16 - Arne Jacobsen (1902–1971)

Arne Jacobsen (1902–1971) The Giraffe Armchair Birch, laminated wood, wool Original design for the SAS Royal Hotel in Copenhagen Fritz Hansen edition 1958 H103 L56 P58 cm Designed by Arne Jacobsen as part of his famous “total design” concept for the SAS Royal Hotel (now the Radisson Collection Royal Hotel) in the late 1950s, the Giraffe chair was produced in a limited series exclusively for the hotel and was never sold to the public at the time. This piece is one of the original chairs supplied to the first-floor restaurant of the SAS Royal Hotel in 1958 and used there; it has retained its original green upholstery, designed to harmonize with the palette of grays and bluish-greens skillfully orchestrated by Jacobsen. The Giraffe chair exemplifies Jacobsen’s experimental approach to form and manufacturing, carried out in collaboration with Fritz Hansen; at the time, Fritz Hansen had just acquired new technology enabling the creation of a one-piece upholstered seat shell. Several variations were developed for the hotel, including the version intended for the restaurant—recognizable by its green upholstery, wooden edges, and laminated wood legs—of which the chair presented here is a rare surviving example.