Panton Chair

Panton S-chair most famous design, this plastic stacking chair was also among his most innovative. The first cantilevered design to be made from a single piece of injection-moulded plastic, its 'look-no-hands' quality represents a daring exploration of material from. Shaped to fit the human frame, the swooping organic curves and glossy finish also recall car bodies, an association emphasized by the fin-like sweep of the base, designed to counter-balance the seat. like many of Panton's other designs, the chair was originally manufactured by the Danish company Fritz hansen. Herman Miller took over production in 1968. The prototype was made of GRP, glass-reinforced polyester, but since 1970 the chair has been produced in injection-moulded, non-reinforced thermoplastic.
Panton designed this chair from glass fibre reinforced Polyurethan (PU) in the 1970s. It was the first stackable chair to be moulded in one piece from plastic. The integral organic shape creates flowing lines, without any break between the functional elements of backrest, seat or leg.

The Panton Chair anticipates the Pop Art culture. It was the first chair in the history of design without back legs and formed from a single piece of Fibreglass. It was a sensation in its day and was awarded numerous prizes. Verner Panton worked for years on the idea of creating a chair out of a single piece of plastic. The first prototypes appeared in the 1960s - in close cooperation with Vitra - and the Panton Chair went into mass production in 1967. It counts among the classics in the history of furniture. Plastic shell made from hard foam, lacquered in different colours.

Moulded “Baydur” (PU-hard-foam) construction, 1970 onward: Injection moulded “Luran-S” (thermoplastic) construction.

Unlike Colombo’s No. 4860 and Zanuso and Sappers child’s chair, Panton’s stacking chair was wholly unified. It was the first single-material, single-form injections-moulded chair. The 'unibody' construction makes this chair unusual, and unreliable - early production models such as this one are reported to explode if sat upon with too much force. For this reason Vitra discontinued production in 1979, but began again in 1990 using HR foam.
H:33 x D:22.75, SH:16.5"

source: designmach.com