Image source: Fritz Hansen — PK Collection
© Fritz Hansen and the respective rights holders. Quoted to accompany INTEBEE's independent design commentary and research.
Collection Story
Origin
Poul Kjærholm worked with manufacturer Ejvind Kold Christensen from 1955 for the rest of his life. Two years after the designer's death the Kjærholm trustees entrusted Fritz Hansen with the production and sales of The Kjærholm Collection, which Fritz Hansen continues to make and distribute worldwide.
Design Language
Kjærholm called himself a furniture architect. A trained cabinetmaker, he chose steel as his primary material and combined it with leather, wicker, marble and wood: "I would rather express the character of the materials than my own character."
Key Pieces
- PK22™ lounge chair (1956) — H 71 × W 63 × D 63 cm
- PK61™ coffee table (1956) — H 32 × 80 × 80 cm
- PK31™ lounge chair and sofas (1958)
- PK25™ Element chair (1951), PK24™ chaise longue, PK91™ stool
- Also in the collection: PK8™, PK15™ and PK23™ chairs; PK33™ and PK91™ stools; PK60™, PK63™ and PK65™ coffee tables; PK40™ and PK58™ dining tables; PK51™ and PK55™ worktables; PK71™ nesting tables; PK81™ daybed; PK111™ room divider; PK26™ sofa; PK62™ table
Pieces in this collection
PK3 Chair
Poul Kjærholm's 1954 split-shell chair in veneer on a tubular steel base, stackable
PK24 Lounge Chair
Poul Kjærholm's 1965 "Hammock Chair" chaise longue: leather on a brushed spring-steel frame
PK55 Office Table
The smaller of Poul Kjærholm's two 1957 worktables, ash veneer on a satin brushed steel frame
PK23 Lounge Chair
Poul Kjærholm's 1954 low lounge chair on a four-legged steel base, divided veneer shells
PK8 Chair
Poul Kjærholm's three-legged chair of sinuous curves, long a prototype, in leather and aluminium
PK81 Daybed
Poul Kjærholm's square leather daybed, first made for the public area of a new town hall
PK11 Armchair
Poul Kjærholm's 1957 armchair for Fritz Hansen, on a three-legged stainless steel frame
PK111 Room Divider
Poul Kjærholm's six-panel Oregon pine room divider, designed for his own dining area and extendable
PK0 A Lounge Chair
Poul Kjærholm's 1952 sculptural lounge chair in pressure moulded veneer, in black ash or Oregon pine
PK20 Lounge Chair
Poul Kjærholm's 1968 easy chair in leather or wicker on a matt chromed spring-steel frame
PK22 Lounge Chair
Poul Kjærholm's 1956 PK22: one seat-and-back piece on a split brushed spring steel frame
PK15 Armchair
Poul Kjærholm's final design: a steam-bent ash armchair with a French cane seat
PK40 Dining Table
Poul Kjærholm's 1980 square dining table with a leather-covered top on a stainless steel base
PK26 Sofa
Poul Kjærholm's 1956 PK26: a wall-mounted one-seater sofa in flat steel and leather
PK25 Lounge Chair
Poul Kjærholm's 'Element' chair: one continual chromed steel frame wound with flag halyard
PK31 Sofa
Poul Kjærholm's PK31/2: the two-seater of the PK31 series on a matt chromed spring steel frame
PK31 Lounge Chair
Poul Kjærholm's 1958 leather lounge chair on a matt chromed spring-steel frame
PK4 Lounge Chair
Poul Kjærholm's 1952 lounge chair: one flag halyard length on a seven-piece steel frame
PK51 Office Table
Poul Kjærholm's 1957 rectangular worktable, an ash veneer top on a satin brushed steel frame
PK33 Stool
Poul Kjærholm's 1959 three-legged stool: chromed spring steel legs and a loose round cushion
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