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[Solved] Trollopes Copenhagen Chair  

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mark737
(@mark737)
Illustrious Member
Joined: 2026 years ago
Posts: 877
06/02/2020 3:28 am  

I picked up this chair today, and after some research, found it was sold by Trollope and Sons of London.  The magazine ad shown here from 1956 announced a new showroom specializing in "modern furniture from Norway, Denmark, Germany, and Britain".  The ad shows the chair with the caption "Copenhagen Chair  Denmark" .

There's very little info online about Trollopes, or Trollope and Sons, so I'm guessing their foray into modern furniture was not a rousing success. Does anyone have an idea who may have designed or made this chair?  The sharp edges and brass accents seem unusual for Danish furniture of the 50's.  Both the chair and footstool have "Made in Denmark" marks but no other stamps, labels or tags.    

 

1580956132-Tro-chair.jpg
1580956226-Trollope-ad.jpg
This topic was modified 5 years ago 3 times by mark737

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lexi
 lexi
(@lexi)
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Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 1289
06/02/2020 7:39 am  

@mark737. This chair was discussed here last year;

https://designaddict.com/community/main-forum/Identify-Chair/

No designer identified. 

Good work finding that vintage advert; another piece in the puzzle.

Knowledge shared is Knowledge gained


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Herringbone
(@herringbone)
Illustrious Member Moderator
Joined: 2026 years ago
Posts: 1222
06/02/2020 9:48 am  

Nice add! Maybe someone can track down the Tivoli chair bottom right? Could well be the same maker.

"People buy a chair, and they don't really care who designed it." (Arne Jacobsen)


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cdsilva
(@cdsilva)
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Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 2050
06/02/2020 12:59 pm  

The Tivoli chair in that ad was designed by Lawrence Peabody, who at the time was the chief designer for Selig in the U.S. It was a rare U.S. design which was made in Denmark. Once Peabody left Selig, his design credit was mostly forgotten, and the chair design was lumped into the Kofod Larsen body of work for Selig.

Selig used multiple manufacturers around Denmark for their Danish collection, and it is tough trying to track them down at this stage. 

That ad is very interesting as it shows that the chair design made its way to England, without any designer or manufacturer credit. One could imagine the mystery manufacturer quietly choosing to sell a chair to another country without the need to pay royalties to anyone.


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cdsilva
(@cdsilva)
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Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 2050
06/02/2020 1:11 pm  

Here is some excellent research on the topic by Ishmael, who used to (and maybe still does) visit this forum:

https://craftassociatesfurniture.com/blogs/lawrence-peabody-vintage-catalogue/lawrence-peabody-danish-line-lounge-chair-model-598-for-selig


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cdsilva
(@cdsilva)
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Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 2050
06/02/2020 1:17 pm  

Two final notes: the first image in the link lexi posted has the same seat frame/strap design as the early Selig/Peabody lounge chairs. Plus, the ottoman in this thread photo was a Selig/Peabody design for the Tivoli chair in the ad.

So there is a very good chance the manufacturer is the same for all.

1580991427-FAEA1A72-204B-41B2-A047-0A484B686173.jpeg

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mark737
(@mark737)
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Joined: 2026 years ago
Posts: 877
06/02/2020 2:20 pm  

Thank you all for your responses.  I think I have found the answer.  Based on these threads, it seemed likely that Selig was involved here.  I was looking at other Selig chairs from the 50's and of course saw the Viscount chair by Dan Johnson, with its brass accents, and that made me think maybe the chair was by Johnson.  That led me to this website, which contained the attached story from the LA Times in 1956.  

  https://esotericsurvey.blogspot.com/2018/08/dan-johnson-selig.html

1580995249-LATimes56.jpg
 
FYI @Berkels , in case you were still looking for the answer.  BTW, the chair is still for sale at Danish Modern LA , now for $2250.  I let them know about the Dan Johnson connection, but as of today they still show it as "by Trollopes". 

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