I have a pair of scissor chairs that I’d be very interested to get members' views on.
When I originally purchased the chairs the vendor described them as:
“Very rare pair of Le Corbusier Charlotte Perriand Scissor Chairs.”
After I purchased them I got an on-line valuation carried out, which I’ve attached as an image. I then sent images of the chairs to an auction house in Paris. They were initially keen however they then said that they were not Perriand Le Corbusier but Jeanneret in Chandigarh.
Following this I got an email from them saying that their
“expert in design came to our office and definitely said that your chairs have nothing to do with Le Corbusier or Pierre Jeanneret.”
I did a bit more research and noted from the Knoll website article on Pierre Jeanneret:
“While touring Europe, Hans and Florence Knoll encountered an intriguing new chair designed solely by Jeanneret. They licensed the design, introducing it as the Model 92 Scissors Chair in 1948.”
I contacted Knoll and they got back to me:
"I have never seen chairs as in your pictures. As stated in your valuation, the Knoll chairs had a canvas webbing backing and the metal disk at the joint in the base of the chair,
I find your chairs very interesting but can't begin to guess who the true designer is. Le Corbusier, Charlotte Perriand and Pierre Jeanneret did a great deal of collaboration so this very well could be a design from the three of them. I wish you luck in your search for the true answer to this question."
As I say, I'd be interested to get any thoughts on their origin.
<img class="wpforo-default-image-attachmen
Did the valuation expert see the photo with the the snapped leg? The first photo does a nice job of hiding this snap with strategic positioning of the other chair in front.
The stained finish might provide a helpful clue to someone. Were any early scissors chairs stained?
A closeup view of the caned underside would be useful as well. My first impression from above was that it was pre-woven cane, but then the last two overview shots look like there might be some hand weaving at the edges.
Other than those two probably useless observations, I have nothing else to offer.
The Knoll versions I have seen also has a metal round thing where the 'scissors' meet and straps instead of mesh or caning under the cushions.
http://www.philamuseum.org/collections/permanent/296725.html#
The second-to-last paragraph of the Value-my-stuff page should have been omitted, as it suggests that these might be "original" chairs. Everything else on the page points -- correctly -- to the fact that these chairs have nothing to do with the work of Jeanneret and Perriand except a superficial similarity of form. Virtually every detail is different from the original chair.
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