KK47000 Safari Chair

Overview

The KK47000 Safari Chair is described by the manufacturer as an iconic example of Kaare Klint's design ideology: a historical archetype transformed into a modern, collapsible chair.

Construction

• Frame: FSC Mix-certified ash, white oil
• Upholstery: canvas, natural
• Armrests: saddle leather

Image source: Carl Hansen & Søn — KK47000 Safari Chair · © Carl Hansen & Søn and the respective rights holders. Quoted to accompany INTEBEE's independent design commentary and research. · View official product page ↗ · Image use & copyright policy

Specifications

• 57 x 57 x 80 cm (width x depth x height)

From an expedition chair

The Safari Chair is a refinement of chairs that an American cinematographer and his wife took on an African safari. Klint noticed them in the couple's photos. The page traces them most probably to Indian Roorkhee Chairs used by the British military, which it suggests may have been the earliest self-assembled furniture.

Simplified and refined

The original had glueless joints and tool-free assembly, with a construction that made the joints tighten when the chair was occupied. Klint focused on simplifying, clarifying and refining the composition, and exhibited his final design in 1933 at the Copenhagen Cabinetmakers' Guild Exhibition.