Han Pieck Lawo Armchairs in Birch Plywood, circa 1940

Han Pieck Lawo Armchairs in Birch Plywood, circa 1940

Magnificent pair of rare Han Pieck Lawo Armchairs circa 1940, both chairs having recently undergone a full restoration.

The Lawo chair, so named because it was made of LA-minated WO-od, was brilliantly constructed from a single sheet of birch plywood, which is cut and then bent in different planes to create the seating surfaces, arms, and legs of the chair. The rear legs are fixed to the seat back by brass brackets.

Hans Pieck, who was a student of Mart Stam (the influential inventor of the cantilever chair), intended to make 2000 Lawo chairs in the workshop he established for this purpose. Postwar conditions and shortages of materials meant that only 1300 examples were produced before the operation went bankrupt, forcing Pieck to sell his proprietary manufacturing process to a company in Scotland (which then produced Pieck's second design, the beautiful Bambi chair). As a result of the very limited production, Lawo chairs are today quite rare. Despite that, the Lawo is one of the most beloved modern designs to come out of the Netherlands.

This stackable lounge chair was made out of one piece of bent plywood and was the first chair made of out of one piece of self-made plywood. The connection between the back and the armrest is reinforced with small hidden plates. Pieck applied for and received the funding from the United States Marshall plan. Together with his partner, Van Raalte, they built the Laminated Wood factory in Ommen, the Netherlands.

Literature: Stoelen Nederlandse Ontwerpen 1945-1985 by Peter Vöge and Bab Westerveld, Meulenhoff/Landshoff, Amsterdam 1986, front cover and page 70. Stoelen by Delft University Press, Delft 1980, page 104

Condition report: Both chairs have been completely restored, repaired and re polished, all legs have had repairs to bring them back to original design, please note these chairs can be re sprayed in any colour should the buyer require a particular colour scheme (at an additional cost.)

Dimensions:
Height: 30" inches / 78cm
Width: 26" inches / 66cm
Depth: 28” inches / 71cm

Delivery:
Free delivery is offered to England & Wales