Description
Brutalist stained oak dining chair by EMIEL VERANNEMAN FOR De Coene Belgium 1970s, set of 6
About the item
This concerns a very special set of dining chairs.
These dining chairs came from the villa of the well-known Belgian architect Georges Vandenbussche commissioned in 1969 by the architect himself.
Vandenbussche was a great fan of the Belgian modernist movement and designed architecture that was strongly in line with this passion. Until this date, Vandenbussche is one of the most well-known architects from Belgian, along with Leon Stynen, Luc Deleu and Andre Waterkeyn. For his villa, he opened all registers, whereby he had the freedom to design his own dream, not limited by any constraints or demands. For this villa, Vandenbussche went shopping at several furniture brands to create an interior that matched the exterior. Pieces from Florence Knoll, Mies van der Rohe, Tobia & Afra Scarpa, Willy Rizzo, Charles & Ray Eames and De Coene were among his choice. The end result was indeed an interior, with the use of a lot of black, that resembles a hybrid of modernism and brutalism.
The chairs were likely specifically commissioned by Vandenbussche at Gebroeders De Coene. The design of the chairs is very strongly similar to Emiel Veranneman due to the way the (oak) frame was designed. However, nowhere has there been found a second set of these chairs, except for in the Vandenbussche villa. Accompanying pictures show the villa of Vandenbussche with the exact same chairs, next to a De Coene brutalist sideboard.
The chairs in themselves are designed in strongly abstract lines with a stained oak frame. The seating part is comprised of a leather and foam upholstered structure, and the back rest as well. Both the seat and backrest have carvings in the leather on the sides to accommodate the frame. The top part of the chairs consist of a brass metal ornament that holds the backrest in place. The original chairs have been upholstered in a brown/cognac type of leather(ette).
Certainly a set of 6 unique chairs.
About its condition
The chairs have been fully reupholstered in saddle brown leatherette with new foam. The frames are structurally in a good condition with some minor wear.
