No one knows exactly when rocking chairs were invented, and no one knows who invented them. Many people mistakenly believe that it was Ben Franklin, but this is not true. The first rocking chairs began to appear in the early 18th century, long before Ben Franklin was born.
Rocking chairs were invented in America. Over the decades, many styles have evolved and are still evolving today. You'll soon learn that rocking chairs played a special role in the history of two famous presidents.
At that time, rocking chairs were still not very popular for everyday use. A little later, they began to appear in medical institutions, which ultimately did not make them more popular. Elderly and disabled people used them to relieve pain. Now nursing mothers also use them to calm the baby and relax.
The popularity of rocking chairs grew rapidly when the religious sect "Shakers" began production and active promotion of the product. Soon they appeared in hotel lobbies, beauty salons and in the homes of Americans.
From 1780 to 1820 there was the era of the “Chair of Windsor”. The Windsor rocking chair has a low back, narrow armrests, a flat seat and runners. This chair looked more like a regular dining chair turned into a rocking chair. Because it was practical and comfortable, such chairs began to appear in New England homes.
Next up was the "Slat back" farmhouse style. This is a classic high back rocker style with either horizontal or vertical slats and a conventional design to suit the needs of consumers of the time.
Wicker rocking chairs began appearing around 1860. Today they are actively used outdoors, but at the same time they can be an attribute of the living room. Today, manufacturers typically replace natural rattan with synthetic rattan as they can withstand harsher weather conditions.
Over the next few decades, rocking chairs appeared that did not stand the test of time, such as the Rococo Revival rocking chair, the Renaissance Revival platform rocking chair. However, each of these styles did enjoy brief bursts of popularity that gave rise to the more modern chairs we now love.
Two presidents, two rocking chairs and one strange story
Have you ever heard of some of the paradoxical similarities between President Kennedy and President Lincoln? For example, Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846, and Kennedy was elected in 1946. Both were shot on Friday, both were successors named Johnson, and their killers were even born exactly 100 years apart.
We mention all these bizarre coincidences because rocking chairs actually have another uncanny connection between these two famous American presidents. President Lincoln was shot at Ford's Theater while sitting in a rocking chair. This chair had a special style: pointed runners and patterned armrests.
President Kennedy wasn't shot in the chair, but he did make another style of rocking famous. The P&P Rocking Chair Company gained fame after creating Kennedy's favorite chair. He used it to deal with his back problems.
In our online store you can find the most modern and stylish ones for any interior and wallet, be it a classic rocking chair or a wicker one.
What names have been given to the shapeless, today very popular, bean bag chairs. The most famous: a pear chair or just a pear and a bean bag. But the appearance of all of them is associated with the creation of the very first shapeless bean bag chair known as Sacco.
For some reason, many people think that the bean bag chair was invented modern designers. In fact, the bean bag chair, or rather the first example of it, was already created half a century ago! It was indeed made by Italian designers: Piero Gatti, Cesari Paolini and Franco Teodoro, and at first it did not have any functional purpose. Anti-design - that's what you could call it.
The chair was simply invented by them in contrast to the one that had already become ingrained and traditional and had been used for many centuries. The history of the bean bag chair begins back in the early 1960s, during the heyday of the sexual revolution and everything progressive (the music of the Beatles, arthouse, dudes and other movements were in fashion).
In addition, the emerging economic growth in Italy has given people the opportunity to think about such things. Perhaps the idea would not have been realized if a fourth member had not appeared in the group - Aurelio Zanotta, who is the owner of a furniture factory, the assortment of which included various chairs. It was he who saw in the crazy idea of the designers a promising direction for manufacturing frameless furniture. It was he who released the frameless chair “to the masses” in 1968. He called it “Sacco” or “bag” - translated from Italian.
Zannota, becoming the first manufacturer of a bean bag chair in history, did more; he ensured that it was more practical and technologically advanced when used. Theodore, Gatti and Paolini came up with a chair that filled with water, however, it was uncomfortable, and the design became very heavy.
