This Airline chair was commissioned for the Walt Disney Studios, Burbank, Los Angeles and made in 1939. Kem Weber was the architect of the building and the upholstery was chosen by the client. The name of the chair expressed the desire to associate the design with the most up-to-date development in modern industry. Throughout the 1930s, a number of experimental passenger flights were completed. The first transatlantic passenger service was held on 28th June, 1939 between New York and Marseilles, France.
Weber sought to make a 'comfortable, hygienic and beautiful chair inexpensively'. The result featured a cantilevered seat and a knockdown design. The strength of the frame allowed the designer to dispense with the rear legs giving the sitter a more comfortable, resilient seat. The chair was easy to assemble; it came in a flat, square box relatively inexpensive for a manufacturer to store and ship.
Although the Airline chair seemed destined for great commercial success, factory production of it never became a reality, despite extensive discussions between Weber and manny American manufacturers. Three hundred chairs were ordered by Walt Disney Studios for use in its projection rooms, lounges, and offices, but they were made by a local cabinetmaker rather than a major furniture producer.
Physical description
Chair with cantilevered seat
Place of Origin
Los Angeles, United States (made)
Date
1934-1935 (made)
Artist/maker
Weber, Kem, born 1889 - died 1963 (designer)
Airline Chair Co (maker)
Materials and Techniques
Birch and ash, with vinyl upholstery
Dimensions
Height: 78 cm, Width: 62.5 cm, Depth: 89 cm, Height: 40.5 cm seat
Object history note
This Airline chair was one of a group commissioned by the Walt Disney Studios, Burbank, and made in 1939. Kem Weber was the architect of the project and the upholstery was chosen by the client. The name signifies little beyond a desire to associate the design with the fastest most up-to-date product of modern industry. The chair has the impression of an object whose form has been shaped by the flow of air around it.
Weber sought to make a 'comfortable, hygienic and beautiful chair inexpensively'. The result featured a cantilevered seat and a knockdown design. The strength of the frame allowed the designer to dispense with the rear legs giving the sitter a more comfortable, resilient seat. Easy to assemble, the chair came in a flat, square box relatively inexpensive for a manufacturer to store and ship.
Although the Airline chair seemed destined for great commercial success, factory production never became a reality despite extensive discussions between Weber and a large number of American manufacturers. Three hundred chairs were ordered by Walt Disney Studios for use in its projection rooms, lounges, and offices, but they were made by a local cabinmaker rather than a major furniture producer.
Historical context note
The large, comfortable lounge or club chair is a design problem that was addressed between 1917 and 1932 by early modernist architects in Europe: Gerrit Rietveld, Marcel Breuer, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Alvar Aalto. few American seating designs of the interwar years were able to match the inventiveness of the European works.
Descriptive line
'Airline chair' designed by Kem Weber, 1934-35, Los Angeles; birch and ash with vinyl upholstery
Labels and date
'AIRLINE' CHAIR
Designed by Kem Weber (American, born Germany, 1889-1963)
Manufactured by the Airline Chair Co., Los Angeles, California, USA, 1934-5
Birch, ash, vinyl upholstery
This example from a screening room at the Walt Disney Studios, California, USA
During the 1930s, the concept of aerodynamic 'streamlining' was adapted by American designers for immobile objects as a symbol and style appropriate for the new technologically-driven era. [1997]
Weber sought to make 'a comfortable, hygenic, and beautiful chair inexpensively'. The result is a cantilevered design with a visual transparency, knock-down construction and portability. The chair's name was typical of the period in the USA described as 'The Machine Age' and signified nothing more beyond the desire to associate the design with the fastest and most up-to-date product of modern industry. The chair was made for a screening room at the Walt Disney Studios in California. [1995]
Production Note
Reason For Production: Commission
The 'Airline chair' was a great commercial success. Department and furniture stores ordered it. As well as businesses and private individuals. Despite all the orders factory production never became a reality.
Materials
Vinyl; Ash; Birch
Collection code
FWK
