"Before the Swan Chair (1958), Arne Jacobsen’s architecture
and designs were shaped by an assumption of materials’ natural ways of
resisting. In other words, he could make them go only so far in becoming the
structures he desired. With new technologies, however, the old rules no longer
applied, and he was able to shape fluid curves and single-piece molded shells.
The Swan Chair is now made from polyurethane foam, but at the time, Jacobsen
used Styropore® to create its continuous shape. Designed for the SAS Royal
Hotel in Copenhagen, for which Jacobsen was the architect, the chair permitted
guests to spin on its swivel base, thus becoming active participants in the
busy hotel atmosphere. A single upholsterer hand-sews the fabric onto the frame
of Swan."
