A pair of Cubist Armchairs
Zbyněk Hřivnáč for the Hotel Praha
1970s

Description:

A pair of upholstered leather armchairs designed by Czechoslovak designer, Zbyněk Hřivnáč, during the 1970s for the Hotel Praha. 

Commissioned by the Communist Party in Czechoslovakia, construction began on the Hotel Praha in 1975. Beyond hosting the communist delegation, one of the salient aims of the Hotel was to entertain and impress foreign visitors. 

Amidst a backdrop of austerity in the years prior to the Velvet Revolution, the Hotel was an architectural emblem created by some of the leading architects and designers in the former communist state. The colossal, curved building covered 9800 square-meters and  comprised 136 rooms, a restaurant, swimming pool, and bowling alley. 

Few examples of the furniture from this once immense Gesamtkunstwerk survive. However, these leather armchairs, with their throne-like proportions, gridded frames and sculptural padded upholstery, are pieces truly expressive of the monumental decadence that characterised this communist-era hotel. Their wide portions echo the sprawling dimensions of the former Hotel Praha which was demolished in 2014.  

We are lucky to have three of these armchairs from the Hotel Praha, the third chair can be found here. 

Specifications:

Designer: Zbyněk Hřivnáč (b.1932)
Design Period: 1970-1980
Materials: Leather and stained beech 
Height: 74cm
Width: 79cm
Length:80cm