B3 Wassily Chair by Marcel Breuer for Knoll International

Designer Marcel Breuer (1902–1981) Manufacturer Knoll International. Design Period 1920s. Production Date 1990s. Materials Chrome-plated tubular steel, white/cream leather. Dimensions 78.5 × 65.5 × 73.5 cm. Condition Good original condition I condition report on request. Bibliography Gilbert Frey, The Modern Chair 1850 to Today, Arthur Niggli AG, pp. 48–49. Selected items – We change the way you think about forever. Designed by Marcel Breuer in 1925, the B3, now known as the Wassily Chair, is one of the defining furniture designs of early modernism. During his Bauhaus period, Breuer introduced bent tubular steel into furniture design and transformed the traditional club chair into a lightweight, open structure of lines and suspended surfaces. The chrome-plated tubular steel frame remains fully visible, with leather panels stretched between its elements for the seat, backrest, and armrests. This reduction to the structural essentials gives the chair its characteristic transparency and remarkably contemporary appearance. The original model designation was B3. The later name “Wassily Chair” refers to Wassily Kandinsky, Breuer’s Bauhaus colleague, who showed an early interest in the design. The rights to Breuer’s furniture designs were later acquired by Gavina in Italy and passed to Knoll when the company acquired Gavina in 1968. The example offered here was manufactured by Knoll and bears the “KnollStudio” marking and Marcel Breuer’s signature on the frame, allowing it to be dated to the 1990s. The combination of chrome-plated tubular steel and white leather emphasizes the design’s graphic quality and visual lightness. For a chair that has been widely interpreted and copied, the original KnollStudio attribution is particularly relevant. It provides a clear connection to Breuer’s authorized production while retaining the formal clarity that continues to appeal to both collectors and contemporary interiors.