The Newman Chair

The Art Institute of Chicago was gifted a remarkable chair in the 1971 by the Newman family. This is a very early chair, and quite likely one of the first ever made. It has all the typical hallmarks of a very early chair; boxy backrest, sculpted spacer with rubber bushing, and 5 seat tabs. But what makes this chair stand out from most early chairs is the wood strip under the arm. Usually, the strip extends the complete length of the underarm, but on this chair the strip is shorter. It runs approximately 3/4 the length of the arm. The last 1/4 being part of the solid piece of the arm. The only other chair we know with this detail belongs to the chair in Finn Juhl’s house. That chair is of course one of the earliest.

Photo: Wood strip under the arm of the Newman chair does not extend the length of the underarm. This is a very rare detail. In the above photo, note the faint line indicating the end of the strip.

Photo: Under arm of Finn Juhl’s personal chair also shows the shorter wooden strip. It is also possible to see the chip of wood from the recessed bolts in the arm.

Photo: The museum reupholstered the chair when it was gifted to them in 1971.

Photo: Rubber bushing on the back of the chair can be seen.