Chair

Signed and dated just three years after Norway gained independence from Sweden, this chair is an emblem of Norwegian cultural pride. It recalls medieval carvings and Norse mythology, with dragons, kings, trolls, and wolves set among interlacing scrolls and tendrils. Lars Kinsarvik promoted this Norwegian nationalist style, called Viking Revival, at his woodcarving school on the Sunnmøre fjord, where he trained an entire generation of young carvers. Kinsarvik’s carvings helped establish Norway on the international scene: they were prominently displayed at world’s fairs and at hotels serving the nation’s burgeoning tourism industry.