division is still in operation. But I can only find the Stendig Calendar, the only calendar in MoMA’s collection which was designed for Stendig by Mossimo Vignelli, offered. But having a hard time deciding who is creating and offering it. I do know Burlington Industries was bankrupt by 2001, purchased in 2003, merged with Cone Mills in 2004 and subsequently into ITG or International Textile Group. But the Stendig name reins as an icon of high style mid-century offerings.

Thonet was founded by Michael Thonet. Michael was born in 1796 and was apprenticed by his father to a cabinetmaker. Shortly after he married, Michael opened his one-man cabinetmaking shop creating furniture and cabinetry in the traditional manner by carving the needed parts and then joining them together. In 1830 he began experimenting with bending wood into curved shapes and thus began a successful furniture company that has remained continually in operation for nearly 200 years. Thonet’s early work was very Biedermeier in style and not made for the common man. Gradually his designs became more Art Nouveau. In 1951 his chairs for the Crystal Palace at the London World’s Fair won a prize medal and by the late 1950s he began to make his first “consumer” chair. In 1875, a year before Michael’s death, Thonet’s five factories made 620,000 chairs. Then in 1876 after his death the company became Gebruder Thonet. But all was not roses. In 1869 the Thonet patents lapsed and by 1893 there were 52 bentwood companies in Europe. However, Thonet persevered. They branched out. They merged. They added designs by Le Corbusier and Breuer and alternative materials such as tubular chrome in place of bentwood to their offerings. Business boomed and waned through the years and there was even a Thonet revival, so to speak, beginning in the 1940s on into the mid-20th century. Till today, in the 21st century, Thonet is still a furniture company to be reckoned with almost 200 years later.

Now after learning all the history attached to this rocker………….I know you want it. You must make it yours!

Price: $1,295