Sunday, July 31, 2011

The Saddest Jens Risom Chair Ever? Status: Available At Steve's Antiques.

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I could almost hear this chair whispering, "Kill.....Me..." It made me ponder: what do you do with an iconic chair that is just too far gone? How far does one go to rescue a chair like this?

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Oh...My....(expletive deleted)...God. What happened to this chair??? Who would let this

happen to a Risom / Knoll chair and I hope that they suffer / suffered the same fate. My first

reaction upon stumbling upon this at Steve's Antiques today was "SWEET!!!", but my heart

dropped in the next second as I realized how far gone the chair is. I couldn't even bring myself

to sit in it as it was all loose and rickety. The dry rotten strapping may be all that is holding it

together!

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Hmmmm...I guess that the strapping isn't "color fast"! Look how Red the strapping is on the

underside. I wonder how many years this sat outside to get to this condition. Let this be a

warning to all who would place chairs like these on their porch or deck. They will die a tragic &

slow death!

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So, can this be saved? What do you think and what is this worth in this condition in your

opinion? Would you buy it? I didn't even ask about the price as I knew I just couldn't bring it

home...it just too sad.

6 comments:

  1. For 10 dollars, I'd be willing to give it a go. I have no clue how bad the wood is, and I just know that finding webbing that matches would be hard, but it's worth trying.

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  2. As hardcore a Jens Risom fan as I am, I'd have to pass on that one. And then I'd have to track down the person who destroyed that chair and make him suffer. What kind of (expletive likewise deleted) idiot would you have to be to have a chair that beautiful/valuable and let it sit outside and ruin? ::shaking head in disgust::

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  3. The last owner probably thought it was an outdoor chair because of the webbing. [sigh]

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  4. For $25 or less I might give it a go. Depends on how bad the wood is in person. In the photo the frame looks like it could be saved and I like a good challenge ever once in a while.

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  5. Oh so sad =( I'd pass because it looks a bit too challenging for me. I hope the right person comes along and rescues it though.

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  6. If it's cheap ($25.00-ish) I'd have a go at restoring it. I have a Finn Juhl(France & Sons) #198 chair, that I trash picked from a student apartment dumpster, in very rough shape that I have some hope of bringing back to life.

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