The Series 7 chair, designed by Arne Jacobsen and produced by Fritz Hansen, is one of the most iconic pieces of Scandinavian design and probably the best-selling chair in the history of Fritz Hansen. Created in 1955, it embodies organic modernism and Danish functionalism, two trends that Jacobsen helped to define in the 20th century.
Design and characteristics
The Series 7, often called the 3107 chair in its classic four-legged version, is distinguished by its one-piece moulded plywood shell, a technical feat for the time. It is made up of nine layers of wood veneer, generally with a beech core, covered with a top veneer that can vary according to the finish: oak, ash, walnut, maple, cherry, Oregon pine, elm or even natural beech. This lamination process, perfected by Fritz Hansen in the 1920s and 1930s under the impetus of Søren C. Hansen (the founder's grandson), involves bending the wood under pressure and steam to obtain a unique ergonomic shape, with a characteristic curve at the waist between the seat and the backrest.
The chair measures approximately H 80.5 cm x W 50 cm x D 52 cm, with a seat height of 43, 46 or 48 cm in the standard version. It rests on a thin and elegant chrome-plated tubular steel base, which gives it lightness (it weighs only 4 kg) and stability. Its fluid silhouette, both simple and organic, offers surprising comfort despite its apparent slenderness. It is also stackable, making it a practical object for various uses.
Context and innovation
The Series 7 is an evolution of the Ant Chair, designed by Jacobsen in 1952. While the Ant had three legs and a more experimental shape, the Series 7 gains in stability and versatility with its four legs. It reflects the 1950s, a time of post-war optimism and fascination with new industrial techniques. Jacobsen, a trained architect, skilfully combined traditional craftsmanship and technological innovation, making the most of the possibilities of moulded plywood to create a chair that is aesthetic, functional and affordable.
Variants and finishes
The Series 7 comes in many variations: with or without armrests (model 3207), swivel on casters for the office (3117 or 3217), or even as a bar stool. In the wooden version, it can be left with a natural varnished finish, lacquered (matt or gloss), or stained in bolder colours such as black, white or pastel shades. Fritz Hansen also offers special editions, such as the recent ‘New Colours’ range, which modernises the palette while respecting Jacobsen's heritage.
Heritage and popularity
The Series 7 chair has become a universal symbol of Danish design thanks to its versatility: it fits just as well in a dining room, kitchen, office, restaurant or conference room. With more than 5 million sold since its creation, it remains a timeless icon, often imitated but rarely equalled in its finesse and quality of execution. It has left its mark on the history of design by laying the foundations for a refined and functional aesthetic, while retaining a warm touch thanks to the wood.
Arne Jacobsen and Fritz Hansen
Arne Jacobsen (1902-1971), a graduate of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, was a perfectionist who saw design as an extension of architecture. His collaboration with Fritz Hansen, which began in the 1930s, gave rise to classics such as the Ant, the Series 7, and also the Egg and Swan armchairs. Fritz Hansen, founded in 1872, is renowned for its woodworking expertise and its commitment to sustainability, values that are reflected in the longevity of the Series 7.
Why does it still appeal?
The wooden Series 7 is appealing because of its ability to combine timeless elegance and everyday utility. The natural grain of the wood, combined with the finesse of its lines, makes it an object that transcends fashion. It embodies a design philosophy where form follows function, without sacrificing beauty.
Arne Jacobsen
Arne Jacobsen is born on February 11, 1902 in Copenhagen. His father, Johan Jacobsen, is a wholesale trader in safety pins and snap fasteners. His mother, Pouline Jacobsen, a bank clerk, paints floral motifs in her spare time. The family lived in a typical Victorian style home. As a contrast to his parents’ overly decorated taste, Arne paints his room in white.
Background & school relations
He met the Lassen brothers at Nærum Boarding School: later, Flemming Lassen was to become his partner in a series of architectural projects. Arne Jacobsen is a restless pupil, always up to pranks, with a self-deprecating humour. Already as a child, he showed an extraordinary talent for drawing and depicting nature through scrupulous studies. He wants to be painter, but his father felt that architect was a more sensible choice.
The Pleasant and the necessary trips abroad
Jacobsen’s travelling begin already in his twenties, when he went to sea to New York. Then followed an apprenticeship as a bricklayer in Germany and a series of study and drawing excursions to Italy. Jacobsen produced some of his finest watercolours during this period, capturing atmospheres and shapes accurately and carefully. From the beginning of his career, Jacobsen turned his gaze abroad, without abandoning Danish traditions.
Arne Jacobsen behind the design
Jacobsen production reflects his personality: an insistent, perfectionist modernist, to whom no detail was trivial, although the main picture was basically black/white and unambiguous. On the other hand, the nature-loving botanist and jovial family man: like him, his work is precise and warm, Danish and universal, modern and timeless.
