When it comes to modern furniture design, few pieces carry the same weight of influence as the Wassily Chair. Created in 1925 by Hungarian architect and designer Marcel Breuer, this chair wasn’t just a place to sit—it was a radical rethinking of what furniture could be. Its sleek tubular steel frame and taut leather strips embodied the spirit of the Bauhaus movement, where art met function in the most stripped-down, elegant way possible.

A Chair Born in Bauhaus

Breuer was still a young apprentice at the Bauhaus in Weimar when he began experimenting with new materials. Inspired by the lightweight, resilient design of a bicycle frame, he created a chair using bent tubular steel—a material never before used in domestic furniture. The result was the Model B3, which later became known as the Wassily Chair after Breuer’s contemporary, artist Wassily Kandinsky, admired it so much that Breuer built him one.

Form Follows Function

Unlike heavy, upholstered chairs of its time, the Wassily Chair was airy, minimalist, and industrial. The steel tubing created a durable yet lightweight frame, while the canvas, leather, or fabric strips provided support without excess. Its geometry reflected the Bauhaus ethos: beauty comes from clarity, simplicity, and the honest use of materials.

An Icon of Modernism

What made the Wassily Chair revolutionary was not just its design, but its influence. It broke from tradition, showing that furniture could be mass-produced while still being timelessly stylish. Today, the chair remains a staple in modern interiors, often found in museums, design studios, and stylish homes across the world. It has outlived trends and continues to symbolize the birth of modern furniture design.

A Poster-Worthy Design

The Wassily Chair is more than just seating—it’s a work of art that represents an entire movement in design history. Its clean lines and bold innovation make it as visually striking today as it was nearly a century ago.

Celebrate Bauhaus heritage with our Iconic Chairs Poster—a tribute to timeless furniture designs that shaped the way we live, work, and relax.