A set of two Zig Zag chairs from the ''Van Dantzig'' Rietveld house, commissioned by Dora Mees to be executed as the original 1934 design, and manufactured by Rietveld 's carpenter G.A. van de Groenekan (1971) . A very rare set because they have been photographed and documented in several architectural publications about Rietveld houses. Both of them marked with the Groenekan stamp.
Chairs like these are very sought after by interior designers as well as ''De Stijl'' collectors and investors. The Zig Zag can be found in most collections of modern art museums worldwide.
Zig Zag chairs are considered to be investment pieces - they will only increase in value with years to come, especially the documented ones. Groenekan/Rietveld chairs with provenance and published in literature, such as these, are even more desirable.
Both chairs are good condition, with patina and signs of wear, as can be expected with chairs that have been used for years at a dining table. For instance, one can see horizontal marks from where the chairs used to touch the tabletop when pulled up against it.
Provenance:
Origin: the heirs of the first owner, who asked a Dutch art gallery to find a new purpose for the chairs. One of the original set of three was sold at the art fair BRAFA Brussels (2024) The remaining set of 2 came into our studio's possession recently (purchased at the aforementioned gallery)
These Zig Zag chairs were especially made as a set of 3 for the interior of the by G.Rietveld designed 'Van Dantzig House' in Santpoort Netherlands.
Dora Mees, the first owner of these chairs, was brought up living in a Rietveld house ('Huis Mees', The Hague 1936) and in 1970 she moved to her own Rietveld house - The 'Van Dantzig'. Dora Mees worked for Gerrit Rietveld in the 1930s and she had seen Rietveld make his Zig Zag chairs in the original manner of the 1930s; with the 7 dovetail connections at the back to hold the entire strenght of the back - without the holes in the back and seat where in the later version of the Zig Zag, the screws were placed.
When Dora Mees moved into her own Rietveld home ''Van Dantzig'' she commissioned Rietveld's furniture maker Gerard van de Groenekan to make her three 1930s style Zig Zag chairs for the dining room table in her new house. This table was attached to a room divider that was also part of the Rietveld interior design.
The chairs were finished in January 1971 and on February 5, 1971, Dora Mees and her daughter Martine collected the three chairs from Van de Groenekan's workshop in De Bilt.
The set of three was photographed several times over the years and is in several books about Rietveld houses.
Literature: Yukio Futagawa, 'GI Global Interior, Houses in Northern Europe 2', 1972-1974, pg. 74-79; Marijke Küper/Wim Quist, 'Gerrit Th. Rietveld: Casas/Houses', 2006, pg. 238-239; Kaya Oku, 'Rietveld: The Architecture of Gerrit Th. Rietveld, 2009, pg. 197.''
Originally the set consisted of three chairs. One of the set was sold at Brafa Brussels. These are the other two. One of them is the actual chair that is shown in the book - seen from the back the second slat of wood is slightly darker (see in the pictures) They are both marked with the Groenekan stamp underneath.
A picture of the Van Dantzig Rietveld house - now owned by new people is included in the photo presentation.
A comprehensive provenance report will be provided including the books where they have been published in. Free shipping to most countries. Please send an email to ask for a personal quote for total price. You can reach us at: info@eklektik.nl
More background info:
The Zig Zag was designed by Gerrit Rietveld in 1932 - 1934. Rietveld managed to design a perfectly stable chair which at the time must have looked dangerously fragile - a cantilevered seat without any stretchers to support the frame. It had never been done before. Rietveld himself called it ''the little zigzag'' and often referred to it as being an architectural joke. He also called it a ''shot into space'', which may refer to the zigzag shape ending in the line of the backrest straight up into the skies. Or that it is in the shape of a bolt of lightning. Both apply!
The Zig Zag is a very elegant and modest piece, quite small but just big enough and it has such a presence and aesthetic quality looked at from any angle. It's a work of art in itself. In case one doesn't want to use it as an actual seat, it's also very stylish and chique when used as a display for a sculpture or a vase.
Designer
Gerrit Rietveld
Manufacturer
G.A. van de Groenekan
Design Period
1930s
Production Period
1971
Country of Manufacture
Netherlands
Identifying Marks
Style
De Stijl, Modernist, Minimalist, Rationalist, Neo Plasticism
Detailed Condition
Good — no defects and very sturdy, but traces of the time - spots/blemishes.
