A beautifully patinated, vintage French cafe chair that I believe to be the 'Tolix' design that was introduced in 1956.

 

The 'Tolix' chair was invented by Xavier Pauchard who was born in 1880 in heart of France. In 1907 that Pauchard discovered that he could protect sheet metal from rusting by dipping it in molten zinc - galvanising it. A decade later, he set up a factory making steel household items and registered his trademark symbol as Tolix.

 

This chair, a favourite of cafés and retro kitchens all over the world, was designed in 1934. It was meant to be outside in all weathers, which is why there are holes in the seats – to allow the rain to drain off. But when café owners complained that the chairs wouldn't stack properly Pauchard changed his design slightly. By 1956 the classic Tolix chair was created. With its slimmer frame, you could now stack 25 chairs to a height of 2.3 metres.

 

This example probably dates to the late 1950s/early '60s. It's survived the decades in good order, developing a lovely deep red colour and great surface. It remains good and strong, is surprisingly comfortable and still stacks beautifully. This listing is for the one chair, I do have another of the same design available in a blue-green colour. 

 

The chair measures 83cm high (seat height 46cm) x 42cm wide x 49cm deep. 

 

S/N: #1328