LOT Phillips de Pury & Company  /  20-21st Century Design Session 2  / 

131

Dan Johnson, prototype Gazelle Lounge Chair, model no. 30W, ca. 1957, manufactured by Dan Johns...

Currency:USD Category:Everything Else / Other Start Price:NA Estimated At:12,000.00 - 16,000.00 USD
Dan Johnson, prototype Gazelle Lounge Chair, model no. 30W, ca. 1957, manufactured by Dan Johns...
Dan Johnson
prototype "Gazelle" Lounge Chair, model no. 30W, ca. 1957
manufactured by Dan Johnson Studio, Italy; Italian walnut,
caning and metal
27 1/2 in. (69.9 cm) high
Estimate: $12,000-16,000
Provenance
Dan Johnson
Gregory J. Brown, Salem, Oregon
This chair was the original "Gazelle" chair
upon which the other wood, bronze and
aluminum examples were based.
This lot comes with a letter of provenance from Gregory Brown.



“Authentically new good designs do not come easy or often!”
When Dan Johnson introduced his “Gazelle” furniture line in 1956, the style was “…so different that decorators were a little hesitant at first
how and where to use it,” recalled Johnson, in a letter he wrote to friends. Although his designs were critically well-received, the line ultimately appealed to only a small group of clients with a discerning taste, who appreciated the understated, atemporal design.
Comparisons to the “Gazelle” line remain difficult even today. However, there is quality in Johnson’s design similar to the elegant, sculptural forms of Italian designer Carlo Mollino, whose furniture captures a feeling of movement and ease. New York–based designer T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings’ “Saridis” furniture line, which came out after Johnson’s, also shares a connection to the “Gazelle’s” gentle, classical curves.
As Johnson describes it in his correspondence, “…I called it the ‘Gazelle’ line, being based abstractly on graceful animal forms. Quite a departure for me. A modern approach to
the ancient Roman stuff I appreciated so much in Italy.”
The line of tables and chairs were available in bronze, aluminum or walnut, with marble or glass tabletops. It was advertised as being from the “Dan Johnson Studio in Rome” although Johnson was in Rome only during the early stages of development. He eventually moved to Foligno so he could be closer to Assisi, where the bronze pieces were cast. Later he moved to Tormini, near Lake Garda, to monitor production of the aluminum and walnut pieces.
Johnson had furniture samples made, which he brought to Los Angeles, before returning to Italy to manage production for the “Gazelle” line. Although the line was manufactured in Italy, funding was obtained in Los Angeles. Johnson had two contracts, one for production, the other for distribution. The former resource was short lived due to the individual investor’s poor health, which prevented continued financial support. The distribution agreement eventually proved ill-fated too. Los Angeles–based Arch Industries, Inc., was specifically established to distribute the “Gazelle” line. The company officially ended its agreement with Johnson in 1959 when it was unable to sustain sales. The exclusive retailer for the “Gazelle” line, Clark & Burchfield, Inc., in Los Angeles, also fell short of the ability to promote and offer Johnson’s furniture. This combination essentially ended production for Johnson in 1960. Shipping records indicate fewer than 150 pieces were shipped from Italy. From that total, it is estimated about 50 pieces were damaged due to improper packing.
Johnson left Italy in 1962 and re-established himself as a designer, living in West Los Angeles with his life-long companion, Art Graber. In addition to furniture design, there are three known houses designed by Johnson, all in the modernist style constructed in the affluent areas of Palos Verdes and Bel Air in Southern California. In the early 1960s he wrote, “How to Construct a House,” an unpublished manuscript intended for the layperson.
Although Johnson is considered a Los Angeles–based designer, he grew up in Minneapolis and University City, Missouri. From 1940 to 1941 he attended the Art Center School in Los Angeles, on a work-study scholarship studying “Art Design.” In 1942, he attended the University of Cincinnati, Engineering College, before returning to the Art Center in 1945
and 1946.
–Jeffrey Head
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