Verner Panton

Verner Panton was a Danish interior designer. His work broke with the Nordic tradition of artifice and harmony with nature and shocked with extravagant designs in the spirit of the psychedelic aesthetic of the 1960s. Born on the Isle of Fyn to an innkeeper's family, he was involved in the anti-Nazi resistance during the Second World War. Originally working as a bricklayer, he graduated from the Royal Danish Academy of Art in 1951 and began working with architect Arne Jacobsen. In 1955 he founded his own design studio, designing furniture for the Copenhagen firm Fritz Hansen.

He pioneered Pop Art in home furnishings, working with synthetic materials, bright colours and unusual shapes. His most famous work is the Panton chair from 1967, made by injection moulding from a single piece of plastic. His Vilbert chair, made of fibreboard, was introduced to the Ikea chain. He also designed carpets and created a series of futuristic lighting fixtures for Vitra. In our portfolio, you can find his work in the Schönbuch collection in the form of the Panton coat rack.