Crate Chair by Gerrit Rietveld for Cassina, Netherlands, 1930s

This is a nice Gerrit Rietveld ‘Crate’ chair. This chair is designed in 1934, however, we think this is a Cassina edition from the 1970s. This chair is made out of ash wood and has a colorless lacquer.

‘Gerrit Rietveld designed the ‘crate’ series of furniture built from standardized pine boards; cheap material for packing crates which were soon well-known as ‘crate furniture’. From 1935, progressive designs appeared at Metz & Co, where furniture by Rietveld had already been sold since 1930. The crate desk is also from this period before the war; purchased by the main store at the Keizersgracht in Amsterdam. This piece of furniture was relatively inexpensive. A painted model could be ordered for 16 guilders, while a fancier desk designed by Rietveld and Schröder in 1931 was ten times this price. In the store’s flyers, the furniture was labeled as ‘weekend furniture’, meant for weekend homes, sunrooms, student and children’s rooms. This intended function is not just indicative of the wealthy clientele, but also implicitly shows the somewhat skeptical attitude that the store had towards Rietveld’s latest designs.’ (source kunstconsult.com)

This chair is in good condition with wear and tear due to its age; primarily stains. For us, this adds to the authenticity.

Documentation: Gerrit Th. Rietveld, Central Museum Utrecht, Utrecht 1992, p. 156.”