Czechoslovakian functionalist tubular steel chair in museum quality, designed by František Berger for Hynek Gottwald, original iron-garn covering

Designed by architect František Berger, this tubular steel chair ranks among the most significant functionalist furniture designs of Czechoslovak modernism of the early 1930s.

Produced in 1932 by Hynek Gottwald, a key manufacturer of tubular steel furniture in interwar Czechoslovakia, the chair reflects the progressive design language of the period, combining functional clarity with an expressive yet restrained formal concept.

The chair survives in its original condition, featuring a vivid red iron-yarn seating and backrest, complemented by matching painted armrests. The use of iron yarn as both a structural and visual element underscores the experimental material approach characteristic of the Czechoslovak functionalist avant-garde.

A variant of this chair without armrests appears on the cover of the exhibition catalogue “Hej Rup! Let’s Go! The Czechoslovak Avant-Garde in the Context of European Modernism”, published by the Bröhan Museum, Berlin, underlining the model’s established position within the canon of European modernist furniture.

At present, no comparable example is known to be available on the international art market.

Literature:
1. Hej Rup! Let’s Go! The Czechoslovak Avant-Garde in the Context of European Modernism
Exhibition catalogue, Bröhan Museum
Edited by Tobias Hoffmann and Julia Meyer-Brehm
Berlin, 2023

2. Otakar Marcel
2100 Metal Tubular Chairs