Mies van der Rohe and Lilly Reich, 1929–30

Design
Mies van der Rohe and Lilly Reich
Year
1930
Place
Villa Tugendhat, Brno
Material
Steel and upholstery
Scroll

Chapter I. Origin

Chapter II. Anatomy

01 / 04

The C

Curved cantilever

The steel drops from the seat, turns in a tight curve and returns along the floor. That C is leg, spring and base at once.

Chapter III. Exploded view

Line and plane

Without the upholstery, a single line of steel remains, folding back on itself. Comfort is an addition; the chair is a gesture.

A

Line

Bent steel

B

Planes

Upholstered seat and back

Chapter IV. Matter and light

Try it

The same structure changes character with its materials and the light in the room.

Upholstery

The material as its author modelled it, with its own texture.

Frame

A cold mirror. It reflects everything around it, so the light in the room becomes part of the chair.

Light

Product photography light: clean strips that trace every curve of the metal.

Chapter V. Context

  1. 1928

    The commission

    Grete and Fritz Tugendhat commission Mies to build a house in Brno, in what was then Czechoslovakia.

  2. 1930

    Villa Tugendhat

    The house is completed with furniture by Mies and Lilly Reich, including the dining chair.

  3. 1938

    Exile

    Facing the Nazi threat, the family leaves the house and the country.

  4. 1960

    Knoll

    The chair goes into production and takes the name of the city where it was born.

  5. 2001

    World Heritage

    UNESCO declares Villa Tugendhat a World Heritage Site.

Chapter VI. Closing

Born for a dining room, it ended up in every meeting room.

Objects of the Century, Brno

000

Preparing the room