Gerrit Thomas Rietveld, Oudegracht 55, Utrecht, 1934
Thence by descent to Wim Rietveld
Private collection, circa 1965
Sotheby's, Amsterdam, '20th Century Decorative Arts & Design', 23 November, 2006, lot 252
Theodore M. Brown, The work of G. Rietveld architect, Utrecht, 1958, pp. 102, 104, 116, 125 for images and a drawing
Daniele Baroni, The Furniture of Gerrit Thomas Rietveld, New York, 1978, pp. 136-37 for images and a technical drawing
Marijke Küper and Ida van Zijl, Gerrit Th. Rietveld 1888-1964, The Complete Works, exh. cat., Centraal Museum, Utrecht, 1992, p. 147
Peter Vöge, The Complete Rietveld Furniture, Rotterdam, 1993, p. 83 for the model
Alexander von Vegesack, et al., eds., 100 Masterpieces from the Vitra Design Museum Collection, exh. cat., Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein, 1996, p. 113, cat. no. 43
Dutch • 1888 - 1964
Gerrit Thomas Rietveld began as an apprentice in his father's cabinetmaking workshop, going on to train and work as a draftsman. In 1917 he started his own furniture-making workshop in Utrecht. Positive critical review by Theo van Doesburg in his journal De Stijl resulted in near-instantaneous influence on broader developments in European modernism. This connection to the De Stijl movement also inspired him to introduce color to the posts, rails and terminals of his furniture. His resulting "Red-blue" armchair is among the most iconic chair designs of the twentieth century.
From the beginning, Rietveld embraced modernist principles of functionalism, simplicity of form and mass-production, and eventually moved away from De Stijl to become a member of the Congrès Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne (CIAM). Rietveld worked through the post-war years, completing a number of private residences, housing developments and institutions. He continued to design furniture for these commissions as well as for retailers like Metz & Co.
View More Works