Robin Day Centenary Edition Reclining chair
Robin Day was born 100 years ago on May 25, 1915. To mark his centenary, twentytwentyone has collaborated with a group of designers to pay homage to one of Britain’s most gifted designers.
Robin Day Centenary Edition Reclining chair
Robin Day designed the Reclining chair in 1952.
Reflecting on his work half a century later, he considered it to be amongst his most successful products, noting that it was ‘an early design showing a clearly articulated structure. The slim steel rod frame cradles a shaped upholstered unit and timber arms which can also serve as shelves for glasses, etc.’ (Robin Day, 2007)
The Reclining chair is produced by twentytwentyone in the UK, licensed and endorsed by the Robin and Lucienne Day Foundation.
Now, twentytwentyone has invited ten of the UK’s foremost designers to upholster the Reclining chair in a textile of their choosing.
The contributing designers are Barber Osgerby, Ilse Crawford, Tom Dixon, Martino Gamper, Kenneth Grange, Matthew Hilton, Margaret Howell, Michael Marriot, Jasper Morrison and Terence Woodgate.
Each has faced the challenge of choosing a textile that that appeals to their own personal design criteria while resonating with the chair’s original spirit and character – and perhaps also drawing a smile from Robin in the process. The results are an enlightening union of classic and contemporary and a respectful tribute to a great designer.
The Reclining chair Centenary Design Edit will be launched on 1st July with an installation of the ten designs at the twentytwentyone showroom and will be available to order following the launch. In keeping with Robin’s philosophies, these will not be limited or up-charged and are priced purely to reflect the cost of the material.
The twentytwentyone initiative forms part of the 2015 Robin Day Centenary Celebrations which will culminate in a number of London Design Festival events, including a Robin Day exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum.