It was Zannota who suggested making foam balls out of plastic as filler for the chairs. This is where the second name for frameless chairs comes from, which the Americans gave it - “bean-bag”, if you translate this into Russian, you get “a bag of beans”. The Zannot bag itself was also replaced. Instead of the originally used PVC (since water was poured inside), he began to use fabric, which became more pleasant to the body and to the touch. Such material did not even burst during a sharp landing, and was more aesthetically pleasing.
For many years, the fabric on the chairs was exclusively Pink colour Apparently, the warehouses of the Italian furniture maker were filled with just such material. The Sacco bean bag chair brought Zannota worldwide fame and millions in income. Sacco is in all major museums around the world, where examples of furniture design are presented.
The second stage in the history of the bean bag chair is considered to be the beginning of the new millennium, when a whole direction in the manufacture of frameless furniture emerged. At the same time, the shape of the chair itself was changed, and the production of sofas, poufs and even transformable furniture was launched. But all the same, the palm of the championship forever remained with the Sacco chair.
The ancient Egyptians are considered the inventors of the chair - a seat with a backrest. Before them, you could only sit on a bench or stool. Ancient Egyptian carpenters invented armrests for the thrones of their rulers.
For the ancient Romans, a chair or armchair was an indicator of how successful a person was. The important official did not part with his ivory-lined folding chair.
For a long time the main thing that the craftsmen sought when making chairs was their majestic appearance. For example, a Spanish chair made in the Baroque style was very uncomfortable.
IN mid-19th century, Viennese carpenter Michael Thonet came up with the idea of making chairs entirely from bent wood. The bent Viennese chair, comfortable and practical, has conquered the world.
At the same time, during the era of the industrial revolution, a class of special hired employees was formed - clerks performing managerial, financial and other functions, and working in the bureau. For the effective and efficient functioning of the bureau office it was necessary necessary equipment. This is how the modern office chair was born.
The first office chairs were designed to increase the productivity of clerks and allow them to remain at their desk for long periods of time. Then the office chair stood on wheels - this allowed workers to move outside their workplace while sitting, which eliminated wasted energy. The first adjustable office chair was invented in 1926.
A chair with a spring-rotating mechanism radically changed the idea of sitting comfort.
Swedish doctor Vent Akerblom observed people sitting in armchairs or on chairs for a long time, and came to an unexpected conclusion: humanity has been sitting incorrectly for thousands of years! During the working day, a person, sitting on a chair, changes his position several thousand times. He is looking for a way to make himself more comfortable. Akerbloom tilted the seat of the chair inward and lowered it slightly, and arched the back of the chair in the place where a person’s spine curves.
Currently, much attention is paid to the ergonomics of the office chair. Today, most modern office chairs have customizable seats, armrests, backrests, and other features. Ergonomic chairs must meet the needs of the individual and provide support exactly where it is needed.
In the Gamma furniture showroom you will find office chairs for every taste. Presented at the exhibition: chairs for managers, operational chairs for employees, chairs and chairs for visitors. Almost all models use imported high-quality components. A wide range of colors and material textures help you choose an office chair to match almost any interior.
Precisely the sophisticated and capricious royal court of France XVIII century We are responsible for the birth of a rich standard range of armchairs for classic residential interiors. Here, new configurations appeared at the whim of royalty, as well as due to the strict regulation of everyday entertainment. This is how the original seats for bathing, smoking, sitting by the fireplace, card games, for a one-on-one conversation, for a midday rest, etc. We owe to the whims of queens the appearance of a soft additional pillow, called “marzipan,” and an armchair with an absolutely straight, slightly tilted back. Fashion also made its own adjustments to the furniture design of that era: ladies' toilets with wide frame skirts made the chairs much wider and deeper. Subsequently, the initiative to mix typologies and ornamental decoration passed into the hands of famous cabinetmakers throughout Europe, however, English nobles and craftsmen also made history thanks to their “innovative” models.
In order to facilitate the choice of classic furniture and diversify your art history lexicon, Abitant experts conducted a thorough audit and prepared as much as possible full list types of classic chairs.
