cherner chairs vintage?  

i don't know
but they are absolutely beautiful. the exact color i would pick.

Beautiful chairs
Great combination of darkish frames..I like the green upholstery too..
Yup! if I could afford them, I'd go for them !

Cherner/Plycraft
I'm not sure which shelter mag I was reading recently (possibly Wallpaper) but they had a great article about the design, redesign, and subsequent production of the Cherner chair.
It seems Nelson originally designed a version for Herman Miller, which outsourced production to Plycraft in Massachusetts but it was too fragile and too difficult to produce. Herman Miller scrapped production and distribution of the Nelson model. Plycraft thought the chair had potential and called for entries to redesign it. Cherner submitted his now-famous design only to be told it had been rejected. A few months later, however, he saw his chair on a showroom floor. Paul Goldman, the head of Plycraft, told him the chair had been designed by a European designer who had never seen Cherners drawings. Cherner sued, and eventually won, with backdated compensation for the chairs that Goldman had sold.

I believe
you may be talking about the Nelson Pretzel chair. I have read that the chair was designed by George Mulhauser, who worked for Geroge Nelson and Associates and eventually designed for Plycraft.

The name of the European
who was credited with designing the chair was 'Bernardo'

Mulhauser
Also designed Nelson's Coconut chair. Since he was with Nelson and later Cherner at Plycraft, I wonder if he really designed both the Pretzel and Cherner chair! I have heard that Mulhauser has had something to do with with Cherner's designs before. Doesn't sound too far fetched to me, but I'll never really know for sure.

pics of both

pic2

Here's a blurb
The actual magazine was "Modernism", but I couldnt find a link. I did find this summary:
"Naughty naughty. What a scandal. Well, OK, it's is not exactly National Enquirer material, but in the less than salacious world of furniture design, trust me this is juicy.
Now pay attention. You see that plywood chair down there, well, it was created in 1958 by the American designer, Norman Cherner (1920- 86, below). Commissioned by Paul Goldman, the previous year, Goldman's company, Plycraft, had been engaged to make George Nelson's loop-backed Pretzel Chair for Herman Miller. Sadly, this charming- but-costly chair was discontinued and Goldman was left holding the expensive tooling. On Nelson's recommendation, Cherner was asked to design a similar chair using the same machinery. Cherner signed a contract and delivered his designs, only to be told that the project was off. A few months later, he was dismayed to discover his chair for sale in New York. According to the label it was made by Plycraft and designed by "Bernardo".
In 1961 Cherner took Plycraft to court, where Goldman admitted his deception (Bernardo was apparently a figment of his publicity team's imagination). Still, designer royalty battles not being big news, few people noticed and for years Goldman himself (who died this year) was spuriously credited with the chair's design. "

Another
Another link I came across mentions that Goldman deliberately mislabelled the designer of the chair - sometimes Mulhauser, sometimes Cherner, the fictitious Bernardo, and even Goldman himself.
I'd asked about Plycraft a while ago and someone posted Goldmans obituary in the link below. It's fascinating - as the obit credits Goldman with designing the Cherner chair (also called the Rockwell chair in the obit).
The Plycraft story gets even murkier: In 1993 the factory had a small fire, and the EPA fined Goldman for having improperly stored flammable waste products on site. The factory was declared a superfund site, Goldman was forced to publicly apologize in the local newspapers, and then the whole place burned down a year later and Goldman moved to LA.
Also check out this link: http://www.americanatelierinc.com/lounge.html
http://boards.gomod.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/2336007761/m/2901027314

Now that we're on the subject
The guy that owns the record label I am signed to has a pair of Mulhauser chairs that I love. I have never seen another one of them.
The chair itself is basically a cicular plywood saucer, with an upholstered inside and exposed back. There are two loose cushions as well for the back and seat. The base is the standard pedestal base used on other plycraft models ... a pedestal with a plywood star base.
Has anyone ever seen this? I can't even find a photo anywhere. The chairs do retain Plycraft "designed by George Mulhauser" labels. The chairs are suuupppperrr comfy and they swivel. I'd love to have a pair.

I've not
I've not been able to find any information about Plycraft's products. For all the fanfare about how great the designs were Ive only ever seen actual furniture - no catalogues or images or advertisements.
I've even tried calling the Lawrence Historical Society to no avail... maybe I'll take the train up and try the library.