The LC2 Petit Modele Armchair is probably one of the best-known and most successful objects from Le Corbusier’s legendary furniture collection. With its soft, inviting cushions, the armchair invites you to sit and relax. The LC2 was designed as a fresh, modern twist on the comfortable, unwieldy armchairs found in elite men’s clubs.
Story
The LC2 was designed in 1928 and took the spotlight a year later at the Salon d’Automne in Paris. It comes from the furniture collection that resulted from the collaboration between Le Corbusier, Charlotte Perriand and Le Corbusier’s cousin Pierre Jeanneret.
In 1928, Le Corbusier, best known as a modernist architect and urban planner influenced by Perriand, began exploring furniture design.
While working on the furniture line, Le Corbusier successfully implemented his architectural philosophy of placing the needs of mankind at the center of his designs. As a result, the LC2 Petit Modele armchair is perfectly tailored to the ideas of rest and relaxation.
design
The ‘cushion basket’, as its creators called their new armchair, was the result of a challenge to rethink the concept of the 19th century English armchair. The designers’ aim was to create a very welcoming and extremely comfortable armchair, faithful to the minimalist principles of the international style pioneered by none other than Le Corbusier. The LC2 dispenses with decorative elements or bourgeois shapes in favor of elegant simplicity and functionality. The design is reduced to the essentials and makes the shape of the armchair very minimalist and pure.
One of the most distinctive features of the LC2 is its chromed outer frame. It consists of the base grid and three tubular steel profiles with a circular cross-section. The front legs of the chair are made from a single tube that also encircles the entire perimeter of the chair and supports the cushions. In the original chair, this element did not have any sharp corners due to the bending process used in its manufacture. However, in various replicas, this element consists of several individual parts, which are then welded together at a 45-degree angle, giving the corners a sharp appearance. The hind legs consist of two vertical tubes welded to the surrounding tube. All four legs have nickel-plated steel glides and are spanned with thin, circular rods. It improves the chair’s structural strength and makes it more robust. The final element of the frame is the horizontal trellis welded to the legs that holds all the upholstery off the ground.
The entire frame forms a basket that accommodates very thick and resilient square cushions. They are made from the multi-density composite foam and are available in either a down or Dacron wrap version. There are five pillows in total; Two serve as armrests, one as a backrest and two as a seat. The cushions are upholstered in semi-aniline leather with the highest grain, available in six colors including: Charcoal, Chocolate, Dark Brown, Graphite, Tobacco and White.
The LC2 offers an excellent level of comfort and relaxation. However, it not only addresses one’s own physiological needs, but also appeals to the most sublime tastes of every aesthete. The overall look of the armchair is extremely attractive and stylish. It’s very proportionate and well balanced, and the use of the outer frame makes it feel both airy and light. Even today, almost nine decades after its presentation, when modernity is no longer an extravagant or radical concept, the LC2 has neither aged nor become banal. It still looks fresh and contemporary.
