As we all know, three-legged chairs and backstools are inherently unstable. It’s really quite remarkable that they haven’t been outlawed in such progressive countries as Switzerland.
But, as you can see above in this photo from the Swiss National Museum, the three-legged chairs are not roped off. In fact, people are encouraged to sit in them.
These shots were taken by Mark Firley of The Furniture Record during a visit to the museum. He turned up a lot of very interesting furniture on this trip, and I am certain he’ll blog about it. So bookmark his blog.
I was amused when I first saw these photos – these Swiss examples look quite similar to the backstools I built over the summer for “The Anarchist’s Design Book.” The major difference is the way the backs are attached to the spindles. The maker notched the spindles and used screws or nails to attach the back.
Oh, and there are two fewer spindles.
I quite like the design and might incorporate some of those back details into my next chair.
— Christopher Schwarz