Cabriolet. A type of easy chair that appeared during the reign of Louis XV (1723-1774). It is distinguished by its ergonomically curved back. The first variation was a chair with a cello-shaped back, then in later eras the "format" was applied to the traditional rectangular shape, "medallion", "gondola", etc. It got its name from a light vehicle from the late 18th century and was intended to be placed in the center of a room.
A la Reine, “a la queen”). A type of light interior chair that arose in the second half of the 18th century at the request of Queen Marie Leszczynska, wife of Louis XV, and gained particular popularity during the time of Louis XVI (1774-1785). His characteristic feature The backrest is straight and slightly tilted back in a “fitted” shape. In contrast to Cabriole, it was placed along the walls.
Bergère. This variation of a deep chair with a wide back also owes its appearance to the court fashion that existed under Louis XV. His distinctive feature are solid side walls (from the seat to the handrail), often serving as a natural extension of the back of the chair.
This type of seat has received several variations:
1. Bergere with ears. An armchair with high solid side walls and peculiar thickenings - “ears” at the end of the back.
2. Bergere gondola. An armchair with solid armrest walls and a rounded back, reminiscent of the shape of the bow of a gondola.
3.Bergere Marie Antoinette. A tall, stately chair with a slightly curved back and low solid side walls ending in armrests.
4. Bergere with lambrequin. A bergere-type armchair, decorated along the edge of the upholstery with a decorative textile element.
5. Bergère hot air balloon or Bergere Pompidou. The most bizarre creation of the 18th century, which took root well in England. This is a high chair with solid walls and a hemispherical dome.
Marquis. A heavy, low chair with a low back, armrests and the widest seat. It appeared in the 18th century with the emergence of fashion for voluminous crinoline and frame skirts.
Montespan. A comfortable chair with an additional seat cushion filled with horsehair. It appeared in 1720 and immortalized the name of one of the favorites of Louis XIV - Francoise Montespan.
Duchesse. A chair for midday rest in a reclining position, which appeared in the era of Louis in the 15th century and received the name chaise lounge (literally “long chair”) in the 19th century. Its prototype was a bed with a lambrequin from the late 17th century. From 1745 to 1780, the duchesse was made with a deep curved back and bergere armrests.
Has three variations:
1. Duchess. Long monolithic bed with a high back.
Causeuse, “scrambled meat”. A low, heavy and wide chair for two persons, invented in 1760.
It should be borne in mind that the types of chairs indicated above could get along well together. Thus, among antique furniture and modern reissues you can find “Bergere Cabriole Montespan”, “Cabriole Medallion”, “Marquis Montespan”, etc.
Chauffeuse. Miniature low chair for sitting by the fireplace. It was invented during the Regency era. The back of such a chair, as a rule, was made solid and curved in the shape of the back to protect against drafts.
Confident. A salon piece of furniture consisting of two connected chairs for confidential conversations. Appeared in the second half of the 19th century. In the era of Napoleon III, two chairs were arranged diagonally using an S-shaped bend.
Andiskre (Indiscret, “tactless, talkative”). This is also a creation from the Napoleon III era, which complements the “confidant” variation with an armchair for the third participant in the conversation.
Boudeuse ("frigate"). Salon furniture in the form of two armchairs with one common backrest. Appeared in the 19th century.
Voltaire. An armchair with a very high back and padded armrests, invented during the time of King Louis Philippe I (1830-1848) and named after the great philosopher.
Crapaud, "toad"). A small, low, upholstered chair for sitting by the fireplace with a gondola backrest. The legs are often covered with fringe or lambrequin. Later, a variation of the chair with a fully padded seat base also appeared. It was also born in the era of Louis Philippe.
Chesterfield. Lord Philip Stanhope, fourth Earl of Chisterfield (1694-1773), demanded that his craftsmen come up with a chair that would befit a gentleman and would not wrinkle the cuffs of long frock coats. This is how massive armchairs with straight backs and large rounded armrests were born. At the Count's insistence, they were tightly stuffed with horsehair and covered with leather, which was secured with nails with shiny heads. This is how the Chisterfield style of decorating armchairs and sofas was born.