met in de rugleuning negen cirkelvormige gaten. Uit de nalatenschap van Henk Linssen 1913-1975). (kleine beschadigingen en verfblaren) Zig-zag chair by Gerrit Rietveld “We must help to simplify life, to free it from redundancy.” - Gerrit Rietveld From international perspective, furniture designer and architect Gerrit Rietveld is one of the most famous artistic talents of the Netherlands. Simplicity and functionality formed the basis of his work. His preoccupation with standardization and mass production was related to the desire to make architecture and design known to the widest possible audience. The iconic Zig-zag chair belongs to one of his most famous and still loved designs. Created for the Rietveld Schröderhuis in Utrecht, it embodied the search for a chair that could be easily mass produced. The completed design was a chair without legs, resembling a bolt of lightning formed by four sheets of wood. The Zig-Zag chair is thus uninhibited by the supporting elements traditionally used in chairs. Each section of the chair is constructive and functional. The chair depicts the frame of the seated body, and extension of the limber spine, and does not represent the idea of sitting in comfort. This notion was articulated by Christian Morgenstern in 1930: “Wenn ich sitze, möchte ich nicht sitzen, wie mein sitzfleisch möchte sondern wie mein sätzgeis sich, säsze er, den stuhl sich flöchte.” Rietveld created different prototypes of the Zig-zag chair in various materials and shapes. The Zig-zag chair that will be offered this auction is an extremely rare variant. It was probably made before the war or just after the war by Groenekan or firma Metz & Co, the only producers of this chair, between 1935-1955. While most Zig-zag chairs are high table chairs with a handle on the back, this chair has perforations in the backrest, making the handle unnecessary. Because of the perforations, the chair is possibly made as a predecessor of the Zig-zag chair with perforations and short armrests. The chair is made of a soft wood, probably European poplar and is overpainted several times. The current red and white layers were painted in ca. 1994 by a professional painter after the original color scheme. There are a few similar chairs known, one auctioned at Lama in 2002 and the other in the collection of the Pinakothek der Moderne in Munchen. This chair comes from the elaborate art collection of the late artist Henk Linssen (1913-1975), the owner of a paint firm in Utrecht and an artist painter himself. After the death of his wife, Klaasje Klompmaker in 1991, the inheritance was divided between the large family. Some objects were divided through a lottery and the then 12 year old current owner, asked his mother to enlist him for the lottery of the current Rietveld zigzag chair. He won this lottery and became the young owner of this icon of a Rietveld chair. According to the family two other Rietveld chairs in the collection were already sold in the 1990s. A report of condition of the chair can be requested by sending an email to info@dezwaan.nl.

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