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PP40 Paper Basket

c. 1943

by Hans J. Wegner
for PP Møbler

PP40 Paper Basket

by Hans J. Wegner
for  PP Møbler

or Call to Order

The PP Mobler pp40 Paper Basket is a time­less design by Hans J. Wegner, crafted for the Aarhus Town­hall Project. Wegn­er’s inge­nu­ity was enlisted by Arne Jacob­sen to design the inte­ri­ors for the pres­ti­gious Aarhus Town­hall project, result­ing in a series of remark­able creations, includ­ing the Paper Basket.

The design of the pp40 Paper Basket is rooted in simplic­ity and func­tion­al­ity. A solid base seam­lessly connected to the top ring by four­teen verti­cal slats, all metic­u­lously crafted from solid wood. This straight­for­ward yet elegant design reflects Wegn­er’s commit­ment to creat­ing prac­ti­cal and aesthet­i­cally pleasing pieces.

Notably, the top ring of the Paper Basket holds a fasci­nat­ing histor­i­cal connec­tion. The orig­i­nal drawing show­cases a lami­nated circu­lar construc­tion, a prin­ci­ple that Wegner would revisit more than four decades later in produc­ing the iconic Circle Chair. This early explo­ration of lami­nated construc­tion exem­pli­fies Wegn­er’s fore­sight and the inter­con­nect­ed­ness of his designs over time.

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Hans J. Wegner

Denmark (1914–2007)

If Danish modernism is best known and beloved for the use of traditional techniques to emphasize materiality—graceful curves honoring the grain of fine walnut, for example—that’s thanks in large part to Hans J. Wegner. Born in southern Denmark, at 14 Wegner began an apprenticeship with Danish master cabinetmaker H. F. Stahlberg, where he honed a preternatural talent and learned skills he’d bring to bear throughout a career lasting some eighty years and full of design masterpieces.

While studying at the School of Arts and Crafts in Copenhagen, Wegner worked for Arne Jacobsen and Erik Møller on a range of furniture for the Aarhus City Hall. Four years after graduation, he had showcased a chair at the Copenhagen Museum of Art and Industry, and opened his own firm. Sculptural, surprisingly comfortable seating became Wegner’s trademark: for Fritz Hansen, the floating Chinese chairs; for Carl Hansen & Sons, he designed the instant classic Wishbone, Shell, and Elbow chairs; for PP Møbler, the cozy Papa Bear, iconic Round, and buoyant Circle chairs; and countless others, most still in production.

Wegner retired in 1993 and died fourteen years later, but his work lives on in its ubiquity across residential, hospitality, and corporate design—not to mention the Museum Sønderjylland’s permanent exhibition of the three dozen chairs he felt were his very best in a water tour in his hometown of Tønder.

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