Timeless Good Design
1958
Black and white interior view showing dramatic squares-and-circles pattern on floor, walls, and ceiling, with arrangements of numerous Panton chairs and table. 1958
1958
The collection
Bright orange conical chair with a crisscross steel base.
Designed by
Verner Panton (1926–1998)
Material
Stainless steel, polyurethane foam, wool upholstery
Produced by
Plus-Linje, Denmark
Dimensions
80.7 x 57.2 x 60.4 cm

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, the Liliane and David M. Stewart Collection, gift of Mrs. Lilian Korman, D88.187.1*

Originally designed for a Danish restaurant, the Cone chair looks as if it might topple over. Beneath its vibrant upholstery is a frame of stainless-steel wire supported by a sturdy cross-shaped swiveling metal base. Futuristic in form, these designs brought startling invention and often humor to Scandinavian interiors at mid-century, which seems surprising in view of Panton’s traditional schooling at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen.

In 1955 he established his own architecture and design firm, which he moved to Switzerland in 1963. Recognized for his exploration of new technology and materials and for unconventional use of form and color, Panton became an international design celebrity.

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, photo: Denis Farley.