Modern Icons: Corbusier's LC2 and LC3 Armchairs
Furniture pioneers turned the traditional club chair inside-out
Here is a chair so timeless it's very hard to believe it was designed in 1928. That magical furniture designing trio of Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret and Charlotte Perriand created a modern alternative to the very traditional club chair by turning it inside out. Confused? I'll explain below.
The designers put the chair's structure on the exterior instead of hiding it underneath the upholstery. They dubbed the resulting chairs "cushion baskets," as thick cushions are held in by a tubular steel framework. This trio was very into pushing the limits of what tubular steel could do.
The chair comes in two sizes; LC3 (shown) is the "grand modele" while the LC2 is the "petit modele." The LC3 is wider and lower to the ground, while the LC2 is more narrow but has a higher seat and back.
The differences between the two show the careful attention the designers paid to function and form.
Functionally, the LC3 is the chair for some serious lounging (semi-reclined, legs outstretched, head back, maybe catching the game on TV), while the LC2 is for sitting upright very comfortably (able to cross legs, sit comfortably, sip a glass of tea and have a conversation).
The proportions of both models are well-balanced and very pleasing.
This image shows how striking these chairs are from the back. Le Corbusier's iconic International Style buildings were based on a grid; it's very fitting that these rectalinear forms make us think of the grid as well.
The chairs come in a range of colors and fabrics, and as you can see here, they work in harmony with other iconic pieces, such as the Noguchi coffee table and the Saarinen Womb chair.
There are also several sofa models in the LC line. In fact, while looking up the chairs' proportions yesterday, I noticed that the whole line is on sale at Design Within Reach; if you've been waiting to pull the trigger, now's the time.
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