Design story
Arne Vodder dining chairs in solid teak from the 1960s and manufactured by Vamo Sonderborg. Newly sanded and beautifully re-upholstered in cognac-coloured aniline leather.
Vodder was one of the most influential Danish architects and designers in the mid-century era. He was trained by his friend, the legendary Finn Juhl, who later became his business partner.
It all started in the mid-1940s when Arne Vodder started as a cabinetmaker and was trained by Niels Vodder. Later, Vodder went on to study architecture at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen.
In 1951 Arne Vodder started an architect studio together with Anton Borg. They designed over 1,000 low-cost houses, which turned out to be a very successful.
The cooperation with Anton Borg stopped in 1975 and in the late 70s Arne Vodder was assigned for the UN in the former Yougoslavia as a design expert. During this period, Arne Vodder help to develop a series of low-cost designs for the company SIPAd, Sarajevo.
From the 1950s Vodder worked with a furniture company called Sibast on a wide range of office furniture, which gave him enormous success in the American market. His furniture even captured the Pope of Rome and President Jimmy Carter’s attention and in the 1960s it made its way to the White House.
Arne Vodder typically worked with rosewood and teak and he soon became famous for his simple and modest designs with organic forms. No sharp edges, as you can seen on the Arne Vodder dining chairs.
During Vodder’s career, he worked with several respected furniture manufacturers such as Fritz Hansen, Erik Jørgensen, Cadovius and as previously mentioned Sibast.
Arne Vodder also worked for 25 years as an indoor architect for the departmentstore Havemann’s Magasiner A/S.
Round about 2005 the interest in Arne Vodder’s timeless designs rose again, which resulted in new production of a limited edition by PJ Furniture and Gjesten Maskinsnedkeri.
