Designer

Verner Panton (1926-1998) was one of the most influential designers of the 1960s and ‘70s and, through his innovative, eccentric and unique style, is widely recognised as a pioneer of the fluid, futuristic design style of the 1960s which brought the ‘Pop’ aesthetic to furniture and interiors. Born in Denmark, Panton studied at Copenhagen’s Royal Academy of Art before working (1951-52) under the renowned Arne Jacobsen where he was heavily influenced by Jacobsen’s obsessive research in new materials and technologies. Fritz Hansen began production of Panton’s Bachelor Chair and Tivoli Chair in 1955, however it was with the Cone Chair in 1959 that Panton gained recognition for his truly distinctive style and imaginative designs in the fields of furniture, lighting and textiles. Installations such as the legendary ’Visiona’ exhibition demonstrated Panton’s masterful use of colour, which is a hallmark of his work, and has now achieved cult status. Relocating to Basel, Switzerland in the early 1960’s Panton then began his collaboration with Vitra. A number of design awards followed throughout the 1970’s, with by a phenomenal resurgence in the popularity of his designs seen in the 1990’s where trends saw a return to 20th century modernisim. Many of his early designs were put back in to production and a host of awards followed. Panton died in Copenhangen, shortly after being invited to design an exhibition entiltled ‘Verner Panton: Light and Colour’.

Style

Single-material, single-piece chair with a futuristic design. Manufactured in a variety of materials, primarily plastics. Produced in a range of vibrant colors.

Product

An original design manufactured by Vitra, the Panton Chair (or Stacking Chair) has been through a number of production phases since its original launch. Panton began initial designs for the chair in the late 1950’s, conceiving the first cantilevered single form moulded plastics chair which was created by one piece of material. Working with Vitra, prototypes were developed throughout the 1960’s with the chair eventually going into series production in 1967. Development of the chair has progressed through four main manufacturing phases as both materials and finishing methods have evolved, moving the design forward from the original cold-molded, fiber-glass reinforced, painted, polyester resin version to the coloured polypropylene chair we see today. The last version of the chair authorised by Verner Panton was produced in collaboration with the designer at the end of the 1990s. This model realised one of Panton's fundamental objectives for the first time: a plastic chair as an inexpensive industrial product. Despite experiencing a brief lull in popularity in the late 1970’s - the chair went out of production from 1979-1983- for over 40 years the chair has remained a popular and undoubtedly earned it’s place as a design classic.

Other works

Cone Chair, Tivoli Chair, Bachelor Chair, Amoebe Chair, C1 chair