Although now dubbed the King of Slovenian Design, Niko Kralj was for many years one of the great unsung heroes of industrial design.
The late architect and furniture designer Kralj was known for groundbreaking seating and tables that seamlessly blend functionality with an elegant economy of line. He received little recognition outside his own country, despite registering 120-plus patents and models, including those for the Mosquito bar stool — named for its winglike seat and first produced in 2012 — and a number of inventive “foldables,” like the Rex coffee table and Rex daybed for children.
Sleek and space-saving, Kralj's iconic foldable Rex rocking chair was created in 1956 — it epitomizes his sleek and laconic minimalism, conveying a sense of strength and fluidity, both in its pleasingly geometric open form and its gracefully arching folded silhouette. A contemporary version of Kralj’s mid-century masterwork is produced by the Ljubljana-based furniture company Rex Kralj.
Over the course of his career, Kralj also established close ties with such design giants as Charles and Ray Eames, Richard Buckminster Fuller, Olof Pira and Ilmari Tapiovaara, all proponents, like him, of an aesthetic that inhabits the sweet spot between elegant simplicity and pragmatism.
Today, Kralj’s timeless rocking chairs are in the collections of a number of international museums, including New York’s Museum of Modern Art, Copenhagen’s Designmuseum Denmark and the National Technical Museum Prague.
Find vintage Niko Kralj furniture on 1stDibs.
Mosquito Dining Chair in Natural Oak, Wooden Frame + Plywood, Mid-Century Modern
By Niko Kralj
Located in Ljubljana, SI
Named after its wing-like seat, the Mosquito chair is a genuine eyecatcher, an elegant piece with a touch of poetry. This innovative design proved too demanding for 1950s manufacturing methods. But thanks to the recent efforts of Rex Kralj...
Oak
Mosquito Dining Chair in Walnut, Wooden Frame and Plywood, Mid-Century Modern
By Niko Kralj
Located in Ljubljana, SI
Named after its wing-like seat, the mosquito chair is a genuine eyecatcher, an elegant piece with a touch of poetry. This innovative design proved too demanding for 1950s manufacturing methods. But thanks to the recent efforts of Rex Kralj...
Walnut
1960 Chair in Natural Oak with Metal Frame and Plywood, Mid-Century Modern Style
By Niko Kralj
Located in Ljubljana, SI
Geometric lines meet smooth curves in the 1960 chair. The fluent curves of the plywood are supported by a square frame, which creates a lightweight chair wi...
Oak
1960 Wood Chair Natural Oak, Solid Frame + Plywood, MidCentury Modern Style
By Niko Kralj
Located in Ljubljana, SI
Designed at a time when the combination of solid wood and plywood led to an unbeatable type of chair, the 1960 wood chair embodies retro chic and is built to last. The chair is easy ...
Oak
Mosquito Dining Chair in Black Oak, Wooden Frame and Plywood, Mid-Century Modern
By Niko Kralj
Located in Ljubljana, SI
Named after its wing-like seat, the Mosquito Chair is a genuine eyecatcher, an elegant piece with a touch of poetry. This innovative design proved too demanding for 1950s manufacturing methods. But thanks to the recent efforts of Rex Kralj...
Oak
1960 Wood Chair Natural Walnut, Solid Frame + Plywood, MidCentury Modern Style
By Niko Kralj
Located in Ljubljana, SI
Designed at a time when the combination of solid wood and plywood led to an unbeatable type of chair, the 1960 wood chair embodies retro chic and is built to last. The chair is easy ...
Walnut
Dining Chair In Teak Upholstered With Green Fabric By Erik Buch From 1960s
By Erik Buch
Located in Lejre, DK
Erik Buch dining chair from the 1960s in teak and green fabric. Classic Danish design. — Origin: Denmark — Designer: Erik Buch — Period: 1960s — Material: Teak wood and green fabric...
Fabric, Teak
Vienna Chair by Colé, Modern Design in Wood and Straw, Green Upholstered Seat
By Emmanuel Gallina
Located in Milan, Lombardy
Vienna is an extraordinarily comfortable and elegant chair designed by Emmanuel Gallina who loves to quote Brancusi when saying that “simplicity is complexity resolved”. Inspired to ...
Straw, Beech
Tria Simple Chair Oak and Green Upholstered Seat by Colé, Minimalist
By Lorenz+Kaz
Located in Milan, Lombardy
Essential and elegant chair with a bent plywood shell, and four iconic legs with triangular shape in solid oak, joined by transversal wooden bars. The shel is upholstered in green f...
Paint, Oak, Plywood
Cactus Natural Oak Dining Chair by Cuero Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Cactus Natural Oak Dining Chair by Cuero Design Dimensions: D 67 x W 50 x H 90 cm. Materials: Oak and metal. Finish: Natural oak and black fr...
Metal
Luc Dining Chair with Natural Oak and Paris Green
Located in Brooklyn, NY
The Luc Dining Chair with his inviting curves and a comfortable seating. When it comes to Luc chair, the playing field is the cross-section where functional design and craftsmanship ...
Fabric, Rattan, Wood
Tria Simple Chair Upholstered, Acid Green, Natural Oak Legs by Colé Italia
Located in Geneve, CH
Tria Simple chair Upholstered, Acid Green Fabric, Natural Oak Legs by Colé Italia with Lorenz & Kaz Dimensions: H 82.5, D 52, W 58 cm Materials: Plywood Chair; 4 Legs Solid Oak Bas...
Oak, Plywood
