Sinewy chrome legs... Elegant caned seat... Rich birch wood... Introducing, the cesca.... What's like, the right amount of creepy for
this? The cesca, also know as the b32 b64 if it has arms is kind of having a moment. Full disclosure, I am literally sitting on
one right now. Have been since at least 1999. But this chair is more than just a throne
for toddler-me to practice my penmanship. It’s more than a trendy decor item. Or popular movie set piece. It’s a design icon. In the collections of some of the world’s
most major museums. And considered “among the most important
chairs of the 20th century.” So where did this chair come from? And why is it everywhere? The cesca chairs story begins here. At the Bauhaus. The famed German art school slash commune
slash never-ending party slash genius factory. It was founded in 1919 by this architect,
Walter Gropius. His goal was to merge art and industry. Creating work that was deeply modern and simultaneously
beautiful, functional, and reproducible. Which was a pretty radical change from the exclusivity and ornamental frills of other
design movements. Look at these two teapots both from
1920s Germany. This one is beautiful, but mostly decorative. On the Bauhaus one, everything is intentional. The curved, wooden handle makes pouring easy
and comfortable. The slanted spout prevents drips. And it definitely looks sturdy and industrial. Except this teapot was hand crafted out of
silver and ebony. It was wildly expensive. Still is. Even though Bauhaus designs looked utilitarian. Most of them were basically impossible
to make at scale. That is, until our hero, Marcel Breuer Mr. Cesca chair himself stepped in and changed everything. Breuer was an early student of the Bauhaus and in 1925, he was ruminating on their whole
manufacturing problem when inspiration struck. He looked at his bicycle’s handlebars and
realized to paraphrase: Bent tubular steel
was Bauhaus as heck. It’s sleek, light, shiny, strong and —
this one’s a direct quote can be bent “like macaroni”. First, he made this chair. Now known as the Wassily chair. And then a bunch of other chairs and tables
and stools and this... couch? But, for Breuer, those pieces still weren’t
modern enough. The ultimate creation, he wrote,
would be a “chair that floated on an elastic column
of air.” And in 1928 Breuer had another one of those
eureka moments. He flipped a stool on its side and thus
the cantilever chair was born. Soon after, he debuted the b32. And with it, he achieved the purest manifestation
of Bauhaus ideals. A chair that showcased the gleaming modernity
of chrome. Seemed to defy the laws of gravity. And, crucially, only required a handful of
pre-made materials to make. Soon, Thonet — a company already world famous
for mass producing bent wooden chairs was making tons of b32s. And as other Bauhausians designed their own
versions a bunch of other tubular cantilever chairs. But it’s pretty universally held that this
is the best of them. Most cantilever chairs require braces. Which both ruin the visual lines of the chair
and makes them rigid and uncomfortable. Breuer’s chair doesn’t need those, thanks to
its structured wooden framing which holds everything together, but
still allows for flexibility and bounce. That added structure also means the chair
can be made of one continuous length of steel which is bent 16 times rather than a bunch
of different tubes fused together. which makes the chair lighter and easier to
make. Plus the cane gave the chair an airy transparency. A feature Thonet played up, in their 1930s advertising. Of which there was a lot. Thonet really wanted these designs to take off. The problem was they were expensive. And they seemed a little too modern for the
average home. Until the 60s. A sort of hybrid futuristic look became all the rage and the b32 fit in perfectly. Gavina, the go-to Italian modernist brand,
began selling it. And they gave it a new name: Cesca from Francesca, Breuer’s daughter’s name. As the mid-century look picked up steam,
so did the cesca. But unlike those newer designs the cesca wasnt
copyrighted. So manufacturers started making completely
legal cesca copies. And marketing them as “Breuer style chairs”. By 1980, the cesca was ubiquitous. One reviewer noted it was “as common, as
imitated... and as mass produced as a
'pair of Calvin Klein jeans'" Which, at the time, was just about the highest
praise there was. After that, the cesca never quite went away. Today, there are many places to buy one and countless second hand ones floating around. Which only seems to drive up demand. Its appeal is only getting broader as both
Bauhaus and modernism become popular again. In short, this chair is everywhere because ever since its inception nearly a century
ago, it's been a design marvel. And, quite frankly, cool as hell.
