45 Chair | House of Finn Juhl

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THE 45 CHAIR | FINN JUHL | 1945

In the fall of 1945, Finn Juhl unveiled the 45 Chair at the Copenhagen Cabinetmakers' Guild Exhibition. With this chair, he introduced a groundbreaking design where he separated the carried from the carrying elements—something previously unseen. Today, the chair is widely regarded as one of the most revolutionary and iconic pieces in Danish furniture design. The chair is upholstered by hand in Denmark in textile or leather. The frame is available in oak or walnut.

Wood Type
Upholstery
Vidar
Leather
Hallingdal
Hallingdal beskrivelse
Remix
321
Watercolour

Please note that the actual colours and materials may vary due to image editing and differences in screen balances and settings. The versions shown are intended to serve only as examples. We kindly encourage you to view the physical material samples at our official retailers. Learn more about our materials here: material page.

Product details

Design:

Finn Juhl

Year:

1945, relaunched in 2003

Materials:

Frame: Oak or walnut

Upholstery:

Textile or leather

Model and Dimensions:

FJ 4500
W: 66.5 cm | D: 73 cm | H: 88 cm
Seat height: 42 cm

In the fall of 1945, Finn Juhl unveiled the 45 Chair at the Copenhagen Cabinetmakers' Guild Exhibition. With this chair, he introduced a groundbreaking design where he separated the carried from the carrying elements—something previously unseen. Today, the chair is widely regarded as one of the most revolutionary and iconic pieces in Danish furniture design. The chair is upholstered by hand in Denmark in textile or leather. The frame is available in oak or walnut.

Product details

Design:

Finn Juhl

Year:

1945, relaunched in 2003

Materials:

Frame: Oak or walnut

Upholstery:

Textile or leather

Model and Dimensions:

FJ 4500
W: 66.5 cm | D: 73 cm | H: 88 cm
Seat height: 42 cm

About the 45 Chair

The Unique Shape

On the 45 Chair the space between the frame and the seat creates a lightness, which combined with its organic shape and sublime detailing, ensures unique beauty and floating elegance. The chair appeals to all senses and pleases both the eye and body. Furthermore, the 45 Chair has been called “the mother of all modern chairs” by the Japanese professor and design collector Mr. Noritsugu Oda.

The groundbreaking 45 Chair became the beginning of the unfolding of Finn Juhl’s characteristic style of design that we know from the latter part of the 1940s. During this period, his designs are characterized by liberating the seat and backrest as a single unit carried by the frame. This approach became a defining moment in establishing Finn Juhl’s status as a pioneer in furniture design.

The 45 Chair in walnut with 'Vegetal' leather upholstery.
The 45 Chair in walnut with 'Vegetal' leather upholstery.
The 45 Chair in walnut with 'Vegetal' leather upholstery.
THE DELICATE SHAPE

The Reception of the Chair

The 45 Chair is a true masterpiece and has become an icon of Finn Juhl’s universe of furniture. With this chair, Finn Juhl managed to create an, at the time, unprecedented design by separating the carried and carrying elements.

In reality, Finn Juhl had previously experimented with separating the upholstered parts from the wooden parts within his furniture, but with its curved backrest and organic shape, the 45 Chair cemented Finn Juhl's status as one of the leading designers of the 20th century.


In a review of Finn Juhl's stand at the exhibition in 1945, the architect Erik Herløw wrote;

The 45 Chair in walnut with 'Nalia' upholstery in the colour '0430'. Photo: Elisabeth Heltoft for Sahco
“Most interesting about the exhibition is probably Finn Juhl's work. After many years of experiments, we now see a clarified result. Finn Juhl does not design on a refinement of traditions but has instead logically solved functions and therefrom shaped furniture on his terms. In the early years, Finn Juhl’s attempts seemed exaggerated, but now it is so much more interesting to observe the result he has achieved by going his own ways. Most beautiful is an armchair, where the frame is organically shaped as a bone, able to support the muscles of an arm and the weight of a body. The expression of the chair is reminiscent of a weapon, sharpened by human hands.” - Erik Herløw, Architect, 1945
Finn Juhl's original watercolour depicting the 45 Chair from 1945. Photo credit: Pernille Klemp, Designmuseum Danmark
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