The Wood Bending Technique

Michael Thonet

Michael Thonet was born in the 1796 in Boppard, Germany. He was a skilled craftsman, who wanted handwork to be again introduced after the industrial revolution where everything was being mass-produced. He took an apprenticeship in cabinet making. He always wanted to seek original design in furniture which he wanted it to be made with real satisfaction by hand.  He then started to experiment a new technique in wood which was wood bending in furniture, this gave him the opportunity to explore different curves in furniture. Wood bending is what made Thonet popular with his designs as for that time it was a very important and interesting invention. The wood bending was done by a couple of veneer wood stacked and then bent. Later he experimented with solid wood bending.

He worked for Carl Leistler, a company that make parquet flooring. Then together with his five sons had their own company which specializes in wood bending mostly for producing chairs, which were all stamped by a personalized stamp. The workshop was situated in Gumpendorf, Vienna. Thus later the technique started to be copied by other carpenters and companies.

An important reason to the success of the chairs he made, was that they could be dismantled and could be easily shipped anywhere in the world. He always made sure that the furniture he creates will be light and practical, therefore aesthetically pleasing. 

How the wood bending technique is done?

Solid wood or stacked wood veneers are to be used for wood bending. The process starts off by putting the wood strip into a pressurized steam chamber, to be heated at higher than 100 °C temperatures. When this is done, the heated wood strips will be placed and bent within metal molds. This is done by using a strip of flat bar supporting the wood strip; it will be clamped to the mold curve. The molding will be left for about twenty hours. Afterwards it will be removed from the mold and will be sanded, stained and polished, ready to be assembled with the other parts of the chair.

The Thonet Chair No. 14, being mass-produced

Sketch designs of curved furniture.

Thonet Chair no. 14 (1859)

It started to be mass produced and started to be sold all around the world at cheap prices, so it became very popular and around 50 million were sold. The production of this chair required to be done by hand and machines. It was done in a way that could be easily assembly and dismantled, which also made it easier to be shipped. It consists of six parts and few screws.  With its simple design it was quite practical and light weight, which was one of the reasons to become popular. It made a change in interiors as many designers started to use the Thonet chair within interiors. It was used in various environments, such as houses, coffee shops, restaurants, etc.

Thonet Chair no. 14 - Parts of the chair, packed for shipping.

Comparison between the Thonet chair and the LCW (Lounge Chair Wood) Eames chair.

The Eames chair was also done with wood bending technique. This was done a long time after the Thonet chair was created. Both chairs are known world-wide and are done with bent wood. The process to do the Eames chair also required a mold so the wood would be bent accordingly. The difference between these chairs is that one is done with strips of solid wood while the Eames chair is done with bent, flat pieces of plywood. The Eames chair is more focused on ergonomic curves which make the chair very comfortable. The Thonet chair is done to be used in any environment while the Eames chair is mostly to be used in for relaxed environments, where one can sit and relax for few minutes on it. The Eames chair is still used in different interiors nowadays, as a replica or has different variations in materials, style or colour. 

LCW Chair

References: 

Hauffe, T., 1998, Design A Concise History. London: Laurence King Publishing.

Michael Thonet Biography - Infos - Art Market. 2016. Michael Thonet Biography - Infos - Art Market. [online] Available at: http://www.michael-thonet.com/index.shtml.  [Accessed 10 April 2016].

Fiell C. and Fiell P., 2015. Design of the 20th Century. Köln: Taschen.

Thonet, 2015. Thonet. [online] Available at: http://www.thonet.com.au/history/ [Accessed 10 April 2016].