Over the years I have been attracted to a style of chair that appear quite delicate. Unfortunately I didn't know how to describe such a chair or its origin. It took Tim Manney a talented Chairmaker and his blog to finally find its origin and history. The chair is known as a Chiavari Chair!
Don't be fooled by its delicate appearance. The Chiavari chair is an extremely durable whimsical looking chair. I have purchased a couple of these Chiavari style chairs at flea markets over the years. I keep the two chairs hanging on the wall in my shop. I look at them daily and envision making them. Its quite amazing to see all the angles and shaping on the chairs. I look forward to exploring them and hopefully finding more of them. Maybe I can convince Tim Manney to work on one together.
This style of chair was first designed in 1807 by a chair maker, named Giuseppe. The goal for Giuseppe was to make a chair that could be lifted with a single finger. There is only one factory in Chiavari that still makes these chairs by hand. The Fratelli Levaggi Chair Factory was founded 50 years ago with the goal to replicate the craftsmanship of the Chiavarina chair.
These chairs are a huge inspiration for me as well. I'm currently redesigning a ladderback that I was making a couple of years ago to more closely resemble these chairs. Let's get together sometime this winter and talk chair construction. I would love to hear where your thoughts are.
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