The 500 coffee table series represents a style that has become very typical of mid-century Scandinavian furniture. Designed by Finn Juhl for France & Son in 1958, its style echoes that of the Japan series.
Discreet yet endowed with delicate, refined details, the 500 table's classicism makes it a perfect addition to any interior.
In the 1950s, the 500 table was produced by France and Son, which accounted for 60% of all Danish furniture exports. Reissued by House of Finn Juhl, it is available in solid oak or walnut, and in two sizes.
Oak
Walnut
84 x 78 x H46 cm
145 x 51 x H46 cm
As a teenager, Finn Juhl (1912-1989) wanted to become an art historian after having been fascinated by fine arts since childhood. His father prevented him from doing so and he studied architecture. Later, once his reputation as a furniture designer had been acquired, he would speak of himself as a self-taught man, certainly in reference to this thwarted vocation which forced him to make his intellectual journey alone. His very singular style owes much to this non-linear trajectory, with a very unacademic interpretation of art visible in his work. Finn Juhl began his studies in 1930, a key period that saw the birth of modern design and furniture.
His ultra-modern offices in the center of Copenhagen greeted visitors with a huge Japanese paper fish, a symbol of imagination. And rather than approaching furniture design from a functional, classical perspective, Finn Juhl approached his work as a sculptor. He sought beauty in volume and form, life and expressiveness. An approach that in the 1940's and 1950's was totally unprecedented. For Finn Juhl, it was clear that a piece of furniture could not be limited to a function, but also had to express an artistic sensibility.
While he remains world-famous for his furniture, Finn Juhl also designed several interior architecture projects and a few industrial products, including IBM typewriters. His greatest commercial success was with the Baker Company in the United States, which allowed him to mass-produce several pieces of furniture.
As an architect, he is known for the interior design of the United Nations Council in New York.
