Wright Auction

In 1929 architect Tyge Hvass was charged with designing the Danish national pavilion for the Exposición Internacional de Barcelona. The resulting stucco building was painted red with whitewashed edges reminiscent of the traditional Danish homes found in the fishing port of Skagen. Inside, Kaare Klint designed the furniture for the reception room. For seating, Klint utilized a design created three years prior—the Red chair—which was conceived in 1927 for the lecture hall of the Danish Museum of Art & Design and named for the reddish tone of its goatskin upholstery. Several of these chairs and custom sofas lined the room and surrounded a large sectional table. During the exposition, representatives of the Spanish press gathered around the table and enjoyed dried cod from the Faroe Islands. Other works by Danish masters were also showcased in the reception room, including paintings by Johannes Larsen and Fritz Syberg and lighting designed by Poul Henningsen. Although all were initially designed for other projects, due to the success and publicity of the exposition, the chairs, table and sofas utilized in the interior are to this day, widely acknowledged as Barcelona furniture.