The Landi chair – Swiss National Exhibition of 1939
The Landi chair developed for the Swiss National Exhibition of 1939 occupies an important place in the design history of the 20th century: with it, Hans Coray created the innovative typology of the three-dimensionally shaped seat shell on a separate base frame.


Production of the Landi chair
Designer:

This product was designed by Hans Coray
Hans Coray grew up in Zurich, earned a doctorate in Romance studies and began experimenting with metal and wire working techniques as a self-taught artist in the early 1930s, applying them to designs for furniture, other products and sculptures. He was at home in the artistic circles surrounding the Dada movement and the Zurich Concretists such as Max Bill, Verena Loewensberg and Hans Fischli.
In the summer of 1938, Bauhaus student Hans Fischli asked him to design models for the official chair of the 1939 Swiss National Exhibition, which were to be „new in every respect“ In a very short time, Hans Coray developed two prototypes, his design goal was „a chair made entirely of aluminum for vertical stacking“. He wanted to create a light and graceful chair that had a friendly expression and offered users outstanding comfort. The Landi chair, his first realized chair design, became a milestone in design. The humanist Coray continued to create furniture into the 1950s, and in later years he increasingly devoted himself to painting and sculpture.