A fairytale chair - Thonet Bistro Chair no.14

The best-selling piece of furniture of all time is a curved chair called "Chair no.14″, "Bistro 14", "Vienna coffee house chair", in short Thonet chair. It was first produced in 1859 by the Gebruder Thonet company, founded by Michael Thonet, a German furniture manufacturer and great inventor and innovator of the time. From the year of its introduction until 1930, more than 50 million of these chairs were sold, and variants of it are still made today.

Michael Thonet, whose name is linked to many inventions and innovations in furniture making

Michael Thonet invented the method of steam bending of wood. He was also the first to introduce the concept of removable furniture assembly using screws, replacing the use of glue in many places. He made furniture simple and comfortable on an industrial scale, appealing to everyone, not just a privileged class as was the case until then.

Until the early 19th century wood bending was only made and used in shipbuilding. Large, thick pieces of wood were used and alternately watered and heated to make the wood as flexible as possible. The process was very cumbersome and generated a lot of waste. In 1836, Thonet invented a method of steam bending wood that revolutionised the furniture industry and is still used today. Beech wood in the form of long round elements was steamed in special containers for 5 hours, then placed in a mould and immobilised.

The time in which the wood was removed from the steamer and placed in the mould should not exceed 3 minutes. After this time the wood started to dry out, and trapping it in the mould could lead to cracks and even breakage. By cooling and drying the wood regains its original rigidity, but remains in the shape given by the mould.

Another major change in furniture production was made by Thonet by replacing the glue used to fasten furniture elements with screws. To produce the famous curved chair Thonet thought of combining the two revolutionary ideas. He produced an early model which he continually improved until 1859, the official year of the birth of Thonet chair No. 14.

Thonet chair

The chair is disarmingly simple, with 6 curved beechwood elements, 10 screws and 2 nuts. It could be transported in its component parts and assembled at its destination.With this idea of dismountable furniture, the transport of furniture was also revolutionised, greatly reducing storage space. In one cubic metre, 36 of these chairs could be transported in their component parts.

From the moment it was invented, the chair began to conquer the world. Containers of dismantled Thonet chairs were shipped by steamer to the USA, reaching the farthest corners of America.

The construction solutions chosen by Thonet have made the chair not only innovative, but also very durable. An anecdote has been circulated about its particular strength. It is said that Bistro 14 chairs were ordered for the restaurant in the new Eiffel Tower. When they were delivered, one of the chairs fell off the 57 m high platform. Everyone was convinced that all they would find downstairs was a pile of wood. When they came down they were surprised to find that the chair had not been damaged and was perfectly functional.

Artists' chair

The Thonet chair is simple, elegant, durable and comfortable. Bistro 14 and its other versions have had famous admirers over the years. The great architect Le Corbusier said that nothing more elegant, precise and functional had ever been created.

It's rare to find a Toulouse-Lautrec painting at the Moulin Rouge that doesn't include the famous chairs. The artist seems as fascinated by the curved lines of the Thonet chairs as he is by the ballerinas.

Other famous admirers were Renoir and Picasso. Over the years Thonet made various versions of the chair, but also rocking chair. The curved lines made them very comfortable, with many making a passion for them. One of the owners of a Thonet rocking chair was Picasso, who was so fond of his rocking chair that he let himself be photographed sitting in it many times.

The story goes on

The Gebruder Thonet company continued to manufacture the No. 14 chair and other improved versions after Michael Thonet's death. After 1900 they also introduced metal into furniture production, becoming the largest manufacturer of tubular steel furniture in the 1930s. New models introduced into production were made by big name designers such as Mart Stam and Marcel Breuer.

The modern version of the chair is called Thonet 214 and is produced in Thonet GmbH factory in Frankenberg, Germany, the fifth generation of the family. The wood is still bent using the same methods as in 1860. The company continues to develop innovative products that stand out for their use of quality materials, strength and durability.