Designer: Finn Juhl (January 30, 1912 - May 17, 1989)


Manufacturer at the time: France & Daverkosen/Son


Current manufacturer: No longer in production


Genre: Functionalism


Material: Frame of different types of wood and cushions of different types of fabric or leather



About the designer:


Finn Juhl is one of Denmark's greatest furniture designers, who is known for his sculptural designs. He was born in Copenhagen and originally wanted to be an art historian, but since he could not get his father's permission to do so, he began his career as a building architect. He was enrolled at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen. During his education in 1934, he was employed by Vilhelm Lauritzen's workshop. The work ended up filling so much of his everyday life that he never ended up completing his education. One of the major projects that Finn Juhl helped design was the design of the Guardianship Council's hall at the UN Headquarters in New York between 1951-1952. Finn Juhl's goal was to create furniture with a natural and organic movement by measuring his own body.


About the Spade Chair:


Finn Juhl's Spade Chair, model 133, was designed in 1954, as his first design in collaboration with France & Daverkosen (Son). The Spade chair was also the first Finn Juhl design created for mass production. The frame of the Spade chair was originally made of teak with floating foam cushions. The backrest consists of vinyl-coated helical springs. The shape, like all of Finn Juhl's designs, was inspired by the human body and nature, which led to the chair's organic curved shape. The level of comfort is therefore top notch, especially with the chair's reclined shape. Finn Juhl got a large part of his inspiration from art, which led to innovative and daring creations that attracted a lot of criticism.


About the manufacturer:


C.W.F. France was an English businessman who moved to Denmark in 1936 to run a small mattress factory together with the cabinetmaker, Eric Daverkosen, who died the following year. During the 1950s, the company became very successful. At its peak in 1954, France & Daverkosen accounted for 60% of all Danish furniture exports and the factory employed 350 people. In 1957, the company changed its name to France & Son when James France (the son) joined the company. In 1964, the company was sold to Poul Cadovious. The international success of Danish design is partly thanks to France and his furniture factory in Hillerød, which employed not only Finn Juhl, but also Grethe Jalk, Ole Wanscher and Hvidt & Mølgaard.