RATTAN BASKET CHAIR

GIAN FRANCO LEGLER 
ITALY, 1950'S
23" X 16¼" X 31¾"

Originally created for The Basket restaurant in Italy, the chair quickly gained recognition for its innovative use of natural materials and modernist form. The seat and backrest are handwoven from rattan, forming a wide, comfortable shell that conforms to the body. Its airy woven structure sits on a slender, black tubular steel frame with outward-reaching arms also wrapped in rattan. The combination of organic fiber and industrial metal reflects the postwar design ethos of practicality, comfort, and elegance.

Legler’s Basket Chair went on to win the Good Design Award from the Museum of Modern Art in 1953, cementing its place as an icon of mid-century modern furniture. It remains highly collectible today, valued for both its craftsmanship and its seamless blending of rustic materiality with modernist lines.