215 R Chair with wickerwork

The Thonet 215 R Chair was designed by company founder Michael Thonet for company Thonet, his family firm.

His revolutionary bentwood technique gave wooden materials a combination of delicacy and strength, and this design is where it all began. Created for the fashionable cafés of imperial Vienna, it retains its sophisticated appeal - the mark of a true design icon. As for the company that created it, a further 150 years of success was in store, including collaborations with Mies van der Rohe, Marcel Breuer and Norman Foster.

The reissue of the Thonet 215 R Chair remains faithful to the principles of the original. In the 1850s, its inventor found that beechwood offered the perfect combination of suppleness and solidity; the same material is used here. The reinforced weave of the chair back adds to the impression of lightness, but this belies its exceptional durability. The Thonet 215 R Chair is perfect for everyday use as a dining chair or - taking it back to its origins - for relaxing and enjoying a coffee. It's easy to picture it with surfaces in granite, marble or matching dark wood, or in a lighter, contemporary setting.