Hi anyone know what's different of Finn Juhl Chieftain chair manufacturer. i found this chair information form three manufacturer or more 1.baker furniture 2.Niels Roth Andersen 3.Niels Vodder what is different? which manufacturer is first made the Finn Juhl Chieftain chair? thanks
Danish is best
The original chairs were made by Niels Vodder. Baker made them in the US in the 1950s and again in the 1990s. Niels Roth Anderson is licensed to make them in Denmark and they are the closest to the original. 50s Baker look way off to me, the 90s version looks closer, but is not as well made as the Danish production.
Why yes, I do wear a cape
even though it is just a terry-cloth towel with a safety pin. However, us supercollectors know only enough to be dangerous to ourselves and others.
The images I posted above are examples (in order from top to bottom) of 1950s Baker production, 1990s Baker and Niels Roth Anderson production. I did not post an image of the Vodder production because chances are very slim that you might come across one of those. Vodder initially only made something like 78 or 80 of the chairs and when they do appear at auction, they fetch like 40K.
The 50s baker production is the easiest to spot. The back is much shorter at the bottom and not as curvaceous. The Baker chairs have shorter, more pointed "horns" at the top of the back. The 90's version looks better to me, but it's not as refined as the Danish produced chairs and the wood is not selected as carefully.
The Niels Roth Anderson I think looks closest to the Vodder chairs to me. We have one, so I have had the opportunity to scrutinize the chair and I think it is amazingly well crafted. It's probably my favorite chair in our collection. Beautiful and super comfortable. It displaced a Wegner papa bear chair and I think that says something. I'm tall and the chair has a great scale for me. The easiest way to spot the Anderson or Vodder production is the burn mark they applied to the frame. Baker production is often unmarked.
I think Gustaf is correct. If you look at the Finn Juhl website I think they are still available. Additionally, I think that Soren Horn is also listed as having made the Chieftain at one point, but I have never seen one that was produced by Horn.
Here is a pic of our Neils Roth Anderson Chieftain.
Below is a Vodder produced chair in rosewood.
Thanks Peg, good additional...
Thanks Peg, good additional info to know. Some those finer details aren't available in Julh's monographs by E. Hirot. As I was examining the photos, there seems some difference in the arm rest. Particularly the height near the front legs. Could be that there's a variation in the down curve of the armrest?
Veering off course here, a highly flamboyant evolution of the Chieftain chair? Everytime I see it, I'm reminded of Juhl's chair ("Bwana" chair too) . Pictured below Sergios Rodriguez's Aspas chair.
Niels Vodder was the first...
Niels Vodder was the first maker of the Chieftain, and made about 78 regular chairs and around four "Double Chieftains". The first chairs produced for the Danish Cabinetmakers Guild Exhibition in 1949 had four buttons, but Finn Juhl decided after the exhibition that three buttons looked better. Some of the first Chieftains also had arm rests with the leather directly on the sheet metal without padding. The chairs from Vodder feature sheet metal arms and thus have a sharper, more crisp look than later versions which used plywood or fiber glass. He made the chairs in teak and rosewood.
Baker produced the chair as well, which very different as you can see on the pictures. The buttons are differently placed, the seat is shorter and the points on the back are much longer. These are the least attractive models IMO.
Master Cabinetmaker Søren Horn appearantly made some chairs as well, but I have never seen these. His successor Niels Roth Andersen was the last Danish cabinetmaker to produce the chair and the only one, apart from Niels Vodder, to produce the Double Chieftain (in a very limited edition). Apart from teak and rosewood, he has also made the Chieftain in cherry wood.
Nowadays, OneCollection (formerly Hansen & Sørensen) have the rights to produce Finn Juhls furniture and they get the chairs made in Japan (most likely by Kitani). They use four buttons and look quite nice, but do not have the handmade feel of the Niels Vodder and Niels Roth chairs. Apart from the Baker versions, the OneCollection chairs are the least attractive at auctions.
I agree that the Niels Roth Andersen chairs come closest to the Niels Vodder versions in terms of looks and quality. They can only be distinguished by the slightly less sharp arm rests.
Sorry to sully this thread . . .
. . . with a replica image, but I found this CL ad amusing. No attempt to hide the fact that it is a knockoff, but the seller seems to cite every mid century chair designer except Juhl in the listing, even going so far as Poul Volther.
I must admit I'm interested in taking a close look at these new Chieftain knockoffs. From the photos, they seem to have gotten much closer to the original member shapes/sizes than the older knockoffs.
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