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The Rise of the Bentwood Chair
How Steam-Bent Wood Changed Furniture Forever

Book Details
About this book:

The Rise of the Bentwood Chair Pull up a chair—any chair—in a Parisian bistro, a Tokyo espresso bar, or a Buenos Aires dining room, and you’re likely sitting on history. Long before “industrial design” existed, Michael Thonet harnessed steam, iron, and beechwood to make timber do the impossible: bend into elegant, weightless curves that defined modern living. *The Rise of the Bentwood Chair* tells the riveting story of Chair No. 14 and the technology that turned furniture from a luxury into an everyday revolution.

From smoky Viennese coffeehouses to the great exhibitions of the modern age, bentwood chairs fueled café culture, pioneered flat-pack shipping, and outmaneuvered fierce rivals like Jacob & Josef Kohn. Their clean lines inspired Art Nouveau, the Vienna Secession, and architects like Le Corbusier, paving the way for tubular steel and molded plywood. This is more than a history of furniture—it’s the story of how a single curved piece of wood democratized comfort and reshaped the spaces we inhabit.

For collectors, designers, and anyone who has ever admired the quiet beauty of an everyday object, this book reveals the ingenuity, drama, and craft behind the world’s most iconic seat. Discover how steam and stubborn vision bent the arc of design forever—and why that curve still feels fresh today.

Table of Contents:
  • Introduction
  • Chapter 1 The Ancient Origins of Steam Bending
  • Chapter 2 Michael Thonet and the Boppard Experiments
  • Chapter 3 The Early Patents and Glued Veneers
  • Chapter 4 Royal Favor: The Move to Vienna
  • Chapter 5 The Breakthrough of Solid Wood Bending
  • Chapter 6 The Birth of an Icon: Chair No. 14
  • Chapter 7 Beechwood, Steam, and Iron: The Anatomy of a Craft
  • Chapter 8 Building the First Factory in Koryčany
  • Chapter 9 The Pioneer of Flat-Pack Shipping
  • Chapter 10 Café Culture and the European Coffeehouse
  • Chapter 11 Global Expansion and the Great Exhibitions
  • Chapter 12 The Expiration of Patents and the Rise of Rivals
  • Chapter 13 Jacob & Josef Kohn: The Fiercest Competitor
  • Chapter 14 Industrial Design Meets Mass Consumerism
  • Chapter 15 The Ergonomics of Curvature
  • Chapter 16 Art Nouveau and the Evolution of Bentwood Forms
  • Chapter 17 The Vienna Secession: Otto Wagner and Josef Hoffmann
  • Chapter 18 Wartime Disruption and Industrial Cartels
  • Chapter 19 Le Corbusier and the Modernist Embracing of Bentwood
  • Chapter 20 From Steam-Bent Wood to Tubular Steel
  • Chapter 21 The Mid-Century Plywood Revolution
  • Chapter 22 Eastern European Hubs and the Post-War Legacy
  • Chapter 23 Collecting, Restoring, and Authenticating Vintage Bentwood
  • Chapter 24 Master Craftsmen and Contemporary Artisanal Methods
  • Chapter 25 The Timeless Skeleton: Bentwood’s Place in Future Design
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Author:

Louis H. Anderson

Published By:

MixCache.com Extended Catalog

Type:

Nonfiction

Date Published:

November 2, 2026

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