Prince Charles Investiture Armchair by Alvar Aalto, 1969

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A brand new in the box 1969 Prince Charles Investiture armchair complete with the Investiture archive of document What can … Read more A brand new in the box 1969 Prince Charles Investiture armchair complete with the Investiture archive of document What can I say, this is a Museum exhibit right here, the Investiture chair alone being new old stock is rare but coming complete with the never seen before box is a bit of a unicorn find, to top it all off it comes with the original booklet Condition wise, the box is naturally well worn being a 54 year old piece of cardboard, the chair looks to be perfect apart from some moth holes at the very front, it may have the odd little mark on the seat from transport and storage but it looks as it is mostly, new old stock Dimensions Height:- 78cm Width:- 54.5cm Depth:- 52cm Seat Height:- 43cm Box dimensions, height 64cm width 55.5cm depth 46cm On 1st July 1969 Prince Charles was formally presented the title of The Prince of Wales. Broadcast to over 500 million people worldwide just four months before his 21st birthday, the young Prince saw the ceremony as ‘a way of officially dedicating one’s life or part of one’s life to Wales Held at Caernarfon Castle, the event was organised by a specially established Investiture Committee with the ceremony adapted for television by Charles’ uncle Lord Snowdon (Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon). His modern use of a transparent acrylic glass canopy above the ceremony held on a slate dias meant that mounted television cameras could bring an intimate view of the six-hour event into the homes of millions. For the 4,600 guests who attended the ceremony at Caernarfon Castle, these vermillion red investiture chairs were made. It was also Lord Snowdon who designed them, ensuring they were in-keeping with his modernisation of this historic and important ceremony The technique of laminated plywood has been utilised and celebrated by modernist designers since the 1920s.[1] Finnish architect Alvar Aalto’s innovative use of the material had a significant impact on other designers meaning its use for the investiture chairs was, by the late 1960s, a modern, yet classic choice. Upon closer inspection, the design of the chairs as a whole become representative of a collaboration between modernism and tradition. This tradition is highlighted but the use of Welsh red flannel fabric made by David Lewis Limited of Cambrian Mills in Drefach Felindre and through the recognisable gold embossed Prince of Wales’s feathers on the backs of each chair.[1] This is then contrasted with the bright use of vermillion red staining the chairs (interestingly rain was a factor for the designers when painting the chairs, they ensured they were all sealed with a clear acid catalyst lacquer so the paint would not run onto the guest’s clothes if it rained[2]) as well as the previously mentioned modernist use of laminated plywood. Due to their modernist, mass-produced design, after the event the chairs were marketed and sold flat-packed first to guests and then became available to the public at £12.00 each (equivalent to around £250 today) See less