Name this chair

February 24, 2014 6:46 PM

Can anyone identify either the specific name of the chair or the furniture style (if there was one) that 1955 Playmate Marguerite Empey/Dianne Webber is sitting in in this photo [NSFWish: Model is nude but you can't see anything would wouldn't see at a US public pool.]

I'd like to take a stab at copying the general design so I'd like to see a few more angles to glean construction details.

posted by Mitheral to Home & Garden (6 answers total)

Best answer: The Klaus Grabe chair is similar. This other Grabe photo shows the side chair, which is shaped more like the one in your example.
posted by candyland at 6:59 PM on February 24, 2014

Best answer: It's similar to the Robert Kayton rope chair (scroll down), too, although all the examples I've seen are more like upright "dining" chairs with legs at less of a lounge-y angle.
posted by bcwinters at 7:12 PM on February 24, 2014

I'd call it midcentury modern, but that's pretty meh for a specific descriptor. It sort of reminds me of Isamu Noguchi's coffee table (the wooden members seem to be the same shape, just rotated). However, the craftsmanship on this chair leaves a lot to be desired, so I'd actually guess that it's not really anything famous. Just the ropes being all disheveled and looking like they're free to slide around all over the place - looks kind of shoddy compared to the Grabe chair where the ropes run through holes in the side pieces.
posted by LionIndex at 7:21 PM on February 24, 2014

As far as useful style terms for searching for similar pieces, you might also want atomic or boomerang lounger.
posted by bcwinters at 7:50 PM on February 24, 2014

The legs look Eamesish.
posted by brujita at 8:33 PM on February 24, 2014

Best answer: I've found something similar though with rounded profiles rather than flat dimension wood.
posted by Mitheral at 3:55 PM on March 7, 2014