Poul Kjærholm
丹麦 1929 – 1980
Poul Kjærholm (1929 – 1980) was a Danish designer. Born in Østervrå, Denmark, Kjærholm began his career as a cabinetmaker's apprentice with Gronbech in 1948, attending the Danish School of Arts and Crafts in Copenhagen in 1952.[1] In 1953, he married Hanne Kjærholm who became a successful architect.[2] While working as a designer, he also became an educator continuing studies with Prof. Erik Herløw and Prof. Palle Suenson.
Most of his furniture was initially produced by his friend E. Kold Christensen in Hellerup. Since 1982 a wide selection of those products have been produced by Republic of Fritz Hansen, a leading Danish furniture manufacturing firm.[1] His designs are in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and other museum collections in Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Germany.[citation needed]
In typically Scandinavian fashion, most of Kjærholm’s contemporaries opted for wood as their primary furniture construction material. Kjærholm chose steel as his primary, but always combined it with other materials such as wood, leather, cane or marble. "Steel’s constructive potential is not the only thing that interests me; the refraction of light on its surface is an important part of my artistic work. I consider steel a material with the same artistic merit as wood and leather," he commented.[3]
He has been referred to as a “furniture architect” as he used functional models to make his finalized works. Furniture that he created between 1951 and 1980 has been described as “profound essays on the relationship between the body, materials, and space.”[4]
In 2004, Kjærholm's son established Kjærholm Productions to produce those items of his father's furniture that Fritz Hansen had discontinued production of in 2003.[1]
In 2008, Gregory R. Miller & Co. published the comprehensive and definitive reference work, The Furniture of Poul Kjærholm: Catalogue Raisonné, by Michael Sheridan.
Some works:
Lounge chair "PK25" (1951/52, production start in 1956): made on one single sheet of steel. cover done using sailing cord/rope like called "flag halyard"
Coffee table "PK61" (1955) : made to match PK22, top can be in glass/marble/granite/slate
Lounge chair "PK22"(1956): famous and well known
Day Bed "PK80" (1957)
Tripod stool "PK33"(1959) : same construction technique as on daybed PK80 (top & feet sticks together using rubber rings)
The Tulip Chair (1961)
X Stool "PK91" (1961): ball bearing crossing
Hammock chair "PK24"(1965): "Chaise Longue", reversible structure
Rocking Chair "PK20" (1967)