Ole Wanscher

b. Frederiksberg 1903, d. Charlottenlund 1985

Stylish Furniture

Ole Wanscher became known both as an architect, designer and writer. Already at the age of 22, he started at Kaare Klint's studio and succeeded his teacher as a professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts' Furniture School in Copenhagen thirty years later. He is considered one of the leading designers of his time, and in his capacity as a classic functionalist, he had a huge influence on Danish furniture design for several decades.

The work of Wanscher reflects the Klint School’s celebration of historical cabinetmaking traditions combined with an immersion into structural and aesthetic matters, something which manifested itself both in his numerous writings as well as in the extensive production of perfectly crafted furniture out of noble wood, in particular in cooperation with cabinetmaker A.J. Iversen. 

Wanscher would often continue to develop his furniture designs, as was the case with the light armchair made out of rosewood and leather, which was inspired by English cabinetmaking traditions from the 18th century. Classics such as the fold-up chair and the Egyptian inspired folding chairs were designed following studies and measurements of historical prototypes.