A cool onesie

Verner Panton: Stackable Panton Chair, 1957/1968

When designer Verner Panton observed how a plastic bucket was produced, he decided to use the same method to make a chair: out of one piece, fast and cost-efficient. He instantly came up with the right shape: the chair would have no back legs and would be curved like an S or like Marcel Breuer’s Cantilever Chair, only softer and rounder and as beautiful as a modern work of art. Additionally, it had to be stackable.

As early as 1955, Panton developed the first prototype using plywood. He then endeavoured to transfer the shape into plastic. In 1967 he achieved his goal: the first plastic cantilever chair made in one piece went into production. This was made possible through technical progress in the production of plastics: the Panton Chair is made of polyurethane, which can be used to produce both very soft and very hard things.