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Jean Prouvé’s Kangourou Chair

Jean Prouvé’s Kangourou Chair

When fantasy meets rationalism

June 20, 2024

Hi friends 👋

Welcome to this week’s installment of The Midmod Corner.

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The Story 🗞️

The story of Jean Prouvé’s Kangourou chair

Among lounge chairs, few designs blend playful aesthetics and cozy comfort as effectively as Jean Prouvé's Fauteuil Kangourou. After all, what’s cozier than a kangaroo’s pouch?

Jean Prouvé (Paris, 1901 – Nancy, 1984) was a pragmatic and celebrated French designer. For him, a project had real value only if it met society's needs. As a trained metal artisan, Prouvé excelled in understanding and leveraging the strengths and weaknesses of materials such as metal, solid wood, and plywood. His designs always came with detailed instructions, specifying how many people and how much time were needed for assembly.

The Fauteuil Kangourou, which translates to "Armchair Kangaroo," is one of his lesser-known but remarkable pieces. Designed in 1948, this chair is notable not only for its distinctive shape but also for its use of oak, one of Prouvé's favorite materials.

In this chair, form follows function and so does its name. The Kangourou chair earns its marsupial-inspired moniker from its sculptural wooden “haunches.” Like a kangaroo, the chair supports most of its weight on the back legs, where the sitter exerts the greatest stress, allowing for lighter front legs made of thin steel tubes.

Originally intended for public spaces, the Fauteuil Kangourou eventually found its way into private homes. Only a few original 1948 versions exist, as it was never mass-produced.

In 2022, Vitra reissued this iconic design in a limited edition of 150 pieces, developed in collaboration with Catherine Prouvé, Jean Prouvé’s daughter.

I searched the internet to see how much it resells for and found only one listing—on sale for €8,450.

If that's a bit out of reach, like it is for me, you can settle for this t-shirt celebrating the re-edition as a consolation prize.

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