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Collections

Kem (Karl Emanuel Martin) Weber
Air Line chairdesigned 1934; produced circa 1939

Not on view
Bentwood and leather armchair with cantilevered base, honey-toned curved wood frame and chestnut-brown worn leather cushions
Lounge chair with bentwood frame in honey-toned wood, featuring a cantilevered base, curved armrests, and brown leather seat and back cushions with visible metal hardware attachments.
Detail view of a lounge chair, showing a light oak wooden frame with curved side panel and brown leather seat and back cushions with a crinkled surface texture.
Lounge chair, close-up detail of left side, showing a cantilevered bent wood frame in light oak with a brown leather seat and backrest, visible metal hardware joining the cushion platform to the frame.
Lounge chair with bentwood frame in warm honey tone and brown leather upholstery; close-up detail shows cantilevered base, angular armrest, and visible joinery hardware.
Cantilevered armchair with a bent plywood frame in light natural wood, photographed from the side, showing brown leather upholstery with visible wear and creasing.
Armchair with bentwood frame in light oak and brown leather upholstery, showing cantilevered sled base and open rectangular armrest in close detail.
Cantilevered lounge chair with a bentwood frame in pale natural wood and a slung brown leather seat and backrest, photographed in profile against a white background.
Cantilevered lounge chair with a bentwood frame in warm honey tones and a slung brown leather seat and back, photographed in profile against a white background.
Lounge chair with cantilevered bentwood frame in light natural wood, supporting a slung brown leather seat and backrest suspended by metal rods, photographed in profile.
Modernist lounge chair with bentwood frame in warm honey tone, shown in profile; cantilevered base supports a slung brown leather seat and angled backrest with squared armrests.
Lounge chair photographed in profile, featuring a cantilevered bent plywood frame in light honey tones with a slung brown leather seat and backrest that curves upward at the top.
Lounge chair with bentwood frame in light maple, photographed in profile; brown leather sling seat and back suspended between cantilevered side panels with horizontal slat detailing.
Lounge chair with bentwood frame in warm honey-toned wood, cantilevered base, and brown leather sling seat and back, photographed in profile against a white background.
Lounge chair photographed in profile, with a cantilevered bentwood frame in light honey-toned wood and a slung brown leather seat and back panel, small metal hardware visible at seat junction.
Designed by
Kem (Karl Emanuel Martin) Weber
Germany, Berlin, active United States, California, Los Angeles, 1889-1963
Manufacturer
Air Line Furniture Company
United States, California, Los Angeles, active 1930s
Title
Air Line chair
Place Made
United States
Date Made
designed 1934; produced circa 1939
Medium
Birch, ash, PVC faux leather
Dimensions
30 1/2 x 34 1/2 x 25 in. (77.47 x 87.63 x 63.5 cm)
Credit Line
Purchased with funds provided by The J. Paul Getty Museum
Accession Number
M.2004.13
Classification
Furnishings
Collecting Area
Decorative Arts and Design
Curatorial Notes

Kem Weber called this design the Airline as a reference to its aerodynamic contours, which give the lightweight chair the appearance of speed. A breakthrough in furniture construction, it was among the earliest examples—if not the first—of furniture intended to be sold disassembled with parts so simple that customers could put it together at home without special tools. Though the chair was never mass-produced, Walt Disney Studios ordered three hundred, including this one, for its projection rooms, lounges, and offices.



(California Design, 1930–1965: "Living in a Modern Way," 2011-12)

Selected Bibliography
  • Kaplan, Wendy, ed. Living in a Modern Way: California Design, 1930-1965. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2013.
Selected Exhibition History
  • California Design, 1930–1965: "Living in a Modern Way". October 1, 2011 - June 3, 2012
  • California Design, 1930–1965: "Living in a Modern Way". October 1, 2011 - June 3, 2